Register      Login
Marine and Freshwater Research Marine and Freshwater Research Society
Advances in the aquatic sciences
RESEARCH ARTICLE

From input to output controls in a short-lived species: the case of Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery

Catherine M. Dichmont A D , Roy A. Deng A , André E. Punt B C , William N. Venables A and Trevor Hutton A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship, Ecosciences Precinct, 41 Boggo Road, Dutton Park, Qld 4102, Australia.

B CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship, GPO Box 1538, Hobart, Tas. 7001, Australia.

C School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, Box 355020, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-5020, USA.

D Corresponding author. Email: cathy.dichmont@csiro.au

Marine and Freshwater Research 63(8) 727-739 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF12068
Submitted: 7 March 2012  Accepted: 6 July 2012   Published: 20 August 2012

Abstract

A management strategy evaluation (MSE) framework is developed to evaluate strategies that provide total allowable catches (TACs) when the target biomass corresponds to maximum economic yield (MEY). The framework is applied to Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery (NPF), which has been actively managed using a tradable input-control system, but is to move to output controls based on individual transferable quotas (ITQs), with a consequence that the current management strategy needs to be replaced. Because the fleet is small, it is possible to set a TAC that cannot be taken entirely. Whereas input controls tend to self-adjust if recruitment is not accurately predicted, and consequently catch variability tends to be low, this is not the case for the reasonably variable species caught in the NPF when they are managed using TACs. The management strategy recovered the simulated stock to the target reference point when it was initially depleted, and avoided dropping the stock below the limit reference point (LRP) for five scenarios based on the current best understanding of resource status; however, in some cases, the stock was left above the target biomass because of biases in the assessment. A scenario in which the stock was forced to be initially depleted to below the limit reference point showed that the management strategy allows recovery.

Additional keywords: harvest control rule, management strategy evaluation, maximum economic yield, total allowable catch.


References

Bishop, J., Venables, W. N., Dichmont, C. M., and Sterling, D. M. (2008). Standardizing catch rates: is logbook information by itself enough? ICES Journal of Marine Science 65, 255–266.
Standardizing catch rates: is logbook information by itself enough?Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Butterworth, D. S. (2007). Why a management procedure approach? Some positives and negatives. ICES Journal of Marine Science 64, 613–617.
Why a management procedure approach? Some positives and negatives.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

DAFF (Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) (2007). ‘Australian Fisheries Harvest Policy: Policy and Guidelines.’ Available at http://www.daff.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/397264/HSP-and-Guidelines.pdf [verified July 2012]

De Oliveira, J. A. A., and Butterworth, D. S. (2004). Developing and refining a joint management procedure for the multispecies South African pelagic fishery. ICES Journal of Marine Science 61, 1432–1442.
Developing and refining a joint management procedure for the multispecies South African pelagic fishery.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Dichmont, C. M., Burridge, C., Deng, A., Jones, P., Taranto, T., Toscas, P., Vance, D., and Venables, W. (2002). Designing an integrated monitoring program for the NPF optimising costs and benefits. Australian Fisheries Management Authority report number R01/1144, Brisbane.

Dichmont, C. M., Punt, A. E., Deng, A., Dell, Q., and Venables, W. (2003). Application of a weekly delay-difference model to commercial catch and effort data in Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery. Fisheries Research 65, 335–350.
Application of a weekly delay-difference model to commercial catch and effort data in Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Dichmont, C. M., Deng, R., Punt, A. E., Venables, W., and Haddon, M. (2006a). Management Strategies for short lived species: the case of Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery. 1. Modelling the fishery taking account of the input control nature of management. Fisheries Research 82, 204–220.
Management Strategies for short lived species: the case of Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery. 1. Modelling the fishery taking account of the input control nature of management.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Dichmont, C. M., Deng, R., Punt, A. E., Venables, W., and Haddon, M. (2006b). Management strategies for short lived species: the case of Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery. 2. Factors affecting management and estimation performance. Fisheries Research 82, 221–234.
Management strategies for short lived species: the case of Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery. 2. Factors affecting management and estimation performance.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Dichmont, C. M., Deng, R., Punt, A. E., Venables, W., and Haddon, M. (2006c). Management strategies for short lived species: the case of Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery. 3. Management strategy scale and complexity. Fisheries Research 82, 235–245.
Management strategies for short lived species: the case of Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery. 3. Management strategy scale and complexity.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Dichmont, C. M., Deng, A., Punt, A. E., Ellis, N., Venables, W. N., Kompas, T., Zhou, S., and Bishop, J. (2008). Beyond biological performance measures in management strategy evaluation: bringing economics and the effects of trawling on the benthos. Fisheries Research 94, 238–250.
Beyond biological performance measures in management strategy evaluation: bringing economics and the effects of trawling on the benthos.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Dichmont, C. M., Pascoe, S., Kompas, T., and Punt, A. E. (2010). On implementing maximum economic yield in commercial fisheries. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA 107, 16–21.
On implementing maximum economic yield in commercial fisheries.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | 1:CAS:528:DC%2BC3cXnsFChug%3D%3D&md5=49fb1780a00785350cf615dfc5f34a70CAS |

Kompas, T., Dichmont, C. M., Punt, A. E., Deng, A., Che, T. N., Bishop, J., Gooday, P., Ye, Y., and Zhou, S. (2010). Maximizing profits and conserving stocks in the Australian Northern Prawn Fishery. The Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics 54, 281–299.
Maximizing profits and conserving stocks in the Australian Northern Prawn Fishery.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Payne, A. I. L., and Punt, A. E. (1995). Biology and fisheries of the South African Cape hakes (M. capensis and M. paradoxus). In ‘Hake: Fisheries, Ecology and Markets’. (Eds J. Alheit and T. J. Pitcher.) pp. 15–47. (Chapman and Hall: London.)

Plagányi, É. E., Rademeyer, R. A., Butterworth, D. S., Cunningham, C. L., and Johnson, S. J. (2007). Making management procedures operational – innovations implemented in South Africa. ICES Journal of Marine Science 64, 626–632.
Making management procedures operational – innovations implemented in South Africa.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Punt, A. E. (1992). Management procedures for Cape hake and baleen whale resources. Ph.D. Thesis, University of Cape Town, South Africa.

Punt, A. E., and Smith, A. D. M. (1999). Harvest strategy evaluation for the eastern stock of gemfish (Rexea solandri). ICES Journal of Marine Science 56, 860–875.
Harvest strategy evaluation for the eastern stock of gemfish (Rexea solandri).Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Punt, A. E., Deng, R. A., Dichmont, C. M., Kompas, T., Venables, W. N., Zhou, S., Pascoe, S., Hutton, T., Kenyon, R., van der Velde, T., and Kienzle, M. (2010). Integrating size-structured assessment and bio-economic management advice in Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery. ICES Journal of Marine Science 67, 1785–1801.
Integrating size-structured assessment and bio-economic management advice in Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Punt, A. E., Deng, R., Pascoe, S., Dichmont, C. M., Zhou, S., Plaganyi, E. E., Hutton, T., Venables, W. N., Kenyon, R., and van der Velde, T. (2011). Calculating optimal effort and catch trajectories for multiple species modeled using a mix of size-structured, delay-difference and biomass dynamics models. Fisheries Research 109, 201–211.
Calculating optimal effort and catch trajectories for multiple species modeled using a mix of size-structured, delay-difference and biomass dynamics models.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Sainsbury, K. J., Punt, A. E., and Smith, A. D. M. (2000). Design of operational management strategies for achieving fishery ecosystem objectives. ICES Journal of Marine Science 57, 731–741.
Design of operational management strategies for achieving fishery ecosystem objectives.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Venables, W. N., Ellis, N., Punt, A. E., Dichmont, C. M., and Deng, R. A. (2009). A simulation strategy for fleet dynamics in Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery: effort allocation at two scales. ICES Journal of Marine Science 66, 631–645.
A simulation strategy for fleet dynamics in Australia’s Northern Prawn Fishery: effort allocation at two scales.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |

Vieira, S., and Perks, C. (2009). Australian fisheries surveys report 2009: survey results for selected fisheries, 2006–07 and 2007–08, preliminary estimates for 2008–09. Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.

Zhou, S., Punt, A. E., Deng, R., Dichmont, C. M., Ye, Y., and Bishop, J. (2009). Modified hierarchical Bayesian biomass dynamics models for assessment of short-lived invertebrates: a comparison for tropical tiger prawns. Marine and Freshwater Research 60, 1298–1308.
Modified hierarchical Bayesian biomass dynamics models for assessment of short-lived invertebrates: a comparison for tropical tiger prawns.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |