Shark Depredation and Unwanted Bycatch in Pelagic Longline

Fishing Gear and Operational Characteristics
• Fiji longline tuna fishery: In 2006 there were 66 longline
tuna vessels licensed to fish in Fiji’s EEZ. All of the vessels
are domestic Fiji flagged. These vessels are between 14-37 m
in length. The fishery operates year-round. Smaller vessels
make trips lasting about 9 days, while larger vessels’ trips
last about 30 days. The smaller vessels fish at grounds within
the Fiji EEZ while larger vessels fish on the high seas and
in the EEZs of Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. Baited
hooks are set at depths between 50-300 m. Vessels do not
use wire leaders. Vessels use sardine and pilchard for bait.
Only larger vessels use lightsticks. Smaller vessels set gear in the
early morning and haul in the afternoon. Larger vessels set gear
in the morning and haul at night.
• Italy Mediterranean industrial longline swordfish fishery:
The number of vessels in the Italy Mediterranean industrial
longline swordfish fishery is not available. There are 569 Italian
demersal and pelagic longline vessels operating in this region.
Vessels participating in the Italian Mediterranean largescale
swordfish fishery operate from June-October. Trips are
between seven and ten days long. Gear is set shallow, with baited
hooks no deeper than 60 m. Wire leaders are not used. Vessels
primarily use frozen mackerel for bait. Lightsticks are used.
Gear soaks at night.
• Japan distant water, offshore and nearshore longline fisheries:
In 2003 there were 504, 406 and 480 vessels in the distant
water, offshore and nearshore longline fleets, respectively.
Distant water vessels are > 120 mt, offshore vessels are
10-120 mt, and the smaller nearshore vessels are < 10 mt. All
three fleets operate year-round. Distant water vessel fishing
grounds range throughout the world’s oceans on trips lasting
two to three months. Offshore vessel trips last from one to
four weeks, fishing at grounds east of Japan, generally west of
180o longitude. Nearshore vessel trips generally last from one
to seven days and are based in coastal waters. Gear design and
methods for all fleets vary with targeting strategy.
• Peru artisanal longline mahi mahi and shark fisheries: There are
as many as 1,500 vessels operating in the fishery. Vessels are
about 15 m long. Mahi mahi is the main target species during
the austral summer. Sharks are target species from autumn to
spring. Fishers target mahi mahi seasonally when this species is
abundant in coastal waters. It is more profitable to target mahi
mahi at this time of year relative to targeting sharks due to the
shorter distance to fishing grounds and shorter trip length, with
concomitant reduced costs for fuel and food, but the value of
shark meat is usually > than that of mahi mahi. Vessels may
travel up to 900 km from shore during the shark season. Mahi
mahi trips typically last 5-7 days and shark trips last 15-20 days.
Baited hooks are set at depths between 10-16 m. Wire leaders are
not typically used during the mahi mahi season but are used
during the shark season to maximize shark retention and reduce
gear loss. Giant squid, mackerel and flying fish are used for bait.
Lightsticks are not used. Gear soaks during the daytime.
• South Africa longline swordfish and tuna fishery: There are
about 17 South Africa-flagged vessels in this fishery. In 2006
the fishery was divided into two sectors, where permits are now
issued separately for vessels targeting tuna or swordfish. The
domestic fishery primarily targets swordfish. Vessel lengths
range from 19 - 56 m. The fishery operates year-round. Trips
last about 14 days. Vessels fish at grounds off the West coast
of South Africa mainly on the continental shelf. Hooks are set
shallow, seldom deeper than 40 m. Wire leaders are prohibited.
Squid is predominantly used for bait, with some fish bait (pilchard
and mackerel) mixed in. Lightsticks are usually used. Gear soaks
at night.
• U.S. Hawaii longline swordfish and tuna fisheries: In 2005
there were 125 active vessels in the Hawaii longline swordfish
and tuna fisheries. Vessels are 10-31 m long. The tuna fishery
operates year-round. The swordfish fishery is subject to annual
turtle and effort caps, causing the fishery to occasionally close
before the end of each calendar year. Tuna vessels make trips
of about 21 days, fishing at grounds in the Western and central
Pacific Ocean. Swordfish vessels make trips of about 30 days,
fishing at grounds in the Eastern Pacific and Western and central
Pacific Ocean. Tuna vessels set baited hooks at depths between
35-224 m, while swordfish vessels set hooks shallower, between
25-69 m. Most tuna vessels use a wire trace, use fish for bait and
are prohibited from using lightsticks. Swordfish vessels do not
use a wire trace, use fish for bait (squid is prohibited for use as
bait to address sea turtle interactions), and use lightsticks. Tuna
gear soaks during the day while swordfish gear soaks at night.