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2) Development of a fishery monitoring and information system 

 for South Pacific albacore. 



3) Evaluation of procedures to estimate surface fishery poten- 

 tials using the age- structured simulation model and production model 

 analyses based on selected segments of the population. Preliminary work 

 was done in April and May of 1980 and will be continued in FY 1981. 



IV. C. Future Research Needs 



None proposed at this time. 



IV. D. Status of SWFC Data Base 



The Far Seas Fisheries Research Laboratory has maintained albacore 

 catch statistics of Japanese longliners fishing in the South Pacific since 

 1952. The governments of Taiwan and Korea also compile data on their 

 respective flag vessels fishing In the South Pacific. Some of these data, 

 and data from the fishery based at American Samoa, are available on tapes 

 in the files of the Honolulu Laboratory. Data on surface catches are 

 available from FAO and the New Zealand Government. 



Logbook systems maintained by Japan, Korea, and Taiwan provide 

 data on catch in number of fish, effort in number of hooks fished, and 

 locality fished for each day of fishing. The government of American Samoa 

 also collects logbook data providing the same kinds of data from vessels 

 based at Pago Pago. Data on the size composition of the catches are 

 collected by the governments of Japan, Taiwan, and American Samoa. In 

 addition, the Honolulu Laboratory maintains files of landings statistics 

 provided by the two canneries in American Samoa. 



The quality of logbook data is probably adequate for production 

 model analyses. The quality of the size-composition data is inadequate, 

 since time and location of capture cannot be accurately determined. Owing 

 to changes in unloading procedures at the tuna canneries, sex and weight 

 determinations were discontinued in 1970, but length- frequency data are 

 still being collected in American Samoa. 



LITERATURE CITED 



Otsu, T. 



1966. The South Pacific long-line fishery for albacore tuna, 

 1954-64. Commer. Fish. Rev. 28(7): 9-12. 



