September 1966 



COMMERCIAL FISHERIES REVIEW 



31 



in drastically reduced crab populations in 

 subsequent years. Part of the basis for the 

 concern was- that the landings fell from 6,9 

 million pounds in the 1961/62 season, imme- 

 diately prior to extensive seismic work, to 

 4.5 million and 3.5 million pounds, respec- 

 tively, in the immediately succeeding years 

 when much of the oil exploration was con- 

 ducted. 



It appears now that the decline in landings 

 merely reflected the normal variations in 

 abundance of marine biological populations 

 occasioned by changes in ocean environmen- 

 tal conditions. (Oregon Fish Commission, 

 August 12. 1966.) 



Note: See Commercial Fisheries Review , February 1966 p, 16. 



Shrimp 



GULF AND SOUTH ATLANTIC 

 LANDINGS. 1965 : 



United States commercial shrimp landings 

 (heads -off weight) in the Gulf and South At- 

 lantic States during 1965 totaled 139.6 mil- 

 lion pounds with an ex-vessel value of $81.1 

 million--an increase of 12 percent in quan- 

 tity and 17 percent in value compared with 

 the previous year. Landings at ports of 

 Texas, Louisiana, and on the west coast of 

 Florida made up 80 percent of the 1965 total 

 catch in the southern states. 



(MHItoiti of pnund.. l.»adl-ol( -.t«hl) 



I Mr O t T s 



U.S. shrimp supply, 1950-65 and indicated supply, 1966-70. 



In 1965, Texas led all other states with 

 total shrimp landings of 48.3 million pounds, 

 followed by Louisiana with 39.8 million 

 pounds, and the Florida West Coast with 

 23.6 million pounds. 



Brown shrimp again was the leading 

 species landed in Texas (34.3 million pounds), 

 while white shrimp predominated in Louisi- 

 ana (21.2 million white and 18.1 million 

 pounds brown). Pink (21.5 million pounds) 

 shrimp made up the bulk of Florida West 

 Coast landings. 



A breakdown, by major fishing areas, 

 of the 1965 Gulf catch (excluding the Atlantic 

 areas), shows 12.8 million pounds were taken 

 from Sanibel and Tortugas; 3.4 million pounds 

 from the Apalachicola area; 14.5 million 

 pounds from Pensacola to the Mississippi 

 River; 39.7 million pounds from the Missis- 

 sippi River to Texas; 35.2 million pounds 

 from the Texas coast; 5.0 million pounds 

 from the high seas off the Mexican coast 

 west of 940 W. longitude; 11.3 million pounds 

 from the high seas off Obregon and Campeche; 

 and 1.4 million pounds from the Caribbean 

 Sea south of 21° N. latitude. 



Note; See Commercial Fisheries Review , July 1966 p. 46. 



Tuna 



PACIFIC ALBACORE MIGRATED 

 NORTHWARD EARLY: 



Continued inshore warming of the ocean 

 region off southern California caused tuna to 

 remain well offshore this past summer and 

 to migrate northward earlier than usual. The 

 staff of the Tuna Forecasting Program, U. S. 

 Bureau of Commercial Fisheries Tuna Re- 

 sources Laboratory, La Jolla, Calif., had 

 been observing the rapid offshore warmup 

 and earlier had forecast an albacore fishery 

 in the Pacific Northwest commencing in late 

 July 1966. To test the laboratory's predic- 

 tion, a technician was placed aboard the Bu- 

 reau's research vessel David Starr Jordan 

 to troll for albacore while on her regular 

 anchovy-sardine surveys to determine whether 

 or not the fish were moving northward. The 

 first large concentration of fish was found at 

 35°22' N., 124°51' W. on the morning of 

 July 14 (about 160 miles southwest of Mon- 

 terey) in 61-62° F. water. Subsequently, the 

 David Starr Jordan proceeded to take alba- 

 core in a broad band extending 120 miles 

 southeast from 36°19' N., 125°26' W. to 

 35°07' N., 124°03' W. Earlier, the fishing 

 vessel Sunrise, under charter to the Oregon 

 Fish Commission on a preseason albacore 

 survey, also reported taking 70 albacore 

 along a line extending southward 30 miles 



