Southern bluefin tuna >6.4kg Bigeye tuna >3.2kg Yellowfin tuna >3.2kg Swordfish >119cm LJFL / >18kg dressed Marlins >210cm LJFL

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1 SANBI IDentifyIt - Species Albacore/Longfin Tuna - Thunnus alalunga Geographic location / distribution Habitat : Albacore is an oceanic species, seldom coming close to shore as they prefer deep, wide open waters. They are a temperate tuna species and prefers cooler sea temperatures (10 C -20 C) than more tropical tuna like Yellowfin. In South African waters therefore, albacore is caught only in the months of October - March by the pole fishery, when the tuna occupy coastal waters. (Longfin move northwards during the summer (meaning good catches in southern Namibia Dec-March), and move back South to the Cape Point area during Autumn. By June, the longfin caught by SA boats will be by longliners as the tuna move firther offshore out of reach of the pole boats.) The Atlantic population is separated into the Mediterranean stock, the North Atlantic stock and South Atlantic albacore stock. Fishery Albacore is targeted by both the tuna longline and tuna pole fisheries in South Africa (majority exported for canning). South Africa also imports albacore: MSC certified albacore from the North Pacific seas, and longlined albacore from the Indian Ocean. The tuna pole fishery is a small fishery which lands albacore fresh for the export market, and has a fishing season from October - March each year, when the albacore occupies coastal water. Pole boats fish for up to 5-10 days at a time and will not venture as far offshore as longliners. Using a pole and line is a selective form of fishing and not much bycatch is caught. However, seabirds and sharks do occasionally get caught on the line and should be released alive. Other fish species are caught and are managed by catch limits: Daily bag limit of 10 yellowtail per crew member Species not allowed to be caught: Chokka and Mackerel spp. Domestic and joint venture vessels as well as foreign vessels may land albacore at our port along with the targeted catch of Yellowfin, Bigeye and Bluefin Tuna, mostly aimed for the export market. Longlining is not a very selective form of fishing and many species are caught accidentally on the the hooks. Bycatch species in this fishery include: billfishes (swordfish, marlins etc), seabirds, turtles and sharks. Bycatch restrictions therefore exist to protect vulnerable species: The bycatch of billfish cannot exceed 10% of the total tuna catch A precautionary catch limit of 25 seabirds has been set for tuna longline vessels, after which further management restrictions are enforced Shark fins need to be landed with their trunks, with the fins not exceeding 5% of the weight of the trunk Any Bigeye, Swordfish or Southern Bluefin tuna landed must be accompanies by the relevant RFMO (ICCAT, IOTC or CCSBT) catch statistical document. Size limits Southern bluefin tuna >6.4kg Bigeye tuna >3.2kg Yellowfin tuna >3.2kg Swordfish >119cm LJFL / >18kg dressed Marlins >210cm LJFL Stock status Indian ocean - Appears to be overfished (also: status red on the sassi list due to stock status and bycatch) Atlantic ocean - The southern stock is believed to be slightly overfished, although the results of a 2009 stock assessment are needed to confirm stock status. Pacific Ocean (imported MSC albacore) - Currently at sustainable levels

2 Fisheries management Albacore falls within the management of the large pelagic fishery, and due to its widespread and migratory habits in both oceans, it is managed by Regional Fisheries Management Organisations in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. South Africa is a member of ICCAT and a co-operating non-member of IOTC and CCSBT. Although RFMO's manage high seas fisheries, management recommendations and resolutions are implemented by South Africa through national legislation and permit conditions. Tuna is managed by a Total Allowable Effort (TAE), meaning that instead of setting a limit on the catch, a limit is set on the number of rights holders allowed to catch tuna. Currently there is a limit of 200 rights holders in SA (including pole and longline). In the Pacific Ocean, albacore is managed by the Inter American Tropical Tuna Commission and the Western and Central Pacific Ocean Fisheries Commission. Maturity and Sizes Albacore reach maturity after 5 years, at a size of (on average) 90cm (15 kg). Maximum FL = over 130cm. Pole vessels tend to take smaller catches than longiners. Other similar species Thunnus albacares - Yellowfin Tuna Thunnus obesus - Big-Eye Tuna Thunnus maccoyii - Southern Bluefin Tuna Katsuwonus pelamis - Skipjack Tuna References SASSI status FAO fact sheets Fishery Resource Monitoring System Fact Sheets: ICCAT Tuna fact sheets. ICAT Manual. January FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department. Biological characteristics of tuna/individual species sheets. FI Institutional Websites. Text by Michel Goujon and Jacek Majkowski. In: FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department[online]. Rome. Updated 24 February [Cited 30 November 2010]. Website: Albacore Tuna P hotographer: Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain Copy right/website: Public Domain

3 Albacore / Longfin Tuna. Photographer: NOAA, USA. Albacore Tuna. P hotographer: Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain Copy right/website: Public Domain

4 Albacore Tuna. Photographer: P Roaming-the-planet Copyright/Website: Roaming-the-planet / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 Albacore Tune P hotographer: Joachim Langeneck Copy right/website: Joachim Langeneck / CC BY-SA 4.0

5 Copy right/website: TRAFFIC

6 Tuna Species Comparison. Copy right/website: TRAFFIC General Tuna Identification. Photographer: Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) Copyright/Website: FAO Copyright All rights reserved.

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