The British Columbia Longspine Thornyhead Fishery : Analysis of Survey and Commercial Data (1996-2003)

Résumé du livre

This report presents an analysis of the biomass survey conducted annually 2001-03 on the deep water population of longspine thornyheads off the west coast of Vancouver Island (WCVI). It examines the survey data in the context of a coastwide longspine fishery that began in 1996 and extended northward from WCVI into two northern regions, Tidemarks and Rennell. Because the survey has limited coverage in space and time, that analysis is compared with similar analyses of commercial catch per unit effort data in WCVI & the two northern regions, where no surveys exist. It presents an integrated framework of three mathematical models for making these comparisons: swept-area biomass estimates, standardized catch rates with fixed effects for various factors, and swept-area biomass estimates with standardized vessel effects. The paper concludes with recommendations for planning future surveys, integrating data from surveys & commercial fisheries, planning future reductions in the commercial fishery, and improving the basic biological information available for this species.