was apparently enthusiastic about fishing the longline and the men were 

 able to understand the procedure with only two days of direct supervision. 



The bait used for the longline tests comprised sardines and mullet from 

 6 to 8 inches long. 



The abundance of giant squid in Peruvian waters presents a problem 

 in connection with the feasibility of longlining in that area. Many bait^ 

 were taken from the gear by these animals during the tests, but in general 

 they were not as bothersome as expected. Apparently the squid occur in 

 belts and in colder waters. Daily drops of a squid "test" line before setting 

 the gear did not prove too helpful in detecting their presence. Even though 

 squid might have been present as shown by the loss of baits, it was en- 

 couraging to note that the majority of tuna captured on the longline were 

 unharmed. Also, the lack of shark-eaten tuna was encouraging. 



The area covered by the longlining operations (about 160 square miles) 

 comprised a zone between 3 and 30 miles from shore and extending from 

 Cabo Blanco to Zorritos, a distance of about 60 miles. 



Longline fishing tests were begun on August 13 and continued through 

 October 15. Although the expedition left Peruvian waters about the middle 

 of September, longlining operations continued until the above date. A total 

 of 27 fishing days were devoted to the investigation and 29 sets were made. 

 The baits were fished at depths ranging from 20 to 110 fathoms. During 

 the period of operations, surface temperatures ranged from 17 to 22 de- 

 grees Centigrade (average 20.5° C). 



A total of 80 fish were obtained from the 29 sets made corresponding 

 to an average of 2.75 fish per set. Since 49 hooks per set were fished, this 

 means that an average of 5.6 fish per 100 hooks was obtained. No catch 

 was obtained in 8 sets and the number of fish obtained per set ranged 

 from 2 to 9. 



The 80 fish obtained comprised one skipjack (1.2 percent), 2 broadbill 

 swordfish (2.5 percent), 3 cojinova (3.7 percent), 4 big-eye tuna (5 per- 

 cent), 22 shark (27.5 percent) and 48 yellowfin tuna (60 percent). The 

 only skipjack taken weighed 6 pounds and was hooked at a depth of 30 

 fathoms. The 2 broadbill swordfish weighed 400 pounds each and were 

 hooked at depths of 30 and 50 fathoms. The 3 cojinova were all taken 

 on a single set and no weights or depths were reported. Two of the big- 

 eye tuna weighed 250 pounds each and were taken on the same set at a 

 depth of 70 fathoms. The other two weighed 240 and 270 pounds and were 

 taken on separate sets at depths of 110 and 30 fathoms respectively. The 

 sharks ranged in size from small to large (not weighed) and were taken 

 in depths ranging from 20 to 90 fathoms. Yellowfin tuna comprised more 

 than half of the catch and ranged in size from 10 to 70 pounds (average 

 23 pounds). More than half of the specimens weighed 15 pounds; only 



44 ' 



