UNIT 14 PACIFIC COAST AND ALASKA PELAGIC FISHERIES INTRODUCTION Several stocks of small pelagic fish along the Pacific and Alaska coasts provide important sources of food, bait, and industrial fishery products. Major stocks include northern anchovy, Pacific sardine, jack and chub (Pacific) mackerel, and Pacific herring (Table 14-1). The U.S. anchovy fishery is managed under the Northern Anchovy Fishery Management Plan (FMP), while Pacific sardine, jack mackerel, and chub mackerel are managed by the State of California. Jack mackerel north of lat. 39 N are managed under the Pacific Coast Groundfish FMP. All four species are harvested by purse seiners off California and Baja California. During the 1930's and early 1940's, Pacific sardine supported the largest fishery in the western hemisphere (25% of all fish landed in the United States). Sardine abundance and catches declined after World War II, and the stock finally collapsed in the early 1960's, bringing about a complete moratorium on the fishery beginning in the 1967-68 season. The sardine stock has recently begun to show signs of improvement (Table 14-1), and a small fishery for them has been allowed since 1986. In 1946, U.S. processors began to can anchovies in quantity, as a substitute for the failing sardine fishery. Anchovy canning declined in the late 1950's. In 1965, due to an increase in anchovy biomass, the California Fish and Game Commission authorized a 75,000 t harvest solely for reduction purposes (conversion to meal, oil, and soluble protein). The southern California jack mackerel stock has been fished since the late 1940's, when it was used as a market substitute for the dwindling sardine stocks. Jack mackerel are utilized by the fishery in about the same manner as chub mackerel, but they are harder to catch, less valuable, and delivered in smaller quantities. Recently, there has been some interest in developing an offshore fishery for this underutilized resource. Chub (or Pacific) mackerel supports one of California's more important fisheries and has been the mainstay of the purse seine fleet in recent years. The fishery started in the late 1920's, rose to its peak in 1935, declined in 1953, and in 1967 hit an all-time low. Strong year classes appeared in the late 1970's, and abundance increased dramatically after 1977. But abundance is now thought to be declining. Chub mackerel are harvested by commercial fisheries in California and Mexico and sold fresh, canned for human consumption and pet food, and also is reduced to fish meal and oil. Pacific herring are fished in all Pacific Coast States, which are responsible for the monitoring and management of their respective fisheries. This report covers only information on herring taken in Alaska state waters, where 20 separate herring fisheries are regulated and monitored by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG). Since the early 1970's, fishermen have concentrated on harvesting roe-herring, though some are taken for bait. Herring was harvested in the eastern Bering Sea within the U.S. EEZ by foreign fisheries from 1959 to 1980, when allocations for foreign fishing ended. SPECIES AND STATUS Northern Anchovy The central subpopulation of the northern anchovy, which supports U.S. fisheries, has been fished in both California and Mexico for reduction, bait (live or frozen) for anglers, fresh or canned fish for human consumption, animal food, and anchovy paste. Anchovy landings in California (Fig. 14-1) have fluctuated between less than 10,000 t to nearly 150,000 t since the beginning of the fishery in response to market conditions. Since 1983, U.S. landings have been low (less than 10,000 t), and anchovies have been used mostly for live bait and other nonreduction uses. Anchovy biomass (Fig. 14-1) averaged 290,000 t during 1964-72, increased rapidly to 1,120,000 t in 1974, and declined to 380,000 t in 1982. Biomass increased to about 1,100,000 t in 1986 and then declined to about 300,000 t in the early 1990's. Although total anchovy harvests since 1983 have been less than the theoretical maximum sustainable yield and the historical levels before 1983, abundance continues to decline slowly. Annual harvests declined dramatically after 1990 because the Mexican reduction fishery became unprofitable and ceased. No numerical limits are placed on the live-bait catch in the United States, but there is a 7,000 t quota for other nonreduction uses. Regulations also specify an optimum yield for the reduction fishery based on the biomass of spawning fish. The well-being of other species, especially the endangered brown pelican which feeds on northern anchovies, is important in anchovy management. Thus, there is a threshold in the optimum-yield formula for the reduction fishery to prevent anchovy depletion and provide adequate forage for marine fishes, mammals, and birds. As a final safeguard against depletion, the management plan closes all fisheries in the second year if the spawning biomass falls below 50,000 t for two consecutive years; the closure continues in subsequent years until the spawning biomass equals or exceeds 50,000 t. Pacific Sardine The California fishery for Pacific sardine dominated the landings of this species, but fisheries also existed off Oregon, Washington, Mexico, and British Columbia when sardines were abundant (Fig. 14-2). In the past, sardines were harvested for fish meal, bait, and human consumption. Currently, there is no fish meal (reduction) fishery, but some sardines are taken for human consumption and bait. Pacific sardine numbers off southern California are now increasing. Since 1986, stock biomass has increased about 40%/year, and the current biomass is at least 100,000 t. Commercial demand for sardines is strong and, as catch quotas grow, the fishery is expected to thrive. Beginning in 1986, only small annual quotas have been allowed for commercial harvest, but quota levels have begun to rise as biomass has increased. Jack Mackerel The large adult jack mackerel found offshore are sometimes caught incidentally by trawlers, particularly those targeting Pacific whiting. During the 1970's, foreign whiting trawlers may have caught 1,000-2,000 t annually, but foreign and joint-venture catches in the 1980's dropped to 100 t or less. The foreign trawl fisheries of the 1970's resulted in jack mackerel management being placed in the groundfish FMP and a bycatch quota of 12,000 t/year (north of lat. 39 N) was set. Restrictions on fishing for other groundfish species, including whiting, were thus avoided. In 1991, interest increased and the catch limit was raised to 52,000 t to allow a mackerel fishery to develop. While that fishery has not yet materialized, strong signs of commercial interest continue. The purse seine fishery for jack mackerel has continued at a low level. There is currently no catch limit. Jack mackerel has a rather broad distribution, and the stocks consist of a wide variety of ages and sizes. This makes assessment and management difficult. Mackerel stocks are thought to amount to about 1.5 million t, but their potential yield is little more than an educated guess. Development of more reliable estimates of stock size and potential yield awaits collection of more data on age structure and reproductive biology, which could allow interpretation of existing egg and larval survey data. Chub (Pacific) Mackerel The chub (Pacific) mackerel has a worldwide distribution in temperate and subtropical seas. In the eastern Pacific it ranges from central Mexico to southeast-ern Alaska, including the Gulf of California, and is most abundant south of Point Conception, Calif. From 1980 to 1989, the California recreational catch averaged 1,462 t per year. Chub mackerel biomass declined from almost 400,000 t in the early 1930's to less than 100,000 t in the late 1940's and early 1950's. After a brief resurgence in the early 1960's, chub mackerel biomass declined to around 10,000 t (or lower) and remained low until strong year-classes appeared in the late 1970's. Abundance increased dramatically after 1977 and probably exceeded 200,000 t in every year during the 1980's. Biomass was estimated at about 240,000 t in 1989 but is thought to be declining at present. Analyses of fish-scale deposits in ocean bottom sediments off southern California indicate that the prolonged period of high mackerel biomass levels during the late 1970's and 1980's may have been unusual, and would only be expected to occur, on average, about once every 60 years. In 1985, it was estimated that chub mackerel might sustain average yields of from 26,000 to 29,000 t per year under management systems similar to that currently used to manage the stock by the State of California. The commercial catch is not currently restricted by a quota if the estimated biomass is greater than 135,000 t. If the biomass is between 18,000 and 135,000 t, then a quota equal to 30% of the biomass above 18,000 t is applied. If the biomass is below 18,000 t, then commercial fishing stops. Pacific Herring Pacific herring in the Gulf of Alaska occurs mainly off southeastern Alaska, in Prince William Sound, and around Kodiak Island-Cook Inlet. Northern Bristol Bay and Norton Sound are major centers of abundance in the Bering Sea. As previously mentioned, herring fisheries occur within state waters and are managed by the ADFG. In recent decades, the fishing industry has concentrated on harvesting roe-herring, though a small amount is taken for food, bait, and other uses. Herring were harvested in the eastern Bering Sea by foreign fleets from 1959 to 1980 when foreign fishing allocations were discontinued. In 1992, 58,069 t of herring with ex-vessel revenue of $31.5 million were harvested. Most was composed of roe-herring (58,000 t), and the rest went for food and bait (8,000 t) and roe-on-kelp (700 t). Gulf of Alaska harvests have averaged 18,000 t since 1977 (Fig. 14-4). Bering Sea catches rose from 14,000 t in 1977 to a peak catch of nearly 37,000 t in 1985. From 1985 to 1991, the Bering Sea catch declined, but it increased again in 1992. Herring taken in the Bering Sea groundfish fishery cannot be retained but are counted as part of the catch. Herring bycatch has averaged 2,000-4,000 t per year in the groundfish trawl fishery. Overall herring abundance in the Gulf of Alaska is at moderate-to-high levels, though some stocks are depressed or declining. A strong 1984 year class is present in most Alaska fisheries. A very strong 1988 year class is reported in south-eastern Alaska and Prince William Sound, which will probably increase the abundance of herring in the Gulf of Alaska during 1993. Abundance of herring in the Bering Sea has been declining in the southeast but is stable to increasing in the northeast. ISSUES Transboundary Stocks and Jurisdiction Mackerels, sardines, and anchovies are transboundary stocks exploited by both U.S. and Mexican fleets, but no bilateral management agreement has yet been reached. Harvest levels are increasing in Mexican waters, and the absence of a governing bilateral agreement is undermining management of the fisheries in U.S. waters. Underutilized Species Jack mackerel is an underutilized species, while the Pacific sardine is increasing in abundance after decades at low levels. These species may support an increased harvest by U.S. fishermen in the near future. Sardine management will require carefully balancing the need to rehabilitate the stock for the long-term and the immediate needs of fisheries. Progress During the last two years, new stock assessment models were developed for northern anchovy, Pacific sardine, and chub mackerel. The new models are more reliable and precise than earlier models used to estimate biomass for these stocks. Fish spotter data, obtained inexpensively from pilots employed by commercial fishermen, are now used routinely in stock assessment models for northern anchovy, Pacific sardine, and chub mackerel. Information about trends in abundance from fish spotters supplements California Cooperative Oceanic Fisheries Investigation (CalCOFI) ichthyoplankton data used in assessment models to estimate biomass. NMFS scientists continue to work closely with state biologists and the Pacific Fishery Management Council in managing the stocks. Reports on the status of the current fishery and anchovy stock were completed in 1991.