Sylvain Bonhommeau

Session 5, Talk 2, 19/1/16 @ 0900 hrs

Over the last six years, the status of the Eastern stock of Atlantic bluefin tuna has changed from overexploited/overfished to not overexploited and not overfished. This is the result of strong regulations, in particular, the rebuilding plan enforced since 2007/2009. This plan includes Total Allowable Catch, a minimum size, fishing seasons, and catch/effort controls. While these management regulations have proved their efficacy, they have led to major changes in fisheries strategies which have substantial impacts on the stock assessment inputs such as the abundance indices derived from catch and effort data. For example, the estimated spawning stock biomass has increased by ~four-fold over the last ten years: is this a management success or is this an indication of an unreliable stock assessment model? This presentation will show the evolution of the Eastern Atlantic stock status and the related uncertainties. I will discuss the next challenge for scientists to improve our knowledge of the biology and ecology of this species and to integrate this new information into modeling tools. Substantial efforts remain to be achieved in assessing socio-economic impacts and understanding how scientific knowledge and advice are currently used and understood by managers to make their decisions.

Contact:  S. Bonhommeau, Ifremer, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.