ton boat was about 65 feet long and had a beam 

 of about 14 feet. The boats carried crews of 

 20 to 23 men and could carry about 50 buckets 

 of bait. The high capacity for carrying bait 

 was apparently due to the greater strength of 

 the Truk bait and its ability to be concentrated 

 in the live wells of the fishing boats. 



After fishing for a day, the vessels would 

 return to their home islands where the families 

 of the fishermen would assist with the offload- 

 ing of the boat. Processing was done imme- 

 diately before the fish could spoil. The boats 

 would leave their home islands shortly before 

 daybreak in order to be at the baiting grounds 

 at daylight. A couple of hours of baiting was 

 usually sufficient to fill a boat for a day's fish- 

 ing and they would then leave for the fishing 

 grounds by 7:00 to 9:00 in the morning return- 

 ing around 8:00 at night. 



The Okinawans had a saying about the fishing 

 in Palau and Truk that said, "In Patau, the bait 

 is easy and the tuna hard. In Truk the bait is 

 hard and the tuna easy." After looking at many 

 aspects of both fisheries, 1 would certainly 

 agree. 



THE FUTURE SKIPJACK TUNA 

 FISHERY OF TRUK 



The demand for skipjack tuna on the world 

 market, the need for the development of Truk's 

 limited natural resources, the shortage of 

 fresh fish for local consumption, the need for 

 employment, and other reasons indicate that 

 the skipjack fisheries of Truk will be developed 

 sometime in the near future. 



Factors hindering the development of Truk's 

 skipjack fishery include the complete lack of a 

 suitable dock site with power, potable water, 

 ice, and cold storage facilities. No slipways 

 for the maintenance of the fishing boats are 

 available and the lack of a machine shop, ma- 

 chinists, electricians, carpenters, and other 

 skilled technicians complicates the problem. 



Once these technicalities are resolved and it 

 becomes possible to operate and maintain a 

 fishing plant and offshore vessel properly, the 

 skipjack fishery should develop rapidly. It is 

 probable that this development will utilize to 

 some degree skills and knowledge of the Okina- 

 wans who successfully fished the area during 

 the prewar years; however, care must be taken 

 to prevent the over-exploitation of the baitfish 

 stocks and to make certain that Micronesians 

 participate fully in the shoreside and fishing 

 operations. 



GPO 999-401 



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