Our Oceans 2015, 6 October 2015, Valparaiso, Chile OCEANS AND ATMOSPHERE FLAGSHIP Transforming monitoring and assessment of international fisheries Campbell Davies, Mark Bravington, Peter Grewe and many others
Perennial Challenges for Sustainable Fisheries How many fish are being caught? How many fish are left? Agreeing how many can be caught in the future. 2 Our Oceans 2015, Valparaiso, Chile | Campbell Davies
A case for change – Southern Bluefin Tuna 3 Our Oceans 2015, Valparaiso, Chile | Campbell Davies Strong evidence of Recruitment failure Highly depleted stock High uncertainty in: CPUE (abundance) Total catches 4 lowest years on record historical low of 3- 5% unfished Spawning biomass Requires new fisheries independent approaches
How many spawning SBT are there? Close-kin Abundance Each fish has 2 parents Juveniles “tag “ adults Catch adults and juveniles Count the no. of Parent- Offspring-Pairs Adult abundance is inversely proportional to number of matches 4 Our Oceans 2015, Valparaiso, Chile | Campbell Davies Juveniles Adults SBT Successful six year study, international peer review ~2.5 times higher than assessment; reduced uncertainty in stock status Results incorporated in international stock assessment (CCSBT) High priority for monitoring of spawning stock and success of rebuilding
What’s the catch? Tackling IUU and mis-reporting What Species? Which Ocean? Is it from a managed fishery? 5 Our Oceans 2015, Valparaiso, Chile | Campbell Davies Species ID on your phone ?
Catch - More accurate, timely & transparent Modern genetics provide the tools for: Species ID in the field Provenance of fish populations across the globe Individual ID and product tracking 6 Our Oceans 2015, Valparaiso, Chile | Campbell Davies P.M. Grewe, et al, In press. Evidence of discrete yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) populations demands rethink of tuna management. Nature – Science Reports Discrete pan-Pacific yellowfin tuna populations Western PacificEastern Pacific Western Pacific Practical application: Truth in labeling Accurate catch estimates Identifying IUU catch
Practical implementation of the precautionary approach Harvest strategy Combination of monitoring, assessment, harvest control rule, management objectives. Performance against objectives tested by simulation (Management Strategy Evaluation) 7 Our Oceans 2015, Valparaiso, Chile | Campbell Davies CCSBT “Bali Procedure” Rebuild stock to 20% unfished by 2035 with probability of 70%. Inputs: Index of recruitment + CPUE 2 global TAC decision cycles complete, 3 rd decision scheduled for 2016
Practical Achievable Actions Increase momentum to ratify and Implement existing international agreements Targeted applications of species ID and provenance tools to identify sources of IUU (and close access to markets), increase sustainable yields and consumer confidence. Targeted studies of Close-Kin for appropriate populations of harvested stocks and threatened species to demonstrate general efficacy and cost-effectiveness Wider development and testing of formal harvest strategies to improve fishery performance, conserve biodiversity and increase transparency and cost- effectiveness of management. Global partnerships and collaboration a central requirement 8 Our Oceans 2015, Valparaiso, Chile | Campbell Davies
Thank you Dr Campbell Davies CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere Flagship, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia 9 Our Oceans 2015, Valparaiso, Chile | Campbell Davies