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Q&A HOME • BRAD CHASE • MOLLY LUTCAVAGE
• STEVE WEINER • BARBARA BLOCK • BILL HOGARTH
Molly Lutcavage
Molly Lutcavage is director of the Large Pelagics Research Center at the University of New Hampshire where she continues to oversee research on bluefin tuna, including the “Tag-a-Tiny” program.
In the mid-1990s, while a senior research scientist at the Edgerton Research Lab of the New England Aquarium, she worked cooperatively with fishermen to pioneer bluefin pop-up and archival tagging (PSAT) studies in the region and conducted hydro-acoustic tracking. She also worked with spotter pilots to conduct landmark aerial surveys of bluefin.
This spring, the center hosted a workshop to address recommendations by the ICCAT working group, including suggesting alternative structures for models that scientists will use to determine the level of mixing between eastern and western Atlantic bluefin populations. The center also has established a public Large Pelagics Seminar series that will host speakers, including world experts on tunas.
For more information visit <www.largepelagics.unh.edu>.
Q: How would you characterize the changes in the New England bluefin fishery over the last few years?
A: Things have changed. The numbers and distributions of schools of giant bluefin tuna here in the Gulf of Maine have declined dramatically since the mid-1990s when we conducted aerial surveys. Back then, we documented hundreds of schools from July through early October.
In 2002-2003, large medium-sized fish in the 200-300-pound range appeared to be plentiful. This was the size class we encountered during our PSAT tagging on the seiner White Dove Too. Most of these tagged fish traveled to the North Carolina shelf in the winter, but their springtime distribution suggested that the migration story is not a simple one. Some of these fish had not returned to New England by June.
In the past few years, it seems that giants and large mediums were not present in substantial numbers, whereas juveniles from 20 pounds and up were abundant throughout New England and well into Canadian waters.
We know very little about juvenile size classes, and this gap must be addressed. In contrast, spotters and Canadian fishermen tell us that schools of medium and giant bluefin were available there, and Canadian sectors caught their quotas.
Yet the Icelandic giant fishery nose-dived at the same time as ours, suggesting that availability was reduced in several areas of the western Atlantic.
Q: To what do you attribute these changes?
A: I suspect that the story is complex and related to changes in the ecosystem both here and elsewhere in the Atlantic. As causative factors, my lab is examining shifts in oceanographic conditions and reduction in the availability or quality of forage such as herring.
It goes without saying that overfishing must also be involved. Unfortunately, we have no idea how many bluefin are being landed illegally by IUU fishing fleets, or what the level of dead discards is throughout all sectors. (IUU stands for illegal, unreported, unregulated fishing and is a term used by ICCAT.)
Until we understand the nature of the Atlantic stock, and such basic information as when, where, and how often bluefin spawn, we won’t have the full story.
Q: What is the single most important management strategy that the US should pursue domestically?
A: We must have more complete scientific information on the nature of the bluefin tuna comprising our fishery in order to have sound management.
Q: What is the single most important management strategy that the US should pursue at ICCAT?
A: A great reduction in catch at all levels in the east and central Atlantic, enforcement, and full prosecution of all management measures and a comprehensive inventory of all catches every year.
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