. . . Alaska Shellfish Fisheries 



90 



crab 



fisheries dominated Bering Sea landings, 

 but those fisheries were phased out during 

 bilateral negotiations until foreign fishing 

 ceased in 1974. During the late 1970's, 

 domestic catches built to record levels in 

 the Bering Sea, peaking at 74,000 t in 

 1 980. Gulf catches varied at a relatively low 

 level for a decade before dropping lower 

 yet in 1 983. Almost all Gulf of Alaska king 

 crab fisheries have been closed since 1983. 

 In the Bering Sea, catches dropped precip- 

 itously in 1 981 , followed by further declines 

 to a low in 1983. Since then, there has been 

 a gradual increase in the catch. 



Bering Sea-Aleutian Islands tanner crab 

 catches are largest in the eastern Bering 

 Sea (Fig. 20-2). The 1965-75 period was a 

 developmental phase. During 1975-85, the 

 catch peaked at about 49,000 1 in 1 979 and 

 then declined. Since 1984, the catch has 



increased, reaching about 85,000 t in 

 1990. Abundance trends for the eastern 

 Bering Sea stocks indicate that the bairdi 

 stock declined from a relatively high level 

 in the late 1970's to a low in 1985. Since 

 then, the Bering Sea bairdi stock has recov- 

 ered and is currently approaching its for- 

 mer level. From a low in 1985, the opilio 

 stock has rebounded sharply and is ap- 

 proaching an all-time high level. The catch 

 in the Gulf of Alaska, composed exclu- 

 sively of bairdi, reached peak levels during 

 the 1970's, following a developmental 

 phase in the late 1960's. Since 1979, the 

 Gulf of Alaska catch has declined. 



Values for RAY, CPY, and LTPY are pre- 

 sented in Table 20-1. Information on CPY 

 and LTPY is lacking for both king and 

 tanner crabs. Thus, default values for these 

 parameters were derived by equating CPY 



Figure 20-2.— Tanner crab 

 landings from the Bering Sea and 

 Gulf or Alaska, 1960-90, and 

 abundance of two species of 

 tanner crab, 1976-90. 



100 



o 

 o 

 o 



12 



10 



1960 



1965 



1970 



1975 



1980 



1985 



1990 



Table 20-1.— Recent average, 

 current potential, and long-term 

 potential yields in metric tons (t), 

 and status of utilization for 

 Alaska shellfish resources. The 

 LTPY, CPY, and RAY for the unit 

 equals the sum of the species' 

 LTPY's, CPY's, and RAY'S. 



