Fisheries Research Articles
Quantifying the unreported and unaccounted domestic and foreign commercial catch of sharks and rays in Western Australia
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-7-2021
Journal Title
Ambio
ISSN
Print: 0044-7447 Electronic: 1654-7209
Keywords
Catch reconstruction, Discards, Eastern Indian ocean, Elasmobranchs, Fisheries management, Unreported catch, Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development Western Australia
Disciplines
Aquaculture and Fisheries | Marine Biology
Abstract
Reliable catch information is scarce for most sharks and rays worldwide, with almost half of the stocks considered to be Data Deficient due to limited species-specific catch statistics. Western Australia (WA) hosts a diverse number of shark and ray species, some of which are considered to be threatened with extinction at a global level. Commercial catch statistics only account for shark and ray landings. The present study used the best available information to reconstruct unaccounted and unreported catches for 47 shark and ray taxa to better understand the impact of fishing. For some species, there was good agreement between reconstructed catches and reported landings, but overall reconstructed catches were 57% higher than those derived from official statistics alone, underestimating the actual extraction level for many species. The reconstructed catch time series provide the basis for the assessment of all species of sharks and rays captured in WA, including protected species that interact with commercial and recreational fisheries.
Recommended Citation
Braccini, M., Kangas, M., Jaiteh, V. et al. Quantifying the unreported and unaccounted domestic and foreign commercial catch of sharks and rays in Western Australia. Ambio 50, 1337–1350 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-020-01495-6
