The fisheries of the U.S. island jurisdictions in the Caribbean and Pacific are vital to the cultures and economies of island communities. NOAA Fisheries scientists perform stock assessments of these fisheries, which provide scientific advice on the health and amount of fishing these stocks can support. They form the basis of effective sustainable fisheries management. These U.S. island fisheries pose unique challenges for the stock assessment process compared to other fisheries. Scientists from NOAA’s Southeast Fisheries Science Center and Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center recently came together to share ideas and collaborate on improvements for this process.
Island Fisheries Are Unique
U.S. island fisheries pose some challenges to fisheries stock assessment science. There is limited availability of reliable data on fisheries landings and catch rates, and few or no fishery-independent surveys. These data-limited fisheries are primarily multi-species, small-scale commercial or non-commercial—including subsistence, artisanal, and recreational fisheries. U.S. islands include diverse fishing communities that may be separated by hundreds or thousands of miles from scientists and managers. This requires unique and innovative approaches to modeling population dynamics and generating management advice that differ from many fisheries of the contiguous United States.
Diverse Scientists Share Information
The 154th Annual Meeting of the American Fisheries Society in Honolulu, Hawai‘i, provided the perfect opportunity to bring together diverse minds and expertise. Attendees shared challenges, successes, and future directions for assessment science and management of these unique island fisheries. Matt Damiano of NOAA’s Southeast Fisheries Science Center and Erin Bohaboy of the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center organized the conference session, “Science and Management of U.S. Island Fisheries: Challenges, Successes, and Forward Progress.” It discussed the intricacies of island-based fisheries science and management. The session included presentations by NOAA Fisheries scientists, researchers and students from academic institutions, and state and territorial agency staff. The presentation topics included:
- Regional biological studies of island fish species
- Design and implementation of data collection programs
- Advances in stock assessment
- Improvements in fisheries management
The session offered a valuable opportunity for Southeast and Pacific Islands scientists to share knowledge and form connections with each other, and with researchers outside of NOAA Fisheries.
Putting Our Heads Together
Following the conference, the scientists conducted a workshop to strengthen collaborative relationships, learn from each other, and identify resolutions to common challenges. It was an opportunity for more detailed and agency-specific discussions on topics including:
- Fishery-dependent data
- Fishery-independent surveys and data integration
- Data quality challenges
- Ecosystem-based approaches
- Use of innovative methods to address shared challenges
- Lessons learned from previous assessments
- Aggregate versus single-species assessment approaches
This workshop represents the start of a synergistic relationship to share pathways for forward progress of U.S. island fisheries management.
Looking Ahead
In the future, these conversations could lead to improvements in how NOAA Fisheries scientists conduct stock assessments in these regions, but exactly how is yet to be determined. These initial collaborations in Honolulu started the processes of more open communication, sharing expertise and innovations, and building bridges across regional silos to share lessons and progress. This new partnership can reduce the reinventing of approaches and tools and increase efficiency in tackling similar challenges.
