Managing a multi-species fishery in distant waters: the case of the Spanish-flagged purse seine fishery targeting tropical tuna in the Indian Ocean

Abstract

According to the latest report on the state of World Food and Agriculture Organization fisheries and aquaculture (SOFIA, 2022), skipjack (Katsuwonus pelamis) and yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) are among the five most caught finfish species of the world, with 2,827 and 1,569 thousand tons in 2020, respectively. The tropical purse seiners deploy large nets around tuna schools in the tropical waters of the world. This method targets three main tuna species, skipjack, yellowfin and bigeye (Thunnus obesus) tunas, which are mainly used for canning or frozen markets. This important fishery provides employment opportunities for many people in developing countries. Landings for the European long-distance fishery targeting tuna and tuna-like fishes from Indian Ocean, amounted to 303,638 tons valued at EUR 423.7 million (Prellezo et al., 2022), where the Spanish fleet of purse seiners targeting tropical tuna is the most important. The Spanish tropical purse seine fleet fishing in the Indian Ocean accounts for 26% of the skipjack and yellowfin tunas caught from Indian Ocean, which represent approximately 3% of worldwide catch for both species.The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) is tasked with managing tuna and tunalike species in the Indian Ocean region, with the goal of both conserving these species and optimizing their use. This mandate is supported by a scientific process, in which the IOTC's Scientific Committee (SC) provides recommendations on conservation, fisheries management, and research to inform the Commission's decision-making (Meltzer, 2009).In 2015, the SC assessed the status of the stock of yellowfin tuna in the Indian Ocean, concluding that it was considered overfished and subject to overfishing (Langley, 2015). The SC indicated that "If the Commission wishes to recover the stock to levels above the interim target reference points with 50% probability by 2024, the Scientific Committee Frontiers in Marine Science frontiersin.org 01