78 



COMMERCIAL FISHERIES REVIEW 



Vol. 28, No. 8 



the abundance of Pacific hake to be greater 

 than was found by the fleet working off of La- 

 Push and Destruction Island. As a result, 

 the bulk of the Soviet fleet moved back south 

 and joined the fleet working off Point Gren- 

 ville and Willapa Harbor. When that area was 

 checked on June 29, 1966, it was found thatall 

 but three of the Soviet vessels were operating 

 there. 



The first of June there were about 42 So- 

 viet vessels working off the Washington coast. 

 During a flight on June 29, a total of 105 So- 

 viet vessels was sighted working off that coast. 



The first midwater trawling activity was 

 observed on June 27; at that time 4 vessels 

 using this type of gear were observed. Later, 

 4 additional vessels were seen with midwater 

 trawls. The midwater trawl is towed by two 

 Soviet vessels and during the course of the 

 tow, other Soviet vessels pass between the 

 two towing apparently to spot schools of fish 

 for them and also to check the depth the trawl 

 is fishing. They primarily were catching 

 hake. One catch of about 100 tons was taken 

 in one haul by a pair of trawlers. 



During the period while the Soviet fleet 

 was under surveillance, no vessel was seen 

 within five miles off the U. S. coast, norwere 

 any of them seen fishing salmon. The sur- 

 veillance from Coast Guard surface craft was 

 continuous night and day. 



* * * * * 



OFF ALASKA: 



Japanese : At the end of June about 200 

 Japanese fishing and support vessels were 

 operating in waters off Alaska. This was al- 

 most twice the number as at the end of May 

 when 111 were sighted. However, this is a 

 typical seasonal increase. In addition, 4 

 salmon motherships accompanied by 142 

 catcher vessels were fishing for salmon in 

 the North Pacific between 175° W. longitude 

 and 170° E. longitude. (The other 7 mother- 

 ships with their 227 catcher vessels had 

 moved west beyond 170° E.) 



About 25 Japanese vessels (factoryships 

 and trawlers) were fishing for ocean perch in 

 the central and western Gulf of Alaska. 



Four Japanese fish-meal factoryships with 

 about 100 trawlers were fishing in the Bering 

 Sea. 



Fig. 3 - Hoisting gear in the bow of a trawler fishing for a Japan- 

 ese factoiyship in the Bering Sea, 



In the shrimp fishery, 1 factoryship and 

 about 15 trawlers remained on the grounds 

 northwest of the Pribilof Islands. Several 

 trawlers were fishing shrimp near the Shu- 

 magin Islands in the western Gulf of Alaska. 



Fig, 4 - Squaring away the deck of a Japanese factory -mother- 

 ship preparatory to leaving the fishing groxmds in the Bering Sea, 

 Fillet-freezing pans in the foreground. 



Two factoryships and 10 catcher boats con- 

 tinued king crab fishing on the Bristol Bay 

 flats. One of these fleets moved eastward ^ 



during the month. •' 



I 



. jjr'f^Li^ 



Fig, 5 - Japanese fishmeal factorfship in the Bering Sea, 



