FISHERIES VESSELS AND GEAR 



key features of sailing tunnymen are their fishing tangons (rods), 

 fish drying racks, and absence of a wheelhouse. The two tangons 

 are about 50 feet long with slightly curved ends. They are stepped 

 by the mainmast, and are a common feature on pinnaces as well. 



Each tangon carries 6 to 8 lines which trail astern of the vessel. 

 Additional lines may also be trailed from each quarter. To these 

 lines are fastened a brass or iron hook covered with horsehair. Once 

 aboard, fish are gutted, cleaned, and hung to dry on rectangular 

 framework racks located on deck. Voyages average 14 days on tunny- 

 men without refrigeration and 21 days for those having such 

 equipment. 



Powered tunny pinnaces operate much closer to their home 

 ports, often returning each night with their catch. During the winter 

 months many of them fish for sardines along the coast. Vessels range 

 from 45 to 60 feet in length. The tangons are stepped near the mast 

 which is located aft between the engine room and stern. When not in 

 use both tangons are lowered and swung forward to rest atop the 

 wheelhouse roof. 



SALMON 



Figure 12 



Wall carvings discovered in French caves bear witness that 

 salmon were a popular food resource over 12,000 years ago. Time 

 has not altered the salmon's standing, for today this fish still ranks 

 high on the list of most valuable catches. During the space flight of 

 Gemini i, astronaut and seafood connoiseur James McDivitt had 

 salmon on his flight menu. The 238 calorie portion was freeze-dried, 

 compressed and dehydrated, all of which illustrates the remarkable 

 versatility achieved in the processing of this fish. Before eating, the 

 astronaut reconstituted his salmon dinner merely by adding water. 



The Atlantic fishery is very small with salmon now considered 

 more a game fish than a commercial crop. Once abundant, the great 

 decline of the Atlantic stock is due chiefly to negligence. Impassable 

 dams, overfishing with nets, industrial pollution and mass destruction 

 of seaward-bound young in the water diversions to factories and 

 power-plants being the prime causes. 



The heart of the salmon fishery is located in the eastern Pacific 

 Ocean, stretching from Alaska to southern California. There are 

 five species taken in this prime area. These five, plus a sixth, are also 

 found off northern Japan and eastern Russia. The world's major 

 commercial effort is made in these two regions. 



The lite-cycle of the Pacific salmon is a most interesting one 

 and plays a dominant role in the operation of this fishery. Females 

 deposit their eggs in the gravel beds of small fresh water streams or 

 lakes which empty into rivers leading to the open sea. After these 

 eggs are fertilized by the males, each pair of spawned-out adults die. 

 All Pacific salmon die after their single spawning season, while the 

 Atlantic species generally return to sea. Throughout the winter, the 

 eggs develop with young hatching in early spring. For about two 

 months, the young salmon, called fry, live on the yolk sac which 

 remains attached to their belly. Once this supply becomes exhausted, 

 the fry push their way up through the gravel and become free- 

 swimmers. Pink and chum salmon begin their seaward migration 

 almost immediately, but the other species generally remain in fresh 

 water from 1 to 4 years before migrating to sea. Salmon remain at sea 

 from 2 to 5 years, depending on species and latitude, before returning 

 to the streams of their birth. Very little is known about their sea years 

 other than they scatter widely, and tend to stay in cold water. 



The salmon crop is thus available to the fishery for only a short 

 period of time over its entire life span. Fish not harvested during 

 the returning migration are lost to the fishery forever, as they will 

 all die after spawning. Too many spawners on the grounds can be 

 just as detrimental to reproduction as too few. It soon becomes 

 apparent that to sustain the species, yet exploit the crop to maximum 

 safe levels, all fish over the number needed to reproduce the run 

 should be harvested. The problem of determining the number of 

 spawners needed is highly complex, and must be calculated for each in- 

 dividual stream. Additional spawning grounds can often be made 

 available by the construction of fish ladders around obstructions, such 

 as dams and waterfalls. 



Salmon are harvested by a wide range of gear with purse seines, 

 gill nets, and pound traps accounting for the largest shares. Trolling 

 also is widely used in some areas. A typical troller is shown in figure 

 12. These vessels range from 25 to 60 feet in length and employ out- 

 riggers to keep lines clear of the vessel. In general, the fishing season 

 is from late summer to early winter. 



WEIRS, POUND NETS AND TRAPS 



In coastal waters, natural estuaries, inlets and rivers, watch 

 officers should always consider the possible danger to safe navigation 

 presented by weirs, pound nets and fish traps. 



A weir is an enclosure formed by fences of stakes entwined with 

 branches and brush. This type of fishing gear has been used since the 

 earliest days of civilization. Weir openings are usually placed some 

 distance offshore, in a channel, or between islands to take advantage 

 of the natural course taken by migrating schools. Long leaders run- 

 ning from shore to the weir's mouth aid in deflecting fish into the trap. 



The main body is a circular or heart-shaped configuration formed 

 by driving poles of various sizes into the sea floor. Brush is then 

 closely interwoven between these poles to make the trap escape-proof. 

 One or more brush leaders generally extend from shore to a point 

 about 6 feet inside the mouth. Mouth openings are just large enough 

 to permit fishermen to bring their dories into the trap. Once inside, 

 they close off the mouth by means of a small drop net. A seine net, 

 rigged in the pocket or crib, is used to concentrate catch for brailing. 

 A typical Maine sardine weir is pictured in figure 13. 



Dotting the Malayan shoreline is a very interesting variation of 

 the weir called a kelong. These kelongs are fashioned from imported 

 Indonesian nebong palm poles. Located offshore, in depths up to 

 seven fathoms, they consist of two rows of pole barriers terminating 

 at a trap end. Erected directly over the trap end is a sheltered plat-, 

 form where the fishermen live and work. A net is rigged inside the 

 trap and is hauled periodically during the night by means of hand- 

 operated winches on the platform. Fish are attracted to the kelong 

 by the light from oil lamps which are placed close to the water's surface 

 after dark. As there are no refigeration facilities on the kelong, catches 

 are taken ashore each morning. 



Pound nets are similar in many respects to the brush weirs. In 

 their simplest design, they consist of three parts: (1) the leader, (2) the 

 heart or wings, and (3) the crib. The name "pound" refers to the 

 impounding of fish within the trap. The leader is a wall of netting up 

 to 1,000 feet long supported by poles placed at intervals along the 



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