Behavior of skipjack ( <i>Katsuwonus pelamis</i> ), yellowfin ( <i>Thunnus albacares</i> ), and bigeye ( <i>T. obsesus</i> ) tunas associated with drifting fish aggregating devices (dFADs) in the Indian Ocean, assessed through acoustic telemetry

Status quo stochastic projections for bigeye, skipjack and yellowfin tunas

We assess the potential consequences of recent (2012) fishing conditions on the future biological status of the three tropical tuna stocks, based upon the new tropical tuna stock assessments. Projected status in 2032 is reported relative to spawning biomass and fishing mortality reference points in absolute terms (as a median of the projection outcomes) and in probabilistic terms. Here, we have...

Behavioral Study of Small Bigeye, Yellowfin and Skipjack Tunas Associated with Drifting Fads Using Ultrasonic Coded Transmitter in the Central Pacific Ocean

A model based on data from echosounder buoys to estimate biomass of fish species associated with fish aggregating devices

The views and opinions expressed or implied in this article are those of the author (or authors) and do not necessarily reflect the position of the National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA. Abstract—Most of the drifting fish aggregating devices (DFADs) used in industrial tropical tuna purseseine fisheries are equipped with satellite linked echosounder buoys, which provide fishing crews with remo...

Characterizing fish communities associated with drifting fish aggregating devices (FADs) in the Western Indian Ocean using underwater visual surveys

We adapted a visual census method, mainly used in demersal and reef fish studies, to characterize fish communities associated to drifting fish aggregating devices (FADs) in the Western Indian Ocean. Drifting FAD associated fishes from both equatorial (Seychelles) and tropical waters (Reunion Island) were examined by divers. A total of 32 species (belonging to 16 families) were observed associat...

Satellite-linked acoustic receivers to observe behavior of fish in remote areas

Automated acoustic receivers are now widely used by biologists to study the behavior of fish. However, currently available acoustic receivers require physical recovery of the units to download stored data. Such operation is often difficult in remote study areas like in the open ocean. We present a new satellite-linked acoustic receiver (Vemco VR3-Argos) that allows downloading data through a sa...