This year continues to be difficult for tuna fishermen in the EPO (The Eastern Pacific Ocean) where combined dropped by 15% from 380.885 M/T to 324.286 M/T during the period January to September 2007. However if we compare this number with the year 2005 the drop is even more dramatic: close to 40%.
The biggest decrease in landings was in skipjack (Latin name: Katsuwonus Pelamis), the most popular tuna for the canning industry. Volume fell by a staggering 25% by 48.545 M/T to the lower level of 138.119 M/T. But despite this the large reduction Katsuwonus Pelamis still was the main tuna species with 43% share of the total EPO catch in 2007. Catches of skipjack in the EPO have continued to fall since 2003, when the record level of 296.287 M/T was caught over the first 3 quarters of that year.
The second biggest catch was recorded by yellowfin (Latin name: Thunnus Albacares) with 131.368 M/T, only 6% lower than the year before over the same period, 41% of the total catch this year consisted out of Yellowfin.
The drop in catches is especially very severe for yellowfin. Over this year 3rd quarter cumulative catches of yellowfin have declined a hair raising 40% from the record level of 330.000 M/T in 2002. Ever since 2002, yellowfin catches have been going down year-on-year. Once, yellowfin was the most caught species in the EPO; those times seem to be over.
Also bigeye (Latin name: Thunnus Obesus) was down by 9% and only 36.466 M/T were landed.
Pacific Bluefin (Latin name: Thunnus Thynnus), the most ove
Remarkably however, from January to September 2007, the catch of bonitos and albacore increased. Especially bonito is interesting to look at because the quantity of bonito rose four-fold and reached 9.938 M/T when albacore only went up 1% from 82 M/T to 83 M/T.
