Research Document - 2000/168
Estimated Bycatch in the British Columbia Shrimp Trawl Fishery.
By N. Olsen, J.A. Boutillier, and L. Convey
Abstract
This paper is the third in a series of PSARC documents that utilise data from the bycatch sampling programme to address the issue of bycatch in the British Columbia shrimp trawl fishery. The first two papers dealt specifically with the bycatch of halibut and eulachon, while the focus of the current paper is to provide information on the bycatch of other non-target species in the shrimp-by-trawl fishery.
Bycatch sampling took place from 1997 to 1999 in 20 different Shrimp Management Areas. The majority of the sampling was conducted on otter trawlers off the West Coast of Vancouver Island and in Queen Charlotte Sound. Coverage of beam trawlers was more limited and focused on inshore areas and the Strait of Georgia.
Beam trawler bycatch was dominated by Selachii (dogfish, ratfish, and skates), followed by commercial flatfish, commercial roundfish, non-commercial roundfish, non-commercial invertebrates, and prawns. Selachii were particularly prevalent in beam trawl catches from the Strait of Georgia and Johnstone Strait. Otter trawl bycatch was dominated by eulachon, commercial flatfish, non-commercial roundfish, commercial roundfish, and Selachii.
Total estimated bycatch of beam trawls was generally higher than otter trawls both in terms of weight, and the percent of the total catch weight. Beam trawls from the Strait of Georgia had the highest ratios of bycatch to recorded catch. Otter trawls generally had much lower ratios of estimated bycatch to recorded catch, a notable exception being Area PRD in 1997.
The authors note that current levels of bycatch sampling are not adequate to address coastwide bycatch issues and recommend that specific bycatch concerns be identified and appropriate programmes developed to address those concerns. Alternatively, if monitoring of bycatch coastwide continues to be an objective, the authors recommend that a more expensive programme be considered that will provide greater sampling effort. In addition, they support the establishment of a multi-sector working group to address bycatch issues in all fisheries.
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