CAN PURSE SEINERS TARGET YELLOWFIN TUNA

Both purse seine and longline fleets exploit yellowfin tuna in the western Pacific region. Management options available to achieve the optimal allocation of the yellowfin stock depend on whether purse seiners can control the species mix of their catch by targeting their fishing effort. A fishing strategy to target effort on juvenile yellowfin is discussed, and a supply model based on a revenue maximizing framework is estimated using data of Japanese and U.S. purse seine vessels in Papua New Guinea. The hypothesis of targeting is confirmed for the more modern U.S. fleet, but not for the more traditional Japanese vessels.