67 



Clearly, design and enactment of projects to investigate this region is 

 extremely difficult, for the variables and biases that are likely to be 

 present are even more numerous than for bottom-dwelling species. 

 3. Interspecies Trophic Relationships 



In order to understand interspecies relationships, the predator-prey 

 coefficient among species within the marine environment should be understood, 

 Although man acts as a predator on the marine ecosystem, there already exist 

 abundant predatory situations in the natural environment. Species of fish 

 depend on other species for survival. Thus, man's activities may effect 

 the food supply of a particular species through removal of prey. 



It has been assumed that an assessment of the rate of energy transfer 

 in the marine ecosystem will develop these interspecies webs. Much work is 

 presently being done by NMFS on precisely this issue. 



The present ICNAF quota system is of a two-tier nature, assessing po- 

 tential yields from individual species. However, the sum of these assess- 

 ments is greater than an established Total Allowable Catch for the entire 

 Subarea. This two-tier ICNAF system, wherein the Total Allowable Catch is 

 less than the sum of the individual species quotas, reflects interspecific 

 relationships and an acceptance that such relationships are not adequately 

 understood. 



Yet this system does not adequately assess the predator-prey relation- 

 ship within the ocean. Consequently, efforts are underway to develop a new 

 matrix into which the allowable quotas can then be measured and determined. 

 The aim is to eventually take the results of this interspecies matrix and 

 feed them back into the Total Allowable Catch and the individual quotas of 



