Development and Trials of Deep-set Buoy Gear Off the California Coast Agenda Item I.1.c Supplemental SWFSC PowerPoint (Chugey Sepulveda) March 2013 PFMC Research Update 2013 Chugey Sepulveda, PhD Scott Aalbers, MS Craig Heberer, MS, NOAA
Research Overview Phase I PIER award to design and test deep-set buoy gear in Southern California (NOAA funded project) Phase II Collaborative studies on assessing movements and deep-set gear trials above Point Conception (PLCA) PIER- tagging and deep-set buoy gear trials NOAA- tagging and deep-set long line trials Phase III Alternative DSBG configurations within the SCB
Phase I Saltonstall-Kennedy award to design and test deep-set buoy gear in Southern California What is Buoy Gear? How does it compare to DGN, LL, Harpoon? Where is it currently used? How does the proposed gear differ from that currently used in Florida?
Florida- shallow set at night CA- Deep set during the day
5 am 10 am 3 pm 8 pm Time of Day Gear configuration based on depth distribution of target and bycatch species DGN Harpoon DGN Thermocline CA Buoy Gear Swordfish Daily Depth Distribution
Year 1 Objectives Environmental Assessment Gear development R/V Malolo Initiate first fishing trials Refine gear and set protocols Choose cooperative fisher for year 2 PFMC Research Update 2013
Gear Design Cost effective Easy to use 550 mainline 400 leader 18/0 circle hooks 46 lb float 8 lb float Lobster float Flag & radar reflector Total set-up cost for 10 sets of gear ~$4,000
Gear Experiments and Design 8-lb lead Below thermocline in <1 minute At depth in <4 minutes Leader lengths Light source Buoy configuration Depth Time 19:12 20:24 21:36 22:48 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450
Set Characteristics & Protocols Strike indication Gear is continuously monitored Pulled upon strike 2011 set totals 22 sets total (10 pieces of gear/set) (7 - gear set-up trials in June and July) No lost gear PFMC Research Update 2013
Catch totals for year 1 Based on 22 4-hour sets (10 pieces/set) 4 Swordfish (~90-150 kg) 4 Bigeye thresher sharks (~70-180 kg) 2 Blue sharks (~18-20 kg) * All came up alive PFMC Research Update 2013
Video of SCB buoy gear trials (2011 to 2012) can be viewed at www.pier.org PFMC Research Update 2013
PFMC Research Update 2013 Year 2 Objectives Conduct fishing trials similar to year 1 and also include a cooperative fisher (F/V Gold Coast) Initiate Phase II collaborative study on swordfish tagging and deep-set buoy gear trails above Point Conception
Year 2 Deep-set Buoy Gear Deployments Cooperative fisher PIER Gold Coast 17 sets 15 sets Total YR 2 Swordfish landed 6 + 1 = 7 Swordfish (lost at boat) 2 + 2 = 4 11 Opah 2 + 0 = 2 2 Bigeye thresher 1 + 2 = 3 3 Common thresher* 1 + 0 = 1 1 Mola mola ** 0 + 1 = 1 1 * mortality **Shallow hook PFMC Research Update 2013
Project Totals for all DSBG Trials 54 4-hr sets 540 pieces of gear deployed (2 hooks/piece) 1,080 hooks soaked for 4hr (4,320 hook-hours) Total Catch Swordfish 15 Opah 2 Bigeye thresher 7 Common thresher 1 Mola mola 1 Blue Shark 2 PFMC Research Update 2013
Phase II. Studies above Point Conception: Pacific Leatherback Closure Area Targeting Swordfish Deep During the Day to Reduce Bycatch Cooperative Research Program, NOAA; PIER and SWR California Fisheries Research (CFR- West) joint award to NOAA (Heidi Dewar, PhD, SWFSC) and PIER (Chugey Sepulveda, PhD).
PFMC Research Update 2013 Phase II Project Objectives Tag swordfish within the PLCA Document depth distribution Trial alternative gear types: Deep-set Buoy Gear (PIER) Deep-set Long Line (NOAA)
Phase II Preliminary findings Swordfish research above Point Conception Three cruises out of Monterey From October to December 2012 Tagged six swordfish (all with harpoon) Six deep-set buoy gear sets Caught six blue sharks Phase II in 2013 Analyze data and modify hook depths Document swordfish depth distribution Deploy deep-set buoy gear
Phase III Experimentation with alternative DSBG configurations in southern California Efforts focused on Reducing potential for lost gear Increasing DSBG efficiency (modify branch line configurations) Decrease bait predation (artificial vs. natural) PFMC Research Update 2013
NOAA Acknowledgements Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program Cooperative Fisheries Grant Program Southwest Fisheries Science Center Bycatch Reduction and Engineering Program California Fisheries Research Grant Program George T. Pfleger Foundation Cooperative Fishers and Partners Donald Krebs The Nature Conservancy Chesapeake Fish Company Andrew White Catalina Offshore Products