EDFish

Selected tag(s): Red Snapper

Scientists Say Gulf Red Snapper May Be Making a Comeback

By Pam Baker / Bio / Published: December 8, 2009

Red snapper (7)

Last week the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council’s Science and Statistical Committee updated its regional red snapper stock assessment and found signs that the population, though not recovered, is finally beginning to make a comeback. There is work ahead and many unknowns remain, but this looks like great news for fishermen, local communities and the environment.

At its February meeting, the Council will likely increase the quantity of fish that fishermen are allowed to catch. Commercial fishermen working under a successful red snapper management plan called an Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) will have a good chance to be rewarded with more fish next year (and beyond). This sector poses little risk because fishermen are living within their catch limits, they have reduced the number of fish that must be thrown overboard dying to comply with closed season and size limit regulations, and they follow strict monitoring and accountability rules. At the same time, IFQ management has helped fishermen improve and stabilize dockside prices, reduce the costs to harvest fish, and provide higher quality fish to consumers.

On the other hand, it is less certain how the recreational fishery will fare. This is because the sector’s management plan is not working and fails to help anglers abide by their scientifically-safe catch limit. Any potential change in the amount of fish a sector is allowed to bring to shore must account for such past and anticipated overharvests. Read More »

Posted in Gulf of Mexico / Also tagged gulf council, Gulf of Mexico, Individual Fishing Quota, stock assessment | Read 1 Response

“Dock Talk” Shows that Books Can Only Take You So Far

By Sarah Hagedorn Bowman / Bio / Published: September 14, 2009

Snapper Off-load in Destin, FL At a recent meeting in Destin, FL, where members of our Gulf and South Atlantic teams met to discuss collaborative projects, I had the opportunity to see a commercial boat offloading its catch after a three day fishing trip. What an experience!

As multitudes of red snapper, vermilion snapper, and grey triggerfish were loaded off the boat and put on ice, I took the opportunity to meet with the Captain and crew and ask questions. I learned what species are caught together, and therefore which species probably share the same habitat.

The Captain told me about the places he goes fishing, what depths he fishes, what gear he uses, and how far out he goes. It was interesting to learn that many of the species he co-catches in the Gulf are same species that are caught together in the South Atlantic. It reaffirmed for me, from a shared habitat and ecosystem point of view, that collaboration between the South Atlantic and Gulf teams is beneficial and even critical.

The Captain explained that he is pleased with the recent red snapper catch share program because he doesn’t have to go as far to catch fish since the red snapper stock seems to have expanded. He also doesn’t have to throw nearly as many fish back overboard. His job is more profitable and takes less time. Who wouldn’t be happy with that?

Additionally, a National Marine Fisheries Service biologist was on hand taking otolith (ear bone) samples from fish to take back to the agency’s lab. This random sampling of otoliths was taken in order to determine the ages of the fish that were caught. Under a microscope, an otolith has rings on it, like a tree trunk, that can be counted to age the fish. She even showed me how to take an otolith sample!

Overall, I learned a valuable lesson. As a fisheries scientist, it is imperative to get out in the field and ask fishermen questions. As I think about how a catch share program would work for the snapper grouper fishery in the South Atlantic, it is important for me to understand the biological aspects of fish that are caught together and share the same habitat. These aspects must be factored into a successful catch share program.

Fishermen are good at what they do and have insightful knowledge into the oceans they depend upon to make a living. This type of information and insight can’t be learned in a book, sometimes you just have to get out on the docks.

Posted in Gulf of Mexico / Also tagged dock talk, red snapper IFQ, science, South Atlantic, Southeast | Comments are closed

Catch Shares Success as Big as Texas

By Heather Paffe / Bio / Published: September 10, 2009

red snapper in buckets When the largest paper in Texas (.42 million readers) puts catch shares on its front page, you know it’s worth talking about. This Saturday the Houston Chronicle wrote an article titled “Catch and Relief: A new share system for fishing red snapper in the Gulf appears to benefit anglers, as well as the species suffering from overfishing.”

The story features commercial fisherman Buddy Guindon, who also owns Katie’s Seafood in Galveston, TX. He owns quota in the Gulf of Mexico’s commercial red snapper individual fishing quota (IFQ) program, a type of catch share.

An interesting excerpt:

“At first, the concept of individual shares so worried Guindon that he sold one of his two seafood markets as a pre-emptive move. Two years later, Guindon said he is catch half the fish but making more money. The new system allows him to reduce expenses because his boats can take longer and more fuel-efficient trips while increasing revenue by fishing when the Gulf is safe and dockside prices are high.”

Check out the full story.

Posted in Gulf of Mexico / Also tagged Gulf of Mexico, Individual Fishing Quota, red snapper IFQ | Comments are closed

New Red Snapper IFQ Report Raises Hope for Other Troubled Fisheries

By Pam Baker / Bio / Published: August 21, 2009

No matter how many scientific studies emerge confirming the benefits of catch shares, you always have opponents who say catch shares may work in “theory,” but still have doubts about their real-life application.

However, it’s hard to refute on-the-ground, tangible results, like those shown down in the Gulf of Mexico.

This week the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) released the 2008 annual report reviewing the progress of its Gulf of Mexico commercial red snapper individual fishing quota program (IFQ), which is a type of catch share.

The report shows continued success for red snapper two years into the program, and provides additional support for implementing IFQs to rebuild other troubled fisheries.

The report’s conservation highlights include:

Overfishing is being reversed in the commercial fishery.
Fishermen have caught under less than allotment by 2.5-4.0 percent in the past two years.
Fishermen cut their ratio of wasted fish to fish taken to the docks by almost 70 percent. (Before the IFQ, for every fish a fisherman kept, he threw one back dead. Now, fishermen only throw one back for every three to four that they keep.)

The report’s economic highlights include:

Long season closures and extreme market swings have been eliminated.
With year-round fishing, fishermen bring high quality fish to the dock when consumer demand is high, helping their businesses remain profitable.
The price fishermen pay for quota, the long-term privilege to catch red snapper, rose by 37 percent, reflecting optimism for a healthy fishery and a commitment to conservation.

With the conservation gains seen in the commercial red snapper fishery in just a few years, we are optimistic that rebuilding is getting underway and the payoff might be a rising catch limit in the near future. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council is on the right track by considering IFQs and other catch share plans for many of its other commercial and sport fisheries that are in dire need of better management.

The NMFS report concludes that the commercial red snapper fishery is on the right track, and it identifies a few ways that it can be improved. For example, the mislabeling of fish needs to be stopped, and better ways are needed to count dead fish that some vessels continue to throw overboard, especially off of the Florida peninsula coast.

Posted in Gulf of Mexico / Also tagged catch share, Gulf of Mexico, IFQ, NMFS | Read 4 Responses

Recovering from Hurricane Ike in the Gulf of Mexico

By Laura Williamson / Published: May 20, 2009

Fishermen under IFQs were able to keep their businesses going after Hurricane Ike. Eight months after Hurricane Ike slammed Texas’ largest fishing community, Galveston is steadily recovering from the storm. Red snapper fishermen under IFQ management kept their businesses going because they could fish later in the year and lease quota to others when they couldn’t fish themselves. Read more.

Destroyed Kemp’s ridley turtle habitat
Endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles have shown a strong come-back in recent years. Unfortunately, Hurricane Ike damaged and piled debris on their South Padre Island nesting beaches. Volunteers worked to restore and clean up the sites before the turtles’ nesting season, which began last month. Experts are hopeful that these efforts will help Kemp’s ridleys keep recovering. Read more.

Posted in Gulf of Mexico / Also tagged Gulf of Mexico, hurricane ike, IFQ, kemp's ridley, sea turtle | Comments are closed