Bottomfishing
Beginning - Description
Bottomfishing from canoes (paopao) by the natives of the American Samoa islands was a traditional subsistence practice in the past. It was not until the early 1970s that the bottomfish fishery developed into a commercial venture utilizing motorized boats.
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| Bottomfishing Reel and Mainline (Click on picture for a larger picture) |
A government-subsidized program, the Dory Project, was initiated in 1972 to develop the offshore fisheries into a commercial venture and resulted in an abrupt increase in the fishing fleet and total landings.
In 1982, a fisheries development project aimed at exporting high-priced deep water snappers to the Hawaii fish auction caused another notable increase in both bottomfish landings and revenue.
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| Alia Equipped for Bottomfishing (Click on picture for a larger picture) |
Boat-based fishing in Tutuila and Manu'a in 1995 was mostly trolling and bottomfish handlining. The bottomfish fishery of American Samoa is then and now typically commercial overnight jigging on 28-foot aluminum Alias using skipjack as bait. Bottomfish imported mainly from the neighboring independent state of Western Samoa has assisted in satisfying the high demand for fresh fish that cannot be supplied by the small local commercial fleet.
Monitoring System
During the early 1980s, data were collected for the bottomfish fishery by interviewing only commercial vessel owners or operators. In the current Offshore Creel Survey that started in October 1985, commercial, subsistence, and recreational domestic bottomfish fishermen from five designated areas were interviewed and their catches examined.
Monitoring Results
Between 1982 and 1988, the bottomfish fishery comprised as much as 50% of the total commercial catch. Since 1988, the nature of American Samoa's fisheries has changed dramatically, with a shift in importance from bottomfish fishing toward trolling and longlining.
The bottomfish fishery was larger between 1982 and 1986 than in recent years, reflecting a trend in the loss of skilled and full-time commercial fishermen, the shift from bottomfishing to trolling and longlining and the substitution of imported fish from Western Samoa and Tonga. The adverse effects of three hurricanes that struck American Samoa in 1987, 1990, and 1991 can be seen in some of the fishery trends as depicted by the report data. The December 1991 hurricane contributed to the 1992 decrease in landings and the second lowest number of trips ever recorded.
Bottomfish landings, rose slightly in 1993 and dramatically in 1994. The significantly greater 1994 total landings, when compared to previous years, occurred primarily because of improved catch recording, an increase in effort by highline vessels, and a high fish demand for government and cultural events.
During 1995, a total of 25 local boats landed an estimated 31,000 pounds of bottomfish in the territory. Revenue for the domestic commercial fishery this year was estimated around $57,000, with all the catch being sold locally.
The 1995 total landing decreased 22% from the 1994 landings, but remained higher than years before to 1994. Fishing effort, measured by the number of trips, declined 26% in 1995. Rather than indicating a problem with the resource, the decline in trips, landings, effort, and subsequent revenues was mainly caused by both the highliners diverting their interest and efforts towards longlining and the continued improvements in the Offshore Creel System sampling.
The average price per pound ($1.86) dropped in 1995 to levels similar to 1982. This decrease is consistent with a general trend since 1991. Inflation-adjusted values have fluctuated no more than 11% from 1985-94, with the 1994 average price near the high end of the range. Prices of locally caught fish were kept low because of the large amount of imports. Bottomfish revenue per trip (as opposed to total revenue) increased 21% in 1995.
The CPUE in 1995 (9.8 lb/hr) shows a return to the estimated baseline CPUE, of 10lb/hr in the early 1990's indicating no signs of stress in this fishery. The proxy "estimate of the worst case" SPR indicated that recruitment overfishing is not occurring in this fishery. Size and maturity data were collected from key species, but insufficient sample sizes were available for a more realistic SPR estimation. Currently available data do not indicate any serious problems with the stocks.
By 1998 only 16 boats were engaged in bottomfishing because some of them found longlining to be more profitable. This resulted in a total catch of only 15,862 pounds with a total value of $35,697. The CPUE jumpoed up to 14.8 lb/hr in 1996 and was down to 14.0 lb/hr by 1998.
An influx of more bottomfishing boats from Western Samoa and a decline in tuna prices at the cannery caused some longlining alias to revert back to bottomfishihng. The number of bottomfishing boats increased slightly to 18 by 2001. The increased CPUE of 15.7 lb/hr resulted in a catch of 48,648 pounds with a value of $81,665 exceeding the 1995-1996 values.