OF BAIT (FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC) WAS USEO BY THE BAIT BOAT FLEET IN lijCO. ABOUT 17 

 PERCENT OF A TUNA-BAiT BOAT'S TIME AT SEA IS SPENT IN SECURING BAIT. BETWEEN 

 35 AfJD 90 PERCENT OF THE BAIT SUPPLY IS FOUND IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES, SOME OF 

 THESE COUNTRIES PERMIT BAITING BY AMERICAN VESSELS WITH VARYING RESTRICTIONS. 

 A LIMITED AMOUNT OF RESEARCH CONCERNING SYNTHETIC BAIT HAS BEEN STARTED. DEVELOP- 

 MENT OF A SUITABLE SYNTHETIC BAIT OR A SUBSTITUTE SOLRCE OF NATURAL BAIT WOULD 

 BENEFIT THE TUNA FISHERY. 



A LIMITED NUMBER OF TUNA VESSELS MIGHT BE PROFITABLY EMPLOYED IN OTHER 



FiSHERfESo However p a large influx of new vessels will have a somewhat deleter- 

 ious EFFECT ON ANY ONE FISHERY, DURING THE 1952 SALMON SEASON, SIX OF THE 17 

 freezer-ships WORKING IN BRISTOL BAY WERE TUNA CLIPPERS, THESE TUNA BOATS WERE 

 HANDICAPPED BY THEIR SNABILITY TO CARRY A SUFFICIENT NUMBER OF CATCHER BOATS AND 

 THEY RECEIVED ONLY PARTIAL LOADS, 



Some of the smaller vessels in the tuna fleet might prove successful in nt 



SHRIMP fishery AS CATCHER BOATS AND REFRIGERATED TRANSPORTS WORKING THE MORE DIS- 

 TANT GROUNDS, The USE OF LARGER REFRIGERATED TUNA VESSELS IN THE SHRIMP INDUSTRY 



OF THE South Atlantic and Gulf States is impractical. 



Tuna boats should not EiNfTER the Pacific coast tram, fishery because the 



market for trawl fish is AMPLY SERVED BY THE PRESENT TRAWL FLEET. POTENTIALITIES 

 IN THE TRAWL FISHERY ARE UNATTRACTIVE, SINCE THE VALUE OF ITS LAIvlDINGS AMOUNT TO 

 ONLY SEVEN PERCENT OF THE VALUE OF THE TUNA FISHERY. 



The POSSIBILITIES OF PROFITABLY OPERATING TUNA VESSELS IN THE TRANSPORT 



trade are very dim, compared to a reefer ship on a tonnage basis, a tuna clipper 

 wculd pay about 5 times the wages per ton capacity and 3.5 times the operating 

 cost per ton capacity. 



Both the tuna clipper and the large seiner are readily adaptable as in- 

 dependentj long-line catcher boats and the clipper might perform some sort of 

 mothership duty to smaller purse seiners, or to other types of smaller fishing 



VESSELS, 



Of the VARIOUS LOCATIONS FROM WHICH THE DOMESTIC TUNA FLEET MIGHT OPERATE — 

 OTHER THAN THE BASES NOW USED-- THE EQUATORIAL CENTRAL PACIFIC AREA AND THE GuLF- 

 CARIBBEAN AREA HOLD PROMISE FCR FUTURE DEVELOPMENT AS AN EXPANSION OF, BUT NOT A 



substitute for, the present fishing grounds of the united states tuna fleet. the 

 United States South Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico ports mc the ports of Puerto 

 r'co and the virgin islands have conditions attractive to the development of new 

 tuna processing plants and vessel bases. but it is doubtful that the savings in 

 any large-scale movement would offset the disadvantages. the outlook for favor- 

 able changes in location of the entire tuna fishing fleet in the pacific is 

 similarly poor. 



Development and /or expansion of the United States tuna industry is possible 



IN 3 AREAS not NOW FISHED ON A LARGE- SCALE BY THE DOMESTIC INDUSTRY. THESE AREAS 



ARE THE Atlantic coast, the Gulf of Mexico and Car.ibbean area, and the eastern 

 CENTRAL Pacific, Recently-gained knowledge indicates that large stocks of several 



SPECIES OF TUNA,, AS YET ONLY PARTIALLY OR WHOLLY UNEXPLOITED, INHABIT THESE WATERS 

 WITHIN RANGE OF AMERICAN PORTS. THE RATE OF DEVELOPMENT OF THESE RESOURCES IS 

 DIFFICULT TO PREDICT BECAUSE VERY LITTLE IS KNOWN AT THE PRESENT CONCERNING THE 

 HABITS AND ACTUAL ABUNDANCE OF THE SPECIES, AND THE INDUSTRIAL EXPANSION WILL BE 

 DEPENDENT TO A LARGE DEGREE ON THE ECONOMIC CONDITION OF THE TUNA MARKET IN COMING 

 YEARS, 



166 



