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A review of fishery-independent assessment models, and initial evaluation based on simulated data

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 June 2009

Benoit Mesnil ,
John Cotter ,
Rob J. Fryer ,
Coby L. Needle  and
Verena M. Trenkel
Benoit Mesnil
Affiliation:
Ifremer, Département EMH, BP 21105, 44311 Nantes Cedex 3, France
John Cotter
Affiliation:
CEFAS Lowestoft Laboratory, Pakefield Road, Lowestoft, Suffolk NR33 0HT, UK
Rob J. Fryer
Affiliation:
FRS Marine Laboratory, PO Box 101, Victoria Road, Aberdeen AB11 9DB, UK
Coby L. Needle
Affiliation:
FRS Marine Laboratory, PO Box 101, Victoria Road, Aberdeen AB11 9DB, UK
Verena M. Trenkel
Affiliation:
Ifremer, Département EMH, BP 21105, 44311 Nantes Cedex 3, France
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Abstract

Large uncertainties in catch data (officially-reported landings and discards) are undermining the ability of scientific organisations to provide valid management advice based on the conventional approach of analytical stock assessments. There is thus an urgent need to consider alternative tools that do not depend on long series of precise age-structured catch data. This paper presents four fishery-independent assessment models developed under the EU project FISBOAT (Fishery Independent Survey Based Operational Assessment Tools). It also reports on rudimentary tests based on simulated data, using the same data sets and protocol as an evaluation study conducted by the US National Research Council in 1997. The survey-based assessment models at hand are able to reliably capture the major signal in biomass and recruitment, although they smooth out transient changes. However, they cannot provide absolute abundance estimates, only relative values on an arbitrary scale. The survey-based approaches could provide more rapid updates of the state of stocks than catch-based methods.

Keywords

Fish stock assessmentCatch-free modelsFishery-independent assessment methods (F-I methods)Survey indices
Type
Research Article
Information
Aquatic Living Resources , Volume 22 , Issue 2: Fish Stock Assessments Using Surveys and Indicators , April 2009 , pp. 207 - 216
Copyright
© EDP Sciences, IFREMER, IRD, 2009

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