supporting a commercial fishery. On August 12, 

 35 albacore were landed by trolling gear during 

 12 hours of fishing, for a catch rate of 4. 9 fish 

 per 100 line hours; an additional 18 fish were 

 hooked and lost. To the westward catches 

 diminished, no alb ac o re being tjiken by the 

 Manning west of 135*W. longitude. Farther 

 westward, beyond 155'W. , the Smith took 7 

 fish, suggesting that there was perhaps a dis- 

 continuous distribution of surface -swimming 

 albacore in the central and eastern Pacific 

 during the summer months. 



While the Smith ' s catch was small, 

 table 2 shows that of 1,788 line hours fished 

 only 205 were at 6 to 7 knots. At these optimum 

 trolling speeds the catch was 2.9 fish per 100 

 line hours, which is comparable with that of the 

 M^nriing (cruise 26). In addition, the findings 

 of the Smith were supported by catches taken in 

 salmon gill nets operated within the same area 

 and period by the vessels Mitkof and Paragon 

 (Tester 1956) chartered by the Pacific Salmon 

 Investigations. Figure 2 shows that albacore 

 were taken at the surface in the western section 

 fished by the Smith and also as far west as 175°E. 

 longitude. The largest catch was 87 fish at 45°N. 

 latitude, 177*W. longitude. 



During the late summer, longline fishing 

 for albacore was done only by the Manning 



(cruise 26). Figure 2 shows the positions at 

 which the total catch of 6 albacore was taken. 

 Their distribution was similar to the Manning 's 

 surface catch in that they were made to the 

 east of 135'W. longitude, but not to the west. 



Possibly, the discontinuity in albacore 

 distribution noted during the late summer was 

 either trjinsient or had diminished somewhat 

 when the Gilbert (cruise 23) surveyed the area 

 between 145 °W. and 165°W. longitude northeast 

 of the Hawaiian Islands. Figure 3 shows that 

 fish were taken by the Gilbert in greatest num- 

 bers when trolling along longitude 145 °W. and 

 at about 42.5''N. latitude, 148°W. longitude. 

 The Gilbert sighted an albacore school at 45 "N. 

 latitude, 145°W. longitude, slightly north of 

 the position where the largest troll catch was 

 made. Albacore were not encountered between 

 MB'W. and 165''W. longitude. Stormy weather 

 prevented an adequate assessment of surface- 

 swimming albacore between these longitudes. 

 The Mitkof of the Pacific Salmon Investigations 

 took a single albacore in a salmon gill net at 

 145''W. longitude, 48''N. latitude (fig. 3) in 

 about the same period (September) as the 

 Gilbert's cruise, but none was taken along 155"'W. 

 longitude, where the Mitkof occupied stations 

 on 49*, 50°, and 51°N. latitude. However, we 

 would not expect albacore to occur at these lati- 

 tudes because of the low surface temperatures. 



Figure 3. --Fall cruise of the Charles H. Gilbert (cruise 23), September 15-November 2, 1955. The 

 track of the cruise is shown together with surface temperature CF.) and the distribution of water of 

 relatively low transparency, in relation to surface and subsurface albacore catches. 



