Bigelow, Keith

"Seabird interactions have occurred in both the shallow (swordfish targeting) and deep-set (tuna targeting) U.S longline fisheries that are based in Hawaii. Incidental seabird interactions are documented by fishery observers from the Pacific Islands Regional Observer Program...Annual fleet-wide estimates are reported in Part 1 of the U.S. Annual Report of the WCPFC (2010) by raising the number of observed interactions by a factor determined according to the design of the observer sampling program. The Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO) of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) provides additional seabird information as an annual report on Seabird Interactions and Mitigation Efforts in the Hawaii Longline Fisheries. The most recent summary (NMFS 2010) describes observed and estimated total numbers of interactions with Laysan (Phoebastria immutabilis) and blackfooted (P. nigripes) albatrosses and other seabird species, notes the levels of observer coverage on Hawaii-based longline vessels, describes sightings of short-tailed albatrosses and any interaction, i.e., hooking or entanglement in fishing gear, within the Hawaiibased pelagic longline fisheries"--Page 1.

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)

Hawaii