UNIT 20 



ALASKA SHELLFISH FISHERIES 



89 



INTRODUCTION 



Exploratory crab and shrimp fishing began 

 off Alaska during the 1940's and 1950's. 

 The first major domestic king crab fishery 

 began in the 1 960's off Kodiak Island, later 

 expanding to the Aleutian Islands and Be- 

 ring Sea. Domestic tanner crab fisheries 

 became important during the 1970's, as 



did the shrimp fisheries of the Gulf of 

 Alaska. A Japanese snail fishery devel- 

 oped in the Bering Sea during the 1970's 

 but ended in 1987. Shellfish fisheries in 

 Alaska waters have shown large fluctua- 

 tions in landings, owing to extremely vari- 

 able population size. 



SPECIES AND STATUS 



crab 



Three species of king crabs (red, blue, and 

 golden or brown) and two species of tanner 

 crabs (bairdi and opilio) are harvested 

 commercially off Alaska. The annual dock- 

 side value of Alaska king and tanner crab 

 fisheries averaged about $195 million dur- 

 ing the 1978-90 period (61% or $1 18 mil- 

 lion for king crabs alone). Eighty-nine 

 percent, or $ 1 05 million of the value of king 

 crab fisheries, was derived from the eastern 

 Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands. About 

 75%, or $88 million of the value of king 

 crab fisheries, came from red king crab 

 landings. The average annual value of tan- 

 ner crab landings during 1 978-90 was $77 

 million, with $58 million or 76% coming 

 from the Bering Sea-Aleutian Island area. 

 King crab value peaked at $295 million in 

 1980, and tanner crab value peaked at 

 $158 million in 1990. 



About 250 vessels, mostly large and 

 modern and each fishing an average of 



300-350 pots, make up the Bering Sea- 

 Aleutian Islands crab fleet. Over 400 ves- 

 sels harvest crabs in the Gulf of Alaska, 

 although there is considerable vessel over- 

 lap between the areas. Catches are re- 

 stricted by quotas, seasons, and size and 

 sex limits. Fishing seasons are set at times 

 which avoid molting, mating, and softshell 

 periods, both to protect crab resources and 

 to improve product quality. Limits on the 

 number of pots per vessel are in effect in 

 most areas of the Gulf. Vessels are also 

 restricted by the number of management 

 areas they may fish in any given year. 

 Vessels which both catch and process 

 crabs are required to have observers 

 throughout the season to monitor the 

 catch and compliance with regulations. 



Catch and abundance trends for king 

 crabs fluctuated during 1960-90 (Fig. 20- 

 1). After a 1964-66 peak, declines were 

 evident. Until 1967, Japanese and Soviet 



Figure 20-1.— King crab landings 

 and abundance for the Bering 

 Sea and Gulf of Alaska, 1960-90. 



80 



o 

 o 



o 



Landings (Bering Sea) 

 Landings (Gulf of Alaska) 

 Abundance (Bering Sea) 



500 



400 



300 



200 



100 



o 

 o 



