Fish Aggregation Device No 2 (October 1996)

Number 2 (October 1996)

Editorial

Thank you all for your positive comments following the publication of the inaugural issue of the SPC FAD Information Bulletin. We are happy to welcome new members, not only from around the Pacific region, but also from places like the Caribbean, India and Iran.

For this second issue, Dr Kim N. Holland, from Hawaii, gets the ball rolling with a very comprehensive review of the various studies undertaken on the behaviour of tuna associated with FADs. This paper proves that scientific research can sometimes become romantic, like when tuna are followed swimming in the direction of the rising moon. A lot of work has already been done in this field—one study being the famous ultrasonic tracking of tuna carried out by Dr Holland himself—and a lot more are currently underway in French Polynesia and the Indian Ocean. We will try to keep you informed on their progress in future issues.

The second article, by Shinichiro Kakuma, presents the well-developed FAD fishery of Okinawa. The situation there is comparable to many places in the world, where coastal fisheries have had to face a reduction of resources due to over-exploitation. In Okinawa, many fishermen targeting deep-bottom snappers are slowly shifting to FAD fishing. The FAD fishery is now so important that trials of a ‘one million dollar FAD’, expected to last at least ten years, are underway and show promising results.

The ‘Hands-on FADs’ section presents the latest techniques used to build FADs in French Polynesia, and two fishing techniques commonly used in La Réunion and in Okinawa. At the end of this issue you will also find an eight-page bibliography of FAD-related literature. We hope it will form the starting point of an exhaustive bibliography on the subject. If your work, or anyone’s work you know of, is not in the list, please send us a copy—it will be cited in the ‘Readings’ section of the next issue.

Finally, please remember that this bulletin is intended to act as a relay between scientists, technicians, public and private fisheries managers, fishermen and other fisheries-related people. It is also a rare opportunity for you to be published both in English and in French. So, let us know about your work, the fishing techniques that are used in your region and the questions you would like to be answered.

Aymeric Desurmont

Contents

• Biological aspects of the association of tunas with FADs by Kim N. Holland
• FAD fisheries of Okinawa, Japan by S. Kakuma
• Latest type of FAD used in French Polynesia by F. Leproux & A. Desurmont
• Jumbo trolling
• Drift fishing with live atule

READINGS

• A preliminary bibliography of FAD-related literature