-246- 



STATUS REPORT: NORTH PACIFIC BLUEFIN TUNA 



by 



Doyle A. Hanan 

 California Department of Fish and Game* 



ABSTRACT 



Northern Pacific bluefin tuna are fished by surface gear including 

 purse seine, crolling, bait, gill net, trap, and harpoon in the eastern and 

 western Pacific. Bluefin are also caught by longline in the western 

 Pacific and, to a lesser extent, in the central and eastern Pacific and the 

 east Indian Ocean. 



The resource appears to be composed of a single stock; the western 

 Pacific catch is composed of juveniles and mature adults while the eastern 

 Pacific catch consists mainly of 1-, 2-, and 3-year old fish. Presence of 

 a second stock off New Zealand is not confirmed by studies. 



*At the Southwest Fisheries Center, La Jolla, California, under 

 Cooperative Agreement 81-ABH-0040. 



