Status of Stocks: Fisheries Interaction Team
In late 2000 the Fishery Interaction Team (FIT) was formed to investigate the effects of commercial fishing on top trophic level consumers. Members of the team are currently conducting studies to determine whether commercial fishing operations are capable of impacting the foraging success of Steller sea lions either through disturbance of prey schools or through direct competition for a common prey. The present research focus is on the three major groundfish prey of sea lions: walleye pollock, Pacific cod and Atka mackerel.
FIT investigates the potential effects of commercial fishing on sea lion prey fields in two ways. First, by conducting field studies to directly examine the impact of fishing on sea lion prey fields and to evaluate the efficacy of trawl exclusion zones. The impetus for this work is to evaluate the hypothesis that commercial fishing may reduce the the availability of prey in localized areas. The home range of a foraging Steller sea lion could be considered a localized area. A reduction in prey availability may result from a reduction in prey abundance and/or a disruption in the spatial patterns of sea lion prey. Since 2000 FIT has been conducting field studies to examine the impact of fishing on sea lion prey fields in all three major Alaska regions: the Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, and Aleutian Islands.
The second way that FIT investigates the potential effects of commercial fishing on sea lion prey is by studying fish abundance, distribution, behavior and life history at spatial scales relevant to sea lion foraging (tens of nautical miles). This scale is much smaller than the spatial scales at which groundfish population dynamics are usually studied and at which stocks are assessed. This information is needed to construct a localized, spatially-explicit model of sea lion prey field dynamics that can be used to predict spatial and temporal shifts in the distribution and abundance of sea lion prey and potential effects of fishing on these prey fields. Studies of fish movement are a critical first step toward developing such a model. For example, regulations that assume fish remain stationary may not be effective if small-scale fish distributions are fluid. Likewise, localized consequences of fishing may be rendered undetectable using methods that assume that fish are stationary in time and place. Studies of fish reproductive dynamics are needed to assess variability in spawning condition over space and time and thus to improve our understanding of the processes underlying fish movement. In addition, spawning condition effects the nutritional value of prey seasonally. Fish food habits and growth are also important components of a model of sea lion prey field dynamics. FIT scientists thus are engaged in several studies of local fish ecology (e.g., movement, reproduction, and feeding).
Contact
If you have any questions about FIT, please contact
team leader Libby Logerwell (libby.logerwell@noaa.gov
or 1-206-526-4231).
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Recent Publications, Poster Presentations, Reports & Activities |
- Fishery Interaction Team (FIT) Presentations to North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC). Online.
- Sampling for estimation of catch composition in Bering Sea trawl fisheries
CONNERS, M. E., J. CAHALAN, S. GAICHAS, W. A. KARP, T. LOOMIS, and J. WATSON.
2009. Sampling for estimation of catch composition in Bering Sea trawl fisheries, 77 p. U.S. Dep. Commer., NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS-AFSC-199, 77p. (.pdf, 2.33 MB). Online.
- Aleutian Islands cooperative acoustic survey study for 2006.
BARBEAUX, S. J., and D. FRASER.
2009. Aleutian Islands cooperative acoustic survey study for 2006. U.S. Dep. Commer., NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS-AFSC-198, 91 p. (.pdf, 4.15 MB). Online.
- Through-ice sampling workshop.
RAND, K., and E. LOGERWELL.
2009. Through-ice sampling workshop. AFSC Processed Rep. 2009-02, 52 p. Alaska Fish. Sci. Cent., NOAA, Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle WA 98115. (.pdf, 1.86 MB). Online.
- Effects of commercial fishing on local abundance of Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) in the Bering Sea.
CONNERS, M. E., and P. MUNRO.
2008. Effects of commercial fishing on local abundance of Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) in the Bering Sea. Fish. Bull., U.S. 106:281-292. (.pdf, 948KB) Online.
- The effect of oceanographic variability and interspecific competition on juvenile pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) and capelin (Mallotus villosus) distributions on the Gulf of Alaska shelf.
LOGERWELL, E. A., P. J. STABENO, C. D. WILSON, and A. B. HOLLOWED.
2007. The effect of oceanographic variability and interspecific competition on juvenile pollock (Theragra chalcogramma) and capelin (Mallotus villosus) distributions on the Gulf of Alaska shelf. Deep Sea Res. II 54:2849-2868.
- Natural mortality rate, annual fecundity, and maturity at length for Greenland halibut (Reinhardtius hippoglossoides) from the northeastern Pacific Ocean.
COOPER, D. W., K. P. MASLENIKOV, and D. R. GUNDERSON.
2007. Natural mortality rate, annual fecundity, and maturity at length for Greenland halibut (Reinhardtius hippoglossoides) from the northeastern Pacific Ocean. Fish. Bull., U.S. 105:296-304. (.pdf, 920KB). Online.
- Whole-gear efficiency of a benthic survey trawl for flatfish.
SOMERTON, D. A., P. T. MUNRO, and K. L. WEINBERG.
2007. Whole-gear efficiency of a benthic survey trawl for flatfish. Fish. Bull., U.S. 105:278-291. (.pdf, 602KB). Online.
- Annual fecundity, batch fecundity, and oocyte atresia of Atka mackerel (Pleurogrammus monopterygius) in Alaskan waters.
McDERMOTT, S. F., K. P. MASLENIKOV, and D. R. GUNDERSON.
2007. Annual fecundity, batch fecundity, and oocyte atresia of Atka mackerel (Pleurogrammus monopterygius) in Alaskan waters. Fish. Bull., U.S. 105:19-29. (.pdf, 662KB) Online.
- Estimating Pacific Cod Movement: Design of a Mark-Recapture Experiment on a Large Geographic Scale
By: PETER MUNRO, YUNBING SHI, DON GUNDERSON, DAN URBAN
Conference: Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2009
(2009 poster, .pdf, 6.47MB) Online.
- A Cooperative Pollock Acoustic Biomass Survey for Management of Fisheries Interactions with Steller Sea Lions in the Aleutian Islands
By: ELIZABETH LOGERWELL, STEVE BARBEAUX, LOWELL FRITZ
Conference: Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2009
(2009 poster, .pdf, 644KB) Online.
- Using Cooperative Acoustic Surveys on Fishing Vessels to Monitor Ecosystem Impacts of Alaska Pollock Fisheries
By: MARTIN W. DORN, SUZANNE ROMAIN, STEVEN BARBEAUX, VIDAR WESPESTAD
Conference: SEAFACTS International Symposium on the Ecosystem Approach..., Bergen, Norway, June 2008
(2008 poster, .pdf, 374KB) Online.
- Are Catch Limits the Best Way to Manage a Non-Target Species? Lessons from the Alaskan Groundfish Fishery
By: REBECCA F. REUTER, ELIZABETH CONNERS, JANE DiCOSIMO, SARAH GAICHAS, OLAV ORMSETH, TODD T. TENBRINK
Conference: NMFS National Stock Assessment Workshop, Port Townsend, WA, Mar 2008
(2008 poster, .pdf, 5MB) Online.
- The Aleutian Islands Cooperative Acoustic Survey Study (AICASS): Towards a Local-scale Pollock and Steller Sea Lion Management Strategy
By: STEVEN J. BARBEAUX, LIBBY LOGERWELL, SUZANNE ROMAIN
Conference: Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
(2008 poster, .pdf, 3.76M) Online.
- Distribution and Feeding Ecology of Juvenile Walleye Pollock and Capelin in the Gulf of Alaska Relative to Local Hydrography and Zooplankton Distribution
By: E. A. LOGERWELL, J. T. DUFFY-ANDERSON, M. T. WILSON, P. LIVINGSTON
Conference: Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
(2008 poster, .pdf, 1.64M) Online.
- The Effects of Climate Change on Walleye Pollock Spawning Habitat in the Eastern Bering Sea
By: ANNE B. HOLLOWED, MARISSA SMITH, STEVEN J. BARBEAUX, JAMES N. IANELLI, SIGRID SALO
Conference: Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2008
(2008 poster, .pdf, 3.19MB) Online.
See the publications and poster databases for additional listings.
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