
About this document
This is a prototype of an automatic report that documents how the user specified the operating model and their various justifications.
Introduction
- Describe the history and current status of the fishery, including fleets, sectors, vessel types and practices/gear by vessel type, landing ports, economics/markets, whether targeted/bycatch, other stocks caught in the fishery. “Red snapper have been harvested from the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf) since at least the 1840s(1). The fishery began in the northeastern Gulf, centered around Pensacola, Florida(1)(2). During the early development of the fishery, harvest was limited to vessels known as “smacks”(3) that fished close to port. When ice and trains became readily available to store and transport red snapper, vessels began to make longer voyages and landings increased(2).
Fishery scientists and fishermen first observed localized depletion of red snapper off Florida in the late 19th century(1)(4). Early catches were dominated by large fish, often averaging 10 pounds or more; but, as depletion occurred, the availability of fish near shore declined and vessels extended their trips farther from port to catch fish(1). Beginning in the late 1800s, vessels began harvesting red snapper from Campeche Bank off Mexico(5) and by the early 1900s U.S. commercial landings exceeded 7 million pounds, although few were from the Western Gulf(6). It was not until the 1930s and 1940s that fishing activity increased in the Western Gulf as rock ridges and snapper banks were discovered(7). Commercial landings fluctuated between 2 and 5 million pounds up until the 1950s as vessels shifted effort from U.S. waters to Campeche Bank in the early 1900s(6). After World War II there was a large increase in the size of the commercial fleet(7) and technological innovations, such as fathometers, reels, and wire fishing line opened up new fishing grounds(8) resulting in a large increase in landings in the western Gulf(6). During this period, the shrimp fishery also rapidly expanded. Markets increased for pink and brown shrimp as new fishing grounds were discovered and vessels began using double-rig trawls, which greatly increased the amount of shrimp that could be caught per unit of effort(9). The number of days spent shrimping more than doubled between the 1960s and 1990s. Because juvenile red snapper (age 0-1) are accidentally captured in shrimp trawls, the shrimp trawl fishery became a significant source of red snapper mortality. Prior to World War II, recreational fishing in the Gulf was fairly limited. But after the war, increased tourism along the Gulf coast coupled with the mass production of fiberglass boats and improvements in motor technology and navigational equipment led to increases in recreational fishing(11). This increased demand for recreational fishing opportunities spawned a large party boat fishery that primarily targeted red snapper(12). Annual recreational landings quickly grew from less than 500,000 pounds prior to 1950 to over 5 million pounds by the late 1990s(13). Today, recreational anglers account for more than half of the total Gulf red snapper landings and discard large amounts of red snapper at sea due to restrictions on harvest and retention." (https://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sustainable_fisheries/gulf_fisheries/red_snapper/overview/) The fishery is currently assessed at being overfished (B/B0=0.18) but not undergoing overfishing (F=0.052; F/MFMT=0.877) The fishery is composed of commercial (handline and longline) and recreational (including headboats and private/charter fleets) fisheries Although there is a large targeted fishery, juvenile snapper are also heavily caught as bycatch in the shrimp fishery There are other species caught as bycatch; gear modifications are regulated to minimize bycatch
- Describe the stock’s ecosystem functions, dependencies, and habitat types. "Red snappers are considered reef fish, so it would be logical to assume that they eat smaller creatures from the reefs. Interestingly, most of their diet has been found to consist of creatures that live on mud bottoms, so red snappers get very little nutritional benefit from reefs. Fish are the number one item in their diet, with the most common ones being pipefish, snake eels, searobins, pinfish, striped anchovies, cusk eels, and pigfish.
Stomatopods (king shrimp or sea lice) are the second most important food item, followed by several species of crabs. Also eaten are tiny pinhead-size zooplankton and bottom worms. Shrimp make up only a very small portion of their diet.
Food habits change by season. Fish are always important, but crabs are the most common food item in spring and stomatopods are most important in the winter. A lot of stomatopods are also eaten in the summer, but almost none in the spring or fall. Diet also changes with fish size. As red snappers grow larger, they eat more fish. Also, the largest snappers, those 24 inches long and longer, eat far more stomatopods. Red snappers also have daily feeding patterns. One study showed that they had empty stomachs from 7:00 p.m. until 3:00 a.m. It seemed that the fish then began feeding heavily, reaching a peak at 4:00 a.m., but continued heavy feeding until 6:00 a.m. "(https://www.seagrantfish.lsu.edu/biological/snapper/redsnapper.htm)
- Provide all relevant reference materials, such as assessments, research, and other analysis. Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf https://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sustainable_fisheries/gulf_fisheries/red_snapper/overview/ https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/red-snapper http://safmc.net/regulations/regulations-by-species/red-snapper/ https://www.seagrantfish.lsu.edu/biological/snapper/redsnapper.htm
Fishery Characteristics
Longevity
Answered
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Very short-lived (5 < maximum age < 7)
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Short-lived (7 < maximum age < 10)
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Moderate life span (10 < maximum age < 20)
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Moderately long-lived (20 < maximum age < 40)
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Long-lived (40 < maximum age < 80)
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Very long-lived (80 < maximum age < 160)
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Justification
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“The highest estimated age for red snapper to date was 57 years based on counting otolith rings, but this was based on a single fish and there is some uncertainty in that estimate. Noting that the oldest age that has been validated by bomb radiocarbon dating was 38 years old, the SEDAR 31 Panel adopted an intermediate value of 48 years for the maximum age (5 fish have been aged at 48 years old).” (Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf)
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Stock depletion
Answered
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Crashed (D < 0.05)
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Very depleted (0.05 < D < 0.1)
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Depleted (0.1 < D < 0.15)
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Moderately depleted (0.15 < D < 0.3)
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Healthy (0.3 < D < 0.5)
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Underexploited (0.5 < D)
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Justification
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“The highest estimated age for red snapper to date was 57 years based on counting otolith rings, but this was based on a single fish and there is some uncertainty in that estimate. Noting that the oldest age that has been validated by bomb radiocarbon dating was 38 years old, the SEDAR 31 Panel adopted an intermediate value of 48 years for the maximum age (5 fish have been aged at 48 years old).” (Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf)
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Resilence
Answered
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Not resilient (steepness < 0.3)
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Low resilience (0.3 < steepness < 0.5)
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Moderate resilence (0.5 < steepness < 0.7)
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Resilient (0.7 < steepness < 0.9)
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Very Resilient (0.9 < steepness)
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Justification
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The assessment estimate is 18% unfished biomass
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Historical effort pattern
Answered
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Stable
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Two-phase
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Boom-bust
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Gradual increases
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Stable, recent increases
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Stable, recent declines
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Justification
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Table 5.3: Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf
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Inter-annual variability in historical effort
Answered
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Not variable (less than 20% inter-annual change (IAC))
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Variable (maximum IAC between 20% to 50%)
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Highly variable (maximum IAC between 50% and 100%)
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Justification
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Fishing effort is relatively stable from year to year (Table 5.3, Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf)
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Historical fishing efficiency changes
Answered
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Declining by 2-3% pa (halves every 25-35 years)
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Declining by 1-2% pa (halves every 35-70 years)
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Stable -1% to 1% pa (may halve/double every 70 years)
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Increasing by 1-2% pa (doubles every 35-70 years)
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Increasing by 2-3% pa (doubles every 25-35 years)
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Future fishing efficiency changes
Answered
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Declining by 2-3% pa (halves every 25-35 years)
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Declining by 1-2% pa (halves every 35-70 years)
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Stable -1% to 1% pa (may halve/double every 70 years)
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Increasing by 1-2% pa (doubles every 35-70 years)
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Increasing by 2-3% pa (doubles every 25-35 years)
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Justification
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There are no dramatic changes in efficiency predicted
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Length at maturity
Answered
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Very small (0.4 < LM < 0.5)
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Small (0.5 < LM < 0.6)
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Moderate (0.6 < LM < 0.7)
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Moderate to large (0.7 < LM < 0.8)
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Large (0.8 < LM < 0.9)
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Justification
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There are no dramatic changes in efficiency predicted
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Selectivity of small fish
Answered
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Very small (0.1 < S < 0.2)
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Small (0.2 < S < 0.4)
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Half asymptotic length (0.4 < S < 0.6)
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Large (0.6 < S < 0.8)
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Very large (0.8 < S < 0.9)
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Justification
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Stock assessment assumes fish start to have eggs at age-3. Median maturity is approximately age-12 or LM~0.8
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Selectivity of large fish
Answered
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Asymptotic selectivity (SL = 1)
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Declining selectivity with length (0.75 < SL < 1)
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Dome-shaped selectivity (0.25 < SL < 0.75)
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Strong dome-shaped selectivity (SL < 0.25)
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Justification
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All gears avoid the very largest fish (Figure 4.9 of Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf), but some are very dome-shaped.
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Discard rate
Answered
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Low (DR < 1%)
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Low - moderate (1% < DR < 10%)
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Moderate (10% < DR < 30%)
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Moderate - high (30% < DR < 50%)
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High (50% < DR < 70%)
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Justification
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The commercial fleets have low to moderate discarding rates, but the recreational fishery has very high discarding rates.
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Post-release mortality rate
Answered
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Low (PRM < 5%)
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Low - moderate (5% < PRM < 25%)
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Moderate (25% < PRM < 50%)
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Moderate - high (50% < PRM < 75%)
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High (75% < PRM < 95%)
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Almost all die (95% < PRM < 100%)
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Justification
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Discard mortality has been experimentally estimated. Venting of released fish was manditory from 2008-2013, which resulted in reduced release mortality; rates of release mortality range between 0.118 (vented fish released from recreational fishery) to 0.91 (non-vented released mortality released from the longline fleet). (see Release Mortality.pdf from Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf)
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Recruitment variability
Answered
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Very low (less than 20% inter-annual changes (IAC))
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Low (max IAC of between 20% and 60%)
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Moderate (max IAC of between 60% and 120%)
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High (max IAC of between 120% and 180%)
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Very high (max IAC greater than 180%)
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Justification
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Estimated recruitment is very stable over time (see Table 4.1 of Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf)
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Size of an existing MPA
Answered
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None
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Small (A < 5%)
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Small-moderate (5% < A < 10%)
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Moderate (10% < A < 20%)
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Large (20% < A < 30%)
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Very large (30% < A < 40%)
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Huge (40% < A < 50%)
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Justification
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There are many areas closed to fishing, but they are a small area of the total habitat (see Tables 2.2.1 in Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf)
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Spatial mixing (movement) in/out of existing MPA
Answered
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Very low (P < 1%)
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Low (1% < P < 5%)
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Moderate (5% < P < 10%)
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High (10% < P < 20%)
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Fully mixed
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Justification
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mean movement over time is < 30km (Patterson et al. 2001)
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Size of a future potential MPA
Answered
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None
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Small (A < 5%)
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Small-moderate (5% < A < 10%)
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Moderate (10% < A < 20%)
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Large (20% < A < 30%)
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Very large (30% < A < 40%)
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Huge (40% < A < 50%)
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Justification
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No new spatial areas are being considered
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Spatial mixing (movement) in/out of future potential MPA
Answered
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Very low (P < 1%)
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Low (1% < P < 5%)
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Moderate (5% < P < 10%)
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High (10% < P < 20%)
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Fully mixed
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Justification
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Mean movement distance of tagged fish is <30km (Patterson et al. 2001)
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Initial stock depletion
Answered
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Very low (0.1 < D1 < 0.15)
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Low (0.15 < D1 < 0.3)
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Moderate (0.3 < D < 0.5)
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High (0.5 < D1)
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Asymptotic unfished levels (D1 = 1)
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Justification
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Initial depletion is estimated as 67% (Red Snapper Stock Assessment.pdf)
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Management Characteristics
Types of fishery management that are possible
Answered
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TAC (Total Allowable Catch): a catch limit
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TAE (Total Allowable Effort): an effort limit
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Size limit
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Time-area closures (a marine reserve)
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Justification
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1. Describe what, if any, current management measures are used to constrain catch/effort. (all info here from http://safmc.net/regulations/regulations-by-species/red-snapper/) Recreational fishery: limited fishing season; one-fish daily bag limit; no size limit; annual catch limits imposed for all reef species Commercial fishery: limited fishing season, which may be closed if catch limit is reached; daily trip limits; no size limit
2. Describe historical management measures, if any. Managed under the Snapper Grouper Fishery Management Plan. Initially included size limits, gear restrictions and provision for Special Management Zones. In 1998, in an attempt to limit effort, anyone wishing to enter the commercial fishery had to buy two transferrable vessel permits
3. Describe main strengths and weaknesses of current monitoring and enforcement capacity. Data collection in the recreational fishery is somewhat coordinated across states; states work together to ensure data collection is consistent and efficient. MRIP also collects information across states and federal waters. Commercial fishers must submit logbooks and ~10% logbooks recording discards; Observers on ~1% of reef fish boats; portside monitoring; 100% shrimp boat statistics; 1% shrimp boat observer coverage; accumulated landings system (100% coverage) Strengths: high coverage overall; Weaknesses: low accuracy of data: low creel coverage; low observer coverage, slow turnaround of data to inform management (see Monitoring Gulf of Mexico Fishery.pdf)
4. Describe and reference any legal/policy requirements for management, monitoring and enforcement.
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TAC offset: consistent overages/underages
Answered
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Large underages (40% - 70% of recommended)
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Underages (70% - 90% of recommended)
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Slight underages (90% - 100% of recommended)
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Taken exactly (95% - 105% of recommended)
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Slight overages (100% - 110% of recommended)
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Overages (110% - 150% of recommended)
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Large overages (150% - 200% of recommended)
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Justification
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Quota are shown (see Commercial quota.png and Recreational quota.png); units are in pounds. Catch is shown in assessment document (Tables 2.5 and 2.12 - in kg). Comparison (see Quota comparison.xlsx) shows high historic overages; recent underages (for recreational) or close to accurate (for commercial)
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