Professional Documents
Culture Documents
www.forestandbird.org.nz
November 2009
Acknowledgements
Forest & Bird with to thank anonymous reviewers for their peer review comments on this draft. We also thank
Peta Methias, Annabel Langbein, Martin Bosely, Margaret Brooker, Lois Daish, Kelder Haines, Dobie Blaze,
Rohan Horner and Ray McVinnie for permission to use their recipes on the website.
Special thanks to our Best Fish Guide Ambassador Dobie Blaze, keyboard player with Fat Freddy’s Drop.
Photography:
Malcolm Francis: blue cod, blue moki, blue shark, butterfish, groper/hapuku, hoki, jack mackerel, john
dory, kahawai, kingfish, leather jacket, moonfish, paua, porbeagle shark, red
gurnard, red snapper, scallop, school shark, sea perch, snapper, spiny dogfish,
tarakihi, trevally and trumpeter.
Peter Langlands: blue warehou, cockles, elephantfish, frostfish, lookdown dory, oyster, pale ghost
shark, queen scallops, red cod, rig/lemonfish, rubyfish and scampi.
Ministry of Fisheries: albacore tuna, bigeye tuna, blue mackerel, pacific bluefin tuna, skipjack tuna,
southern bluefin tuna and swordfish.
John Holdsworth: gemfish, striped marlin and yellowfin tuna.
Kirstie Knowles: sand flounder and rock lobster.
Department of Conservation: kina and skate.
Quentin Bennett: mako shark.
Scott Macindoe: garfish.
Jim Mikoz: yellow-eyed mullet.
Forest & Bird: arrow squid, dark ghost shark, orange roughy, smooth oreo, packhorse lobster,
paddle crabs, stargazer and white warehou.
Illustrations:
Bruce Mahalski: Best Fish Guide ecological impact icons plus alfonsino, ling and seahorse (below).
Robbie N.Cada: grey mullet and pilchard.
FAO: barracouta, black cardinalfish, bluenose, hake, ribaldo, southern blue whiting and
sprat.
CSIRO: anchovy and silver warehou.
Recommended citation: Forest & Bird (2009) Best Fish Guide 2009-2010: How sustainable is New Zealand
seafood? (Ecological Assessments). Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Inc,
Wellington.
Disclaimer
Every effort has been made by Forest & Bird to obtain permission to reproduce the images in
this guide and to credit them accordingly. Where it has not been possible to contact the
copyright holder we have included a credit. Every effort has also been made to ensure the
accuracy of information contained in this guide. Forest & Bird welcomes any comments or
further information on the text and images, but cannot accept any liability for any errors or
omissions.
Contents
Introduction 1
New Zealand’s oceans 1
Oceans under threat 1
Our vision 2
The Best Fish Guide 4
Questions to ask 4
Farmed seafood 5
Best Fish Guide 2009-2010 assessment summary 6
Fishery Facts 6
The Best and the Worst 7
Seafood assessment results 9 -128
Note. A full list of references used to complete the ecological assessments presented in this report are
provided in the Best Fish Guide assessment methodology: Weeber (2009) Best Fish Guide 2009-2010: How
it works (Assessment Methodology). Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Inc,
Wellington.
Index to fish species assessments
Many of our marine species are found nowhere else in the world. Scientists estimate that
more than 80% of New Zealand’s biodiversity is found in our oceans, and much more is
yet to be discovered. About 15,000 marine species are known, while it is estimated that
another 50,000 species are yet to be discovered – new species are being found all the
time.
Our marine area is also a vital part of our economy, supporting out $1.5 billion fishing
industry and our $20 billion tourism industry.
It is also central to our national identity: most New Zealanders live near the ocean and
have a close relationship with the marine environment. We collect kaimoana or seafood,
swim, dive, snorkel and sail, and appreciate the variety of marine life.
Fishing operations have the most significant impact on the marine environment, both
through the amount of fish caught and the methods used to catch it.
Some fishing practices, such as bottom trawling and dredging, used by fisheries in
New Zealand waters damage the marine environment.
Over the last 50 years fishing technologies have developed to such an extent that
the scale of fishing operations now exceeds a level that is sustainable. The UN
estimates that 70% of the world’s fisheries are now exploited to their limits, over-
exploited or depleted.
According to Statistics New Zealand fishing uses more energy than any other
industry sector, increasing by 40% in the last decade.
Compared to some fisheries, this is partly true – New Zealand does take a comprehensive
management approach and is recognised as being among the best. But comparing
ourselves to countries with no management or very poor fisheries management does not
mean that we should be proud of our situation. New Zealand is still far from living up to its
slogan “If it’s from New Zealand, it’s sustainable.”
Wild fisheries typically take place in open waters, with low levels of enforcement of rules
that aim to ensure sustainability, and few observers to report any breaches or problems.
New Zealand’s fisheries quota management system is a rights-based system that entitles
quota holders to a “right to fish,” which encourages them to fish to the maximum level
allowed under their quota, rather than take a more sustainable approach.
Having no upper size limit and allowing fish that have gathered to spawn to be
caught, reducing the ability of fish populations to reproduce.
Lacking information about fish stocks and how sustainable catches are.
Using destructive fishing techniques, such as bottom trawling and dredging, which
destroy habitats and seabed life.
Our vision
Forest & Bird has a vision for a more sustainable fishery by 2030:
New Zealand meets or exceeds world’s best practice in fisheries management and
environmental practice, so it can market truly sustainable products worldwide.
The guide covers an assessment of New Zealand’s wild-caught fisheries (see the section
about farmed fisheries for more information – page 5).
The assessment is based on six criteria, some of which are given heavier weighting than
others:
Criteria Weighting
Status and sustainability of catch High
Captures of protected or globally threatened species High
Fishing method and impact Medium
Fish biology and vulnerability to overfishing Medium
Management regime appropriate to species Medium
Management effectiveness and information levels Low
The Best Fish Guide assessment methodology has been peer reviewed and is available
for you to download at www.bestfishguide.org.nz. It is also available from Forest & Bird’s
national office.
The Best Fish Guide presents the results of its assessments in three formats:
A wallet guide that summarises fish rankings at a glance. The wallet guide ranks
fisheries from green (best choice) to red (worst choice) (see Appendix I).
To help you get the best taste from your Best Fish Guide we asked New Zealand chefs
and fish fans, including Peta Methias, Annabel Langbein and Dobie Blaze, to share their
favourite – and sustainable – fish recipes using the species identified as best choice in the
guide. You can find them at www.bestfishguide.org.nz.
Questions to ask
Unfortunately many seafood retailers have poor information and labelling, making it difficult
to make a sustainable choice. As well as using the Best Fish Guide, you can ask your
retailer questions:
Most fish species are known by a number of different names. For example, groper is also
known as bass and hapuku. Or it can work the other way: sometimes different species
are known by the same name. For example fish labelled as “tuna” could be a good choice
species like albacore tuna, or it could be a worst choice like southern bluefin tuna.
To identify what type of fish you are buying, go to the Best Fish Guide glossary of fish
names (www.bestfishguide.org.nz).
If your seafood was caught locally its ecological footprint is smaller because it doesn’t
have to be transported so far. It is also easier to check how local fish were caught. The
sustainability of fisheries in some regions is better than in other regions. By asking where
the fish was caught and checking the Best Fish Guide seafood species assessments you
can find out whether that species is caught sustainably in that locality.
Some fishing methods (bottom trawling and dredging) have devastating impacts on
seafloor habitats; other methods (gill/set netting, trawl fishing, long-lining) cause deaths of
vulnerable species. By asking how your fish was caught you can avoid the high impact
and damaging methods.
By asking these questions you can support more sustainable fishing practices and better
management of fisheries.
Farmed seafood
The Best Fish Guide does not currently assess farmed seafood because it is managed
under a very different system from wild fisheries, and its sustainability varies according to
very specific local factors.
The main species farmed in New Zealand are molluscs, such as mussels and oysters, and
fin fish, in particular salmon. Farmed molluscs generally have a lower ecological impact
than farmed fin fish. A particular concern about fish farming is the feeding of reared fish
with wild-caught seafood.
Until Forest & Bird develops its farmed fish assessment methodology we encourage you to
choose farmed seafood.
Fishery Facts
Of New Zealand’s 75 commercial fisheries assessed:
42 (56%) have never had a quantitative stock assessment and the stock status is
unknown;
15 (20%) have had a full stock assessment in the last 10 years (some showed that
little was known about the state of the stocks).
7 (9%) have quantitative stock assessments which are more than 10 years old;
18 (24%) have had only a partial stock assessment in the last 10 years.
11 (15%) have had all stocks assessed in the last 5 years.
24 (32%) were missing basic biological information required to manage the stock.
Every year over 1300 commercial fishing vessels fish in New Zealand waters:
Catching 453,145 tonnes of fish in the 2008 fishing year, with hoki making up the
largest proportion. (This is down from 652,000 tonnes in 1998).
Setting 10,000 km of nets;
Setting 50 million hooks;
Making 90,000 trawls;
Making 90,000 dredge tows.
Also:
On average, around 55,000 square kilometres were trawled each year in the
middle depth and deep water fisheries between 1990 and 20051 (with most fishing
in areas targeting hoki, squid, orange roughy, scampi and snapper).
Around 1000 fur seals are killed annually in New Zealand fisheries2.
1 Ministry for the Environment (2009) Environmental Report: Area swept by trawling
(http://www.mfe.govt.nz/environmental-reporting/oceans/fishing-activity/trawling/area-swept.html)
2 Smith M.H. and S. J. Baird (2009) Model-based estimation of New Zealand fur seal (Arctocephalus foresteri)
incidental captures and strike rates for trawl fishing in New Zealand waters for the years 1994-95 to 2005-06. NZ
Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity, No 40.
The highest-ranking fisheries representing the best seafood choices are anchovies,
pilchards and sprats.
Close behind, still offering a good seafood choice, are skipjack tuna, garfish, cockles and
kina.
Improvements3
A number of commercially caught species have moved up the Best Fish Guide rankings,
including hoki, blue cod, trevally, packhorse lobster and red gurnard.
The worst-ranking fisheries are orange roughy and porbeagle shark, followed by
oreo/deepwater dory, southern bluefin tuna, mako shark, snapper, blue shark and black
cardinalfish. These fish represent a poor seafood choice and should be avoided.
Degraded3
Quite a few commercially caught species have moved down the Best Fish Guide rankings.
These include skates or rays, bluenose, rock lobster, scallops, eels and both bigeye and
yellowfin tuna.
Below is a table illustrating some of New Zealand’s fisheries with the greatest
environmental impact (unless otherwise stated, these numbers are based on a 3 year
average of the latest information):
Ecological impact Worst offending fisheries (in order of impact) Numbers killed
per year
Marine Mammals
4
- Hector's dolphins Rig/lemonfish, school shark, elephantfish, butterfish 110-150
5
- NZ sea lions Southern squid trawl fishery, scampi, southern blue 54*
whiting
5
- NZ fur seals Hoki, southern blue whiting, ling 800
- Dolphins (common, Jack mackerel, blue mackerel 55
5
porpoise, bottlenose)
5
Seabirds (2006-07)
- Albatrosses Squid trawl, hoki trawl, tuna longline, swordfish 1060
longline
- Petrels Squid trawl, hoki trawl, tuna longline 1900
- Fishing methods Longline fisheries 1500
Sharks
6
- Basking sharks Hoki, squid, barracouta 50
7
- Blue sharks Tuna longline fishery 76,000
Finned sharks e.g. blue shark 87%
(proportion of sharks e.g. porbeagle shark 85%
finned between 2002
and 2007)
6 e.g. mako shark 47%
8
Seafloor species
Bottom trawl fisheries (e.g. orange roughy and oreo) 30+ tonnes
A summary of the ecological assessment scores for each New Zealand seafood species is
presented in Appendix II (page130).
6 Ministry of Fisheries (2008) New Zealand National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of sharks.
Ministry of Fisheries, Wellington.
7 Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries (2008) Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2008:
stock assessments and yield estimates. 157p.
8 Anderson O. F. (2009) Fish Discards and non-target fish catch in the New Zealand orange roughy trawl fishery, 1999-
2000 to 2004-05. New Zealand Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity Report No. 39. 40p.
9 Anderson O. F. (2007) Fish Discards and non-target fish catch in the New Zealand jack mackerel trawl fishery, 2001-02
to 2004-05. New Zealand Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity Report No. 8. 36p.
Ballara S.L. and Anderson O.F. (2009) Fish Discards and non-target fish catch in the trawl fisheries for arrow squid
and scampi in New Zealand waters. New Zealand Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity Report No. 38. 102p.
Anderson O. F. (2009) Fish Discards and non-target fish catch in the New Zealand orange roughy trawl fishery,
1999-2000 to 2004-05. New Zealand Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity Report No. 39. 40p.
Anderson O. F. and Smith M. H. (2007) Fish Discards and non-target fish catch in the New Zealand hoki trawl fishery,
1999-2000 to 2002-03. New Zealand Fisheries Assessment Report, 2005/3 37p.
10 Griggs, L.H., Baird, S. J. and Francis, M.P. (2007) Fish bycatch in New Zealand tuna longline fisheries, 2002-03 to
2004-05. New Zealand Fisheries Assessment Report 2007/18. 58p.
11 Anderson O. F. (2007) Fish Discards and non-target fish catch in the New Zealand jack mackerel trawl fishery, 2001-
02 to 2004-05. New Zealand Aquatic Environment and Biodiversity Report No. 8. 36p.
12 Beentjes, M.P. and Baird S.J. (2004) Review of dredge fishing technologies and practice for application in New
Zealand. New Zealand Fisheries Assessment Report 2004/37. 40p.
The following pages detail the ecological assessments of each commercially caught New
Zealand seafood species. (An index is presented at the front of this report.)
To aid the reader, a quick reference to the key ecological concerns are illustrated with one
of the following icons:
Description: This top predator is a highly migratory species of tuna that is mainly caught by troll and longline
fisheries (30-50% of the catch) off the west coast of New Zealand‟s North and South Islands. The albacore catch
steadily increased following the start of commercial fishing in the 1960s and fluctuated (between 2200 and 6600
tonnes) in the last ten years (Lewis and Williams, 2001, p29). The albacore troll fishery is currently seeking
environmental certification under an international body - the Marine Stewardship Council.
Ecological concerns: The bycatch of sharks, seabirds and fur seals, declining stock trends and the absence of
catch limits, a management plan and an updated stock assessment. Removal of this large predatory species from
the ocean‟s food web has wide ecological implications.
Economic value: The main market is for canned albacore, with the canning process done outside New Zealand.
Canned albacore tuna is sold as “white tuna”, mainly in the USA. The export value is over $10 million per year.
Best option: Troll caught tuna (e.g. West Coast of the South Island).
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and Protected, threatened or endangered species bycatch (score: D and C)
Fishing Method(s): Trolling on the West Coast of the South Island and longlining around the North Island.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: Sharks and New Zealand fur seals are caught in the longline fishery and sharks are caught in the troll fishery.
Ecological effects: Excess removal of this and other large predatory species has knock-on effects on the wider food web.
References: Overview of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean Tuna Fisheries (2000) A Lewis and P Williams, Oceanic Fisheries Programme, Secretariat of the
Pacific Community, New Caledonia, August 2001; National Tuna Fishery Report (2001) New Zealand, T Murray and L Griggs, NIWA; Report from the Mid-Year
Fishery Assessment Plenary (November 2008): stock assessments and yield estimates. Ministry of Fisheries Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to
New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Alfonsino is actually the name used for two deepwater species related to the red snapper. They are both ?
widely dispersed in New Zealand waters and are particularly found around seamounts and deepwater reefs in waters
200 to 800m deep.
Ecological concerns: Management of two species as one, damage by fishing gear to seamounts, ecological impacts
of bottom trawling, shark bycatch, limited research, lack of a management plan, unknown stock status and unknown
sustainability of recent catch levels and current catch limits in all of the fishstocks.
Economic value: Main market is Japan with exports of about $7 million per year.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and B)
Fishing Method(s): Mainly bottom trawling and some mid-water trawling, over hills and seamounts around the Chatham Rise.
Habitat damage: Trawling damages fragile underwater seamounts, altering unique community complexes.
Bycatch: Sharks and a range of non-target species, including sponges and corals.
Ecological effects: Destruction to seafloor habitats and seamount ecosystems.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake. Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This small, fast growing, but short-lived schooling fish is common in coastal waters, particularly in
sheltered bays. It is often found in mixed schools with pilchards and sprats and occurs around the world. Jointly with ?
pilchards and sprats, anchovy has the best ecological ranking of any commercial fishery in New Zealand.
Ecological concerns: There are no estimates of the size of its sustainable yield, a lack of basic biological information
on natural mortality, growth or stock structure, limited research and lack of a management plan. There is also concern
that reducing their population could disrupt marine food chains as it is a prey item for many other fish species.
Economic value: New Zealand and exports of under $100,000 per year.
Best option: Anchovy are one of the best New Zealand seafood choices.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species capture (score B and B)
Fishing Method(s): Lampara nets and purse seining.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: Some bycatch of other pelagic fish.
Ecological effects: Reducing the anchovy population disrupts marine food chains, reducing a prey species for other species
including larger fish, seabirds and marine mammals as has happened with anchovy fisheries elsewhere. Sometimes anchovy are
discarded when there are no markets, making this effect unnecessary.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: These two species of squid are very short lived (1 year) and range from surface depths down to 500
metres in coastal waters around New Zealand. Arrow squid are mainly caught off the South Island and the Auckland ?
Islands with most taken by mid-water trawling, with the rest caught by bottom trawling and jigging.
Ecological concerns: Trawl caught squid, where there is a high number of threatened NZ sea lions, NZ fur seals,
seabirds and non-target fish killed as bycatch, plus damage done to the seabed and associated species by bottom
trawling. The Auckland Islands squid trawl fishery is of particular concern, killing hundreds of seabirds and up to 150
sea lions per year (72 in 2009) from the main breeding colony, which is in decline. The state of stocks, absence of
research and lack of a management plan are also concerns. In addition, two species are managed as one and there is
an absence of basic biological information on squid and no research programme focussed on squid.
Economic value: Most arrow squid are exported frozen to Greece (17%), Spain (15%) and Australia (12%). Exports
vary considerably between years and were worth about $70 million in 2008, which was well below 2004 exports
($172m).
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and E)
Fishing Method(s): Approximately 30% are caught by bottom trawling with the rest coming from mid-water trawling and a small
amount by squid jigging, a more environmentally friendly method which uses bright lights to attract squid to the jiggers.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling and mid-water trawl gear fished near the seafloor damages the seabed.
Bycatch: Globally threatened NZ sea lions, which have been in decline for the last 10 years, NZ fur seals, albatross and petrels
drown in trawl nets. The fishery also catches globally threatened basking sharks.
Ecological effects: Damage to seafloor habitats and removal of these important prey species can affect populations of larger fish,
seabirds and marine mammals, including the threatened NZ sea lion.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.; NZ SeaFIC website
2005.
Description: Barracouta is a relatively short-lived species that is related to gemfish. It is widely distributed in the
Southern oceans and whilst abundant in New Zealand‟s cooler waters south of Cook Strait, they also occur in our ?
northern waters, ranging from shallow inshore areas to depths of 200m. Once an undesirable bycatch species,
barracouta are now an important part of trawl fishery catches.
Ecological concerns: The damage done to large areas of the seabed by bottom trawling, poor knowledge of stock
boundaries, limited research, lack of a management plan and uncertainty over the sustainability of the current catch
limit and recent catches. Bycatch of NZ fur seals, albatrosses and petrels, non-target fish plus removal of this
important predator species on food webs are also of concern.
Economic value: Main markets include Japan, China, Papua New Guinea, and South Africa. Total exports worth
$28 million in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing Method: Bottom trawling.
Habitat damage: Large areas of benthic communities are damaged by bottom trawling, including bryozoans and crabs.
Bycatch: Non-target fish species such as silver warehou and spiny dogfish and a significant bycatch in Southland of NZ fur seals,
white-capped (shy) albatrosses and sooty shearwaters.
Ecological effects: Fishing for barracouta removes an important predator from food webs.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd..
Description: Bigeye tuna is a highly migratory species that is deeper swimming than other tuna, found off the coast of
the North Island for much of the year. Longline fisheries for this tuna occur mainly in the West and East Coast of the
North Island from the Bay of Plenty north. New Zealand represents only 3.5 percent of the Pacific catch, which is now
managed by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC).
Ecological concerns: Uncertainty about the state of the stocks, declining stock trend, lack of a management plan plus
the bycatch of sharks, seabirds and fur seals. Bigeye is internationally listed as a threatened species (vulnerable).
Economic value: Main markets are Japan, Australia and USA. The export value in 2008 was $1.7 million.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing Method: Longlining around the North Island.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: Sharks, seabirds and New Zealand fur seals are caught in the longline fishery.
Ecological effects: Excess removal of this and other large predatory species has knock-on effects on the wider food web.
References: Overview of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean Tuna Fisheries, 2000, A Lewis and P Williams, Oceanic Fisheries Programme, Secretariat of the
Pacific Community, New Caledonia, August 2001; National Tuna Fishery Report 2001 – New Zealand, T Murray and L Griggs, NIWA; Report from the Mid-Year
Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2008: stock assessments and yield estimates. Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand
Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This slow growing, long-lived (over 100 years) deepwater species is the only cardinalfish that reaches a
marketable size. It is common off the east coast of the North Island at depths of 300 to 800m and is caught in
association with alfonsino around seamounts and orange roughy, which has the lowest ecological ranking on the Best
Fish Guide.
Ecological concerns: The damage done to seamounts by bottom trawling, the bycatch of deepwater sharks,
declining catch rates in the main fisher, the unknown state of many stocks and the unsustainability of East Coast North
Island and Chatham Rise fisheries, where stocks have been estimated to be just 12% of the original, unfished
population size. Limited research, lack of a management plan and the unknown sustainability of the current catch limit
or recent catches are also of concern.
Economic value: The main market is New Zealand with some exports to Japan and China. Total exports of $1.5million in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and D)
Fishing Method: Bottom and mid-water trawling north of Chatham Rise where it is caught in association with Orange Roughy.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling decimates sea floor benthic species assemblages and fragile seamount habitats, bulldozing the
sea floor destroying black coral, lace corals, colourful sponge fields, long-lived bryozoans and many other invertebrate species.
Bycatch: Deepwater sharks and a range of deepwater species including Orange Roughy.
Ecological effects: Impact on seamount communities and deepwater fish populations.
Description: Blue cod is an endemic bottom dwelling species that is relatively common throughout New Zealand but is
most abundant south of Cook Strait.
Ecological concerns: The unknown sustainability of current catch limits, which are significantly greater than yield ?
estimates based on past average catches, the combined commercial and recreational catches plus limited research.
The impact of trawling on long-lived, slow-growing fragile corals and sponges is also of major concern. Large and
heavily baited pots can also damage seafloor species when dropped in deeper waters. Other concerns include shags
being caught in pots and the lack of a management plan.
Economic value: New Zealand markets plus exports to Australia, Malaysia, China and Taiwan of less than $1
million in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and B)
Fishing method(s): Mostly target caught in pots but some are caught on hand lines and some as bycatch by the inshore trawl fleet
in BCO3 and BCO7. Apart from area BCO5 there are no limits on the size of mesh used in pots – this increases the chance of small
fish being caught.
Habitat damage: Long-lived, slow growing soft corals, sponges and bryozoans are broken when large heavy baited pots are
dropped on them. Trawlers also scrape and damage the seabed and associated species.
Bycatch: Shags may drown in pots and small fish may be caught.
Ecological effects: The combined effects of a loss of large blue cod, which are easily caught in fisheries, the bycatch caught in trawl
fisheries and the serial depletion of blue cod may all be having a degree of adverse impacts on the wider marine ecosystem.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; Cranfield H J, G
Carbines, K P Michael, A Dunn, D R Stotter, D J Smith (2001) Promising signs of regeneration of blue cod and oyster habitat changed by dredging in Foveaux Strait,
southern New Zealand. NZ J of Marine and Freshwater Research, 2001, Vol. 35.
Description: Blue mackerel is a relative of tuna and is similarly widely distributed around the Pacific, including New ?
Zealand. It is often found below schools of jack mackerel and kahawai and is caught year round off the North Island
and northern South Island, primarily by purse seine fishing.
Ecological concerns: The little known state of fishstocks, the unknown sustainability of catch levels, declining catch
rates on the West Coast, limited research and the lack of a management plan. Also of concern is the bycatch of
dolphins and other fish species, plus the ecological impact of blue mackerel removal from food webs.
Economic value: Exports worth about $10 million in 2008. Main markets are Australia, Philippines and Eastern Europe.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score C and D)
Fishing method(s): Mainly purse-seining but also bottom longline, bottom pair-trawl, beach-seine, bottom trawl, driftnet (in
international waters), dip net, Danish seine, hand line, lampara, midwater trawl, lobster pot, ring net, surface longline, set net and
troll.
Habitat damage: Low for purse-seine caught fish, high for bottom trawl and bottom pair-trawl caught fish
Bycatch: Caught in association with other pelagic species including jack mackerel, kahawai, skipjack tuna and trevally. When
caught with the jack mackerel fishery, there is a dolphin bycatch problem on the West Coast of the North Island.
Ecological effects: This fishery has an impact on a range of pelagic fish species which play an important role in driving smaller
baitfish species close to the sea surface where a variety of seabird species are able to feed on them. Reducing these pelagic fish
species can in turn reduce the amount of baitfish available at the sea surface for seabirds to feed on.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Blue moki is a comparatively long-lived species found in shallow waters. Landings have declined since ?
the mid-1990s when it was introduced to the Quota Management System (QMS). This species spawns between
East Cape and Mahia, and is culturally important for East Cape/Cape Runaway Iwi (Maori tribes). It is caught by
trawl or set net.
Ecological concerns: The reduction in landings since it was introduced to the QMS, limited research, the lack of a
management plan, the uncertainty over stock structure and the unknown status of stocks and population size. Use
of set nets and trawlers have impacts on seabed communities and non-target fish species. The fishing methods may
also have impacts on marine mammals.
Economic value: The main market for blue moki is within New Zealand, with exports of under $100,000 in 2008.
Best option: Blue moki caught in areas with minimal risk to Hector‟s dolphins (e.g. east and north coast of the North Island).
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing Method(s): Trawling and set nets.
Habitat damage: Impact of bottom trawling on sensitive seafloor species.
Bycatch: Range of non-target fish species caught in set nets and trawl nets, plus potential impacts on marine mammals and
seabirds, including threatened Hector‟s dolphins.
Ecological effects: Damage to seafloor and associated species due to trawling plus removal of large fish from the system.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Blue sharks, like most shark species, are slow growing and highly vulnerable to overfishing. A highly
migratory species, Blue sharks are taken in large numbers in New Zealand‟s tuna longline fisheries, mainly in the
West and East Coast of the North Island from the Bay of Plenty north. Most of the blue sharks (around 87%) are
caught just for their highly priced fins, with the rest of the carcass dumped at sea.
Ecological concerns: Uncertainty about the state of the stocks, the bycatch of other sharks, seabirds and fur seals,
limited research and the lack of a quantitative stock assessment or a management plan. Removal of this predatory
species may also have considerable negative ecological implications.
Whilst there is no management plan for blue sharks, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the
Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for
blue sharks, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo. The practise of shark finning, which is
legal in New Zealand, is also enormously wasteful. Whilst there is no management plan for blue sharks, in 2008 a
New Zealand National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there
are no specific conservation actions for blue sharks, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo.
Economic value: The primary value is in the highly priced fins (and tail), which are exported to East Asian markets.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method: Longlining around the North Island.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: Other sharks, seabirds and New Zealand fur seals are caught in the longline fishery.
Ecological effects: Removal of large predator species as bycatch in the longline fishery. The practise of shark finning – cutting off
the high-priced fins of sharks and dumping the rest of the body at sea – is contributing to the decline of shark species
worldwide. Shark finning is legal in New Zealand. Ministry of Fisheries figures show that from 2002-2007 more than 80% of blue
sharks caught in New Zealand were taken just for their fins.
References: National Tuna Fishery Report 2001 – New Zealand, T Murray and L Griggs, NIWA; Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November
2008: stock assessments and yield estimates. Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition,
The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; New Zealand National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of sharks (October 2008), Ministry of
Fisheries.
Description: Blue warehou is a coastal species, unlike other warehou (silver and white warehou), common in depths ?
of 20 to 200m in cooler southern waters south of Cook Strait. It is popular in fish and chip shops. The main fishing
grounds for include Cook Strait and the West Coast of the South Island.
Ecological concerns: Limited research, the unknown size of fishstocks, the lack of a management plan, the habitat
damage caused by bottom trawling, non-target fish bycatch and the associated ecological impacts caused by the
fishing methods.
Economic value: New Zealand market plus exports of $1 million in 2008, mainly to Japan and Australia.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing Method(s): Mainly caught as bycatch in trawl fisheries (eg squid), including bottom trawling for hoki. Some are caught in
coastal set nets.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling bulldozes the sea floor, destroying soft corals, sponges and long-lived bryozoans.
Bycatch: A range of non-target fish species are caught as bycatch in set nets and trawl nets.
Ecological effects: Damage to seafloor and associated species due to trawling plus removal of large fish from the system.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Ecological concerns: The damage caused to underwater banks and canyons north of the Cook Strait by trawling,
the bycatch of non-target fish species such as sharks and seabirds, limited research, the lack of a management plan
and the uncertainty over stock boundaries. Also of concern is the large decline in catch rates (64% in 5 years)
throughout the zone, the unknown state of stocks and the likelihood the stock will continue to decline at the current
catch limits.
Economic value: Exports of about $14 million in 2008 with main markets in United States (about 50%) and Australia.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method(s): Caught by bottom longline in the Bay of Plenty and off Northland, and as a bycatch in the alfonsino midwater
trawl fishery off the Wairarapa coast.
Habitat damage: Trawling and associated seafloor scraping causes damage to underwater banks, canyons and seamounts north of
the Cook Strait.
Bycatch: Other non-target fish species in the alfonsino fishery. Longlining and trawling also catch a range of bycatch species
including sharks. Seabirds are also caught in the longline fishery.
Ecological effects: The combined impacts of trawling and longlining on the structure of marine communities.
Description: Butterfish is an endemic species of kelpfish found in shallow waters around the New Zealand coast. ?
They are more abundant south of East Cape, especially around Cook Strait, where they are caught year round in
set nets.
Ecological concerns: The unknown status of stocks and population size, unknown sustainability of catch levels,
absence of research, the lack of a management plan and the bycatch of non-target fish species. Restrictions on set
netting introduced in May 2008 have reduced the risk of catching endangered Hector‟s dolphins. However, a
pending court ruling may grant the fishery an exemption and raise the risk to these dolphins.
Best option: Butterfish caught in areas with minimal risk to Hector‟s dolphins (e.g. east and north coast of the North Island).
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and B)
Method: Targeted set nets.
Habitat damage: Low for set netting.
Bycatch: Range of non-target fish caught in set nets. Set nets pose a significant risk to threatened Hector‟s dolphins. However,
restrictions on set netting in areas where the dolphins are found, introduced in May 2008, have significantly reduced this threat.
However, the risk of dolphin captures may still exist where butterfish fishing overlaps with dolphin areas outside these closures.
Ecological effects: Butterfish are important kelp eating fish, so their depletion could have wider impacts on kelp forest ecosystems.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: A relatively short-lived but widespread shellfish species, found in soft mud to silty sand habitats in
harbours and estuaries. The main commercial harvesting areas are at Whangarei, Nelson/Marlborough and the Otago
Peninsula.
Ecological concerns: The impacts of mechanical harvesting and digging at Tasman and Golden Bay. Also, the past
depletion of stocks in Whangarei harbour, gaps between surveys, the lack of a management plan, the uncertainty over
stock size in relation to virgin biomass and BMSY in other areas. The ecological effects of removing or killing this
shellfish on wading birds that feed on cockles is also of concern.
Economic value: Sold in New Zealand and exported (under $1 million in 2008) to United States and Europe (France).
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This slow growing deepwater shark species is only found in New Zealand and is most abundant in ?
waters 150 to 500m deep off the West Coast of the South Island and the Chatham Rise. It is caught almost entirely
as bycatch in other target trawl fisheries, notably the hoki fishery, but also the silver warehou, arrow squid and
barracouta fisheries, plus by deepwater longlining.
Ecological concerns: The lack of basic biological data, the uncertain long-term sustainability of catch levels, the
unknown status of the fishstocks and the impact of trawling on benthic species. As a bycatch species, it has
associated seabird and marine mammal bycatch and disrupted ecosystem concerns.
Whilst there is no management plan for dark ghost sharks, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the
Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for
ghost sharks, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo.
Economic value: Ghost shark exports of around $2 million to Australia and shark fins are exported to Asia.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method: Trawling (mixture of mid-water and bottom trawling), caught as bycatch in hoki, silver warehou, arrow squid and
barracouta fisheries, plus by deepwater longlining.
Habitat damage: Destruction of deepwater habitats by bottom trawling.
Bycatch: Wide range of bycatch species (see hoki, silver warehou, arrow squid, barracouta), including seabirds, marine mammals
and non-target fish.
Ecological effects: Broad ecological impacts as a result of seafloor damage and removal of a wide variety of non-target fish. (See
hoki, silver warehou, arrow squid, barracouta).
Description: Eels are important freshwater predators. There are two main species of New Zealand eel – the
endemic long-finned and native short-finned eels. They are caught in baited fyke nets or traditional hinaki. Both
species are long-lived, spending part of their life-cycle at sea and part in freshwater environments. The long-finned
eel is listed as a threatened species by the Department of Conservation (Hitchmough (comp) 2002). A third species
- the Australian long-finned eel - is primarily found in Northland.
Ecological concerns: The severely overfished status of the endemic long-finned eel, declining catch rates and the
unknown sustainability of recent catch levels, managing two species (short-finned and Australian long-finned) as one
species in the South Island, the lack of current or reference biomass estimates and the lack of a management plan.
Bycatch of seabirds is also of concern.
Economic value: New Zealand and exports of about $6 million in 2008 to markets including Germany, Belgium,
Netherlands and Italy.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Long-finned Short-finned
Maximum age (years): 106 60 (uncertain)
Age at sexual maturity (migration): 11-56+ 5-41+ (uncertain)
Growth rate: variable unknown
Reproductive output: Low Low
Size/age exploited: 8-17 6-13 (uncertain)
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and C)
Fishing method: Fyke nets or hinaki.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd, Hitchmough (comp)
2002 NZ Threat Classification System Lists, Department of Conservation
Description: This small shark species, which is only found in New Zealand, has biological characteristics that make
it relatively less prone to overfishing than most shark species. It is most common on the east coast of the South ?
Island to depths of 200m, where it is caught mainly as bycatch off the Banks Peninsula in trawl fisheries and as a
target species in set nets.
Ecological concerns: The lack of a management plan, the unknown sustainability of some recent catch levels and
catch limits and the failure to carry out a full stock assessment. Also of concern is the impact of trawling on the
seabed and associated communities plus non-target fish bycatch of set netting. Restrictions on set netting and
trawling introduced in May 2008 have reduced the risk of catching endangered Hector‟s dolphins. However,
offshore fishing outside the closed areas still poses a significant risk to these dolphins.
Whilst there is no management plan for elephant fish, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the
Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for
elephant fish, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo.
Economic value: Market in New Zealand and exports of about $1m in 2008 to Australia and North America.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method(s): Trawling and set nets. Most are caught as bycatch in one of the red cod trawl fisheries as well as other trawl
fisheries. The proportion caught by set nets has declined.
Habitat damage: Removal of benthic species and change in biodiversity from trawling.
Bycatch: Hector‟s dolphins caught in set nets and some trawl fisheries (e.g. the red cod trawl fishery off Canterbury coast, where
elephant fish is a bycatch species). Restrictions on set netting and trawling in areas where the dolphins are found were introduced in
May 2008. These have significantly reduced the threat to marine mammals and other wildlife, however, captures may still exist
where fishing overlaps with dolphin areas outside these closures. Elephant fish fisheries also have non-target fish bycatch.
Ecological effects: Changes in seafloor communities from bottom trawling and possible impacts of marine food webs.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: These eight flatfish species grow rapidly and are caught mainly by inshore bottom trawling, with ?
smaller amounts in set nets and smaller beach drag nets. Sand flounder is the most abundant species and is found
only in New Zealand.
Ecological concerns: Management of eight species as one fishstock, uncertain stock structures and sustainability
of catch limits plus limited research (uncertain age of the fish when caught, lack of basic biological data for some of
the species and absence of yield estimates) and the lack of a management plan. Bottom trawling causes serious
damage to benthic species and communities, whilst set netting is associated with bycatch of endangered Hector‟s
dolphins, other marine mammals, seabirds, sharks and other non-target fish. Flatfish fishing was made exempt from
the May 2008 set net restrictions as the fishery is thought to pose a lower risk than other set net fisheries due to low
net height. However, it is unclear whether this is the case given the absence of observers on vessels using this
gear.
Economic value: New Zealand market plus exports of $8 million, mainly to Australia, China and Spain.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing method(s): Inshore bottom trawling, set nets and drag nets.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science
Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd .
Description: This relatively short-lived species is widely distributed around the world. In New Zealand it is normally ?
found over the outer shelf in waters 200 – 500m deep. It is mainly caught as bycatch (more than 90%) in trawl
fisheries for jack mackerel and hoki, and to a lesser extent in the arrow squid, barracouta and gemfish fisheries.
Half are caught off the West Coast of the South Island and Taranaki Bight in mid-water trawl fisheries.
Ecological concerns: Lack of research (including the absence of some basic biological information), the unknown
sustainability of recent catches and the uncertainty about stock structure plus the lack of a management plan. As a
bycatch species of other fisheries, marine mammals, non-target fish and impacts on seabed communities are also
serious concerns.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method: A mixture of mid-water trawl and bottom trawl fishing.
Habitat damage: Damage to seafloor communities when caught by bottom trawl in the hoki, gemfish and other trawl fisheries.
Bycatch: Caught as bycatch in the hoki and jack mackerel fisheries, which include fur seal and common dolphin captures. Less than
10% is target fished.
Ecological effects: The effect of this fishery, combined with the hoki and jack mackerel fisheries, contribute towards multiple
seafloor and water column community impacts.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Garfish are relatively short-lived and, whilst similar species occur around the world, this species is
found only in New Zealand. They are common in shallow coastal waters, such as bays and harbours, when they ?
school at the surface.
Ecological concerns: The lack of some basic biological information, information on stock size and yield estimates,
the uncertainty of some biological information, limited research, huge uncertainty about stock boundaries and
absence of a management plan.
Best option: Garfish is one of the best New Zealand seafood choices as the fishing methods have minimal ecological impact.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and A)
Fishing method(s): Beach seine and lampara net. (Garfish are sometimes also taken as a non-target catch in the pilchard fishery.)
Habitat damage: Low due to most fish being caught by beach seine and lampara nets.
Bycatch: Relatively low bycatch but small fish can be caught by both methods.
Ecological effects: Low, although depletion of garfish may have impacts on associated species by altering food web dynamics.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Biology and risk of overfishing (score D)
Distribution: Gemfish is found throughout New Zealand coastal waters but is more common in the south at depths of 150-200m.
Maximum age (years): 17
Age at sexual maturity: 3-6
Growth rate: Moderate.
Reproductive output: Medium to high.
Age exploited: 3-5
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method: Target trawling off the east and north coasts of the North Island. Catches off the west and southern coasts of the
South Island are now primarily bycatch of hoki and squid fisheries.
Habitat damage: After scampi, gemfish trawling had the highest impact of target fisheries in the Bay of Plenty (Cryer et al 2002).
Bottom trawling within hoki and squid fisheries results in significant damage to seafloor communities and associated species.
Bycatch: A range of fish and invertebrate species are caught in the targeted fishery. When caught in the hoki and arrow squid
fisheries, seabird, fur seal and deepwater shark bycatch problems are also prevalent.
Ecological effects: Bottom trawling disturbs the seabed and changes the abundance and community structure of many bottom
dwelling fish species and benthic species (Cryer et al, 2002).
Description: Grey mullet is a surface dwelling, coastal species that is widespread throughout tropical and sub-
tropical seas. In New Zealand it is most commonly found in northern bays, harbours, mangrove swamps and ?
estuaries. They are caught year round in set nets and beach seines, but mainly from November to March when
they gather to spawn offshore.
Ecological concerns: That the current commercial catch limit in the main fishery is 100 tonnes above the
maximum current yield estimate, that landings have fluctuated during the last four years raising doubts about the
status of this stock, the lack of yield or biomass estimates for nearly all areas, the lack of a management plan and
the apparent disparity between quota areas and likely stock boundaries. Set net fisheries can have considerable
non-target fish bycatch. In the past this fishery has posed a serious threat to critically endangered Maui‟s dolphins.
Restrictions on set netting introduced in May 2008 have reduced this risk, however, a pending court ruling may reopen
some fishing areas and continue the pose an undue threat to these dolphins.
Economic value: Main market is in New Zealand, with some exports to Asia of less than $100,000 in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and B)
Fishing method(s): Set nets and beach seining.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: A range of species are caught by set nets, including marine mammals and non-target fish species. Range of non-target
fish caught in set nets. Set nets pose a significant risk to critically endangered Maui‟s dolphins. However, restrictions on set netting in
areas where the dolphins are found, introduced in May 2008, have significantly reduced this threat. (Depending on the results of
legal action to reopen closed areas, the dolphins may again be put at risk.)
Ecological effects: Possible ecosystem impacts of removing larger fish from the population.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: These two long-lived, slow growing species of sea bass are found around New Zealand, though Bass ?
is also found in many temperate oceans around the world. Bass is more common in the north and ranges into deeper
water (up to 800m) than grouper (up to 400m). They are mainly caught in deep underwater canyons off the East
Coast of the North Island, Cook Strait, Kaikoura and the West Coast of the South Island. Once commonly caught
inshore and an important coastal predator, groper have now almost disappeared from diving depths.
Ecological concerns: The management of two species as one quota species, the uncertainty and conflict over
stock boundaries, limited research (including a lack of information on sustainable yields and uncertainty over basic
biological information for bass). Other concerns include the lack of a management plan, the decline in reported landings
in recent years and the unknown sustainability of the current catch limit. Bycatch of other fish species is also of concern
as is the loss of these ecologically important species, particularly hapuku, which is a prey species for sperm whales.
Economic value: Export value of about $4million in 2008 mainly to Australia, Japan and United States.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and B)
Fishing method(s): Mainly longline and hand line, but also caught using trawl and set net.
Habitat damage: Low for line caught fish but trawling catches and damages bottom dwelling species and associated communities.
Bycatch: A range of bycatch fish species including tarakihi and blue cod. Deepwater sharks are also occasionally caught (e.g. seal
shark).
Ecological effects: Serial depletion of these species can occur, with line fishing removing large individuals. Hapuku or groper is a
known prey species for sperm whale, so depletion may reduce the whale‟s food availability. The effects of trawling include reducing
the diversity of fragile invertebrate species including cold water corals, sponges and bryozoans.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science
Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Hake is a relative of the hoki, found only in New Zealand. It is targeted on the Chatham Rise and in
the sub-Antarctics, but is usually caught as bycatch by mid-water hoki trawling. Most hake is caught off the West
Coast of the South Island with some taken from the south of the South Island and around the Chatham Islands. The
hake trawl fishery is currently seeking environmental certification under an international body - the Marine
Stewardship Council.
Ecological concerns: Seabirds and marine mammals are commonly caught as bycatch in the associated hoki
fishery (NZ fur seals, albatrosses and petrels). Other concerns include inconsistencies between quota boundaries
and stock boundaries, the uncertainty of stock size and trends for West Coast and Sub-Antarctic populations, the
lack of a management plan, illegal mis-reporting of catches and the rapid decline in Chatham Rise hake.
Economic value: The main export markets are Japan, Spain, Australia and Portugal, which were worth $27 million
in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing method(s): Bottom and mid-water trawling. Hake are targeted around the Chatham Rise and Sub-Antarctic Islands and
caught as bycatch in the hoki fishery elsewhere, particularly the West Coast of the South Island.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake to Pipi, Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; SeaFIC
website 2004.
Description: Hoki is a relatively fast growing, deepwater species related to cod and hake. It generally lives
beyond the shelf edge from 50 to 900m, but is most abundant between 300 and 600m. There are two intermixing
biological stocks, generally referred to as the eastern and western stocks. Trawling occurs year round making
hoki one of New Zealand‟s largest fisheries. Hoki are targeted and caught in their spawning grounds on the West
Coast of the South Island and the Cook Strait, plus some smaller spawning areas on the east coast of the South
Island and Pusegar Banks. When not spawning, hoki are caught in the sub-Antarctics and on the Chatham Rise
where juveniles of both stocks are found. Despite being certified as sustainable under the international Marine
Stewardship Council scheme, it still has significant ecological impacts.
Ecological concerns: The bycatch of hundreds of NZ fur seals, albatrosses and petrels each year, plus bycatch
of globally threatened basking sharks. When bottom trawling, the fishery has significant impacts on the seafloor,
altering seabed communities.
Also of concern is the management of two stocks as one quota management area, the slow response to past
stock declines so that large quota cuts were needed and the failure to take precautionary action in the face of
potential stock recovery. (Quotas are this year being increased back to 110,000 tonnes - just over the level set
following initial cuts in 2004. This increase is based on estimated of the west coast hoki stock being just within
target levels for the first time in many years. Additional concerns include illegal mis-reporting of catches, the
significant catches of small fish (over 40%) on the Chatham Rise and on the West Coast, plus the lack of a
management plan.
Economic value: Most hoki is exported to the USA, Europe - including the UK and Belgium – Japan and Australia. Hoki exports
were worth $103 million in 2008, down from $346 million in 2001. The Fillet ‟o‟ Fish sold at McDonalds in New Zealand is hoki.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and E)
Fishing method(s): Bottom trawling targets non-spawning aggregations (Chatham Rise and Sub-Antarctic Plateau) and mid-water
trawling targets spawning aggregations on West Coast and Cook Strait.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling bulldozes the sea floor, destroying soft corals, sponges and long-lived bryozoans. The expanding
use of twin rigs and double linked nets (and some triple linked nets) with a large heavy roller in between has increased the impact of
this fishery on fragile deepwater habitats.
Bycatch: Hundreds of NZ fur seals, albatrosses and petrels are drowned in the hoki fishery each year. The affected albatrosses and
petrels include several globally threatened species such as black-browed and Buller's albatross and white-chinned petrel. Non-target
fish species bycatch is also a problem and includes quota species hake, ling and silver warehou, which are caught in West Coast
hoki fisheries. Other bycatch species include vulnerable deepwater sharks (e.g. shovelnose dogfish, seal shark and Baxter‟s
dogfish). Globally threatened basking sharks are also caught. There is also incidental mortality of young hoki passing through the
net meshes.
Ecological effects: The combined effects of seafloor damage and alteration, high non-target fish bycatch, protected and threatened
species bycatch and practices such as the dumping of offal and other fish waste during processing at sea has considerable
ecological implications.
References: European marketing and the MSC, SEAFOOD magazine, May 2004, Vol 12 no. 4, p8; Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock
assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi, Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised
Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; MFish Starfish web pages 2004; SeaFIC website 2004.
Description: These three species of jack mackerels are managed as one species and are mainly caught in the purse- ?
seine target/bycatch fishery in the Bay of Plenty and off Northland‟s east coast. Trawl fisheries catch jack mackerel in
other areas including the Taranaki Bight and Chatham Rise. Peruvian jack mackerel are a southern ranging species
found in deepwater, whereas jack mackerel and NZ jack mackerel are northern species, forming schools in midwater
and ranging from shallow bays and harbours to oceanic islands and reefs.
Ecological concerns: The management of three species as one fishery, limited research, the lack of some basic
biological data for Peruvian jack mackerel, the unknown sustainability of recent catch levels especially for western New
Zealand (JMA7). Of significant concern is the bycatch of dolphins in the fishery west of the North Island and fur seals in
fishery east and south of the South Island (JMA 3). Non-target fish bycatch, seabird bycatch, bottom trawl impacts on
the seabed and ecological implications of jack mackerel removal from the food web. Other concerns include the lack of
a management plan.
Economic value: Export value of $51 million in 2008 with main markets in Japan, Eastern Europe and Fiji.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and E)
Fishing method(s): Bottom and mid-water trawling and purse seining.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; Information describing
Chilean jack mackerel (Trchurus murphyi) fisheries relating to the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation. Doc SPRFMO-III-SWG-16; Francis, M.
(2001) Coastal fishes of New Zealand: An identification Guide. 3rd Edition. Reed Publishing (NZ) Ltd.
Description: John Dory are mid-water to seafloor dwelling and whilst found throughout New Zealand they are most
common north of the Cook Strait. They are caught in mixed species trawl catches where the main target species are ?
snapper and tarakihi, with some also caught by Danish seine.
Ecological concerns: The damage done by bottom-trawling, the unknown long-term sustainability of the catch limits,
the unknown status of stocks, population size and stock trends (uncertainty around possible declines off the West
Coast South Island) and the uncertainty about stock boundaries in relation to quota boundaries. Limited research and
the lack of a management plan are also of concern.
Economic value: New Zealand market plus exports to Australia, United States and Germany with a value of about $5
million in 2008.
Best option: John dory caught by Danish seine rather than by trawl. Avoid fish caught using bottom trawl gear.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and B)
Fishing method(s): John dory is caught as bycatch in trawl and Danish seine fisheries (e.g. snapper and Tarakihi).
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling bulldozes the seabed and kills or damages bottom dwelling species.
Bycatch: Fish bycatch associated with its capture in the snapper fisheries in the Hauraki Gulf.
Ecological effects: Trawling reduces species diversity and abundance plus catches large individuals.
Description: Kahawai are found throughout New Zealand, but are most common north of Kaikoura. They form
schools of similar-sized fish, with juveniles found in shallow coastal waters and adults in open water, often in large ?
schools from seafloor to surface waters. Most kahawai are caught in purse seine fisheries that also target skipjack
tuna, jack mackerel and blue mackerel. A lesser proportion is caught seasonally in set net and mixed species trawl
fisheries. Kahawai is a particularly important species for recreational and customary fisheries.
Ecological concerns: The uncertain maximum sustainable yield, unknown status of stocks, stock structure and
stock trends, the bycatch of non-target fish and the lack of a management plan. Limited past research and the
ecological effects of removing this important prey species is also of concern.
Best option: Fish caught using purse seine – avoid Kahawai caught using set net or trawl.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and A)
Fishing method(s): Most are caught by purse seiners, with less taken seasonally in set-net and some in trawl fisheries.
Habitat damage: Low impact from purse seiners and set netting; high impact from trawl fisheries on bottom dwelling species.
Bycatch: Range of other pelagic species including skipjack tuna, kingfish, blue mackerel and jack mackerel.
Ecological effects: Loss of large older fish, impact of bottom trawling bulldozing the seabed and ecological implications of set
netting, which can kill unwanted fish, seabirds and marine mammals.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi, Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, Revised Edition 1990.; Francis, M. (2001) Coastal fishes of New Zealand: An identification Guide. 3rd
Edition. Reed Publishing (NZ) Ltd.
Description: Kina are an important grazing species found throughout New Zealand. Most are harvested by breath-hold ?
diving, with a smaller proportion being caught by targeted dredging.
Ecological concerns: The unknown sustainability of current catch levels or limits, the risk a serial depletion of stocks
and impacts on reef communities from changes in grazing levels, the lack of stock assessments, limited research and the
lack of a management plan. When dredged, considerable habitat damage can occur.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and A)
Fishing method(s): Most kina are harvested by breath-hold diving with a smaller proportion being caught by target dredging.
Habitat damage: Minimal damage from diving; dredging scrapes the seafloor killing or damaging bottom dwelling species.
Bycatch: None from diving; dredging has a high bycatch including a range of bottom dwelling species.
Ecological effects: Changes in kina numbers have effects on algal community assemblages. Impacts will depend on scale and
intensity of harvesting. Dredging for kina has considerable ecological implications as it destroys seafloor communities, which affects
associated mid-water species.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This relatively large fish is an important predatory fish rarely found south of Cook Strait, preferring the ?
warmer waters of the north. It can form schools of up to several hundred but is mainly caught as a non-target catch of
inshore set net, trawl and longline fisheries. Kingfish is a commonly sought after recreational fish.
Ecological concerns: The loss of large individual fish, the unknown sustainability of the combined commercial and
recreational catch limits, uncertainty about the stock structure, the absence of biomass and yield estimates, the
absence of a quantitative stock assessment, limited research and the lack of a management plan. Some fishing
methods cause damage to the seabed and have high fish bycatch.
Economic value: About 25% of kingfish is exported (under $0.5m) to the USA and Australia with the rest going to the
domestic New Zealand market.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and B)
Fishing method(s): Mainly taken as a non-target catch of inshore set net and longline fisheries with some trawl bycatch.
Habitat damage: Minimal damage from lines or set nets. Trawling causes damage to seafloor habitats contacting the seabed.
Bycatch: Range of species caught as bycatch in set net and trawl fisheries, which are often highly unselective techniques.
Ecological effects: Removal of large fish may alter food web dynamics, whilst bottom contact trawling bulldozes the seabed,
reducing biodiversity of bottom dwelling communities.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; Francis, M. (2001)
Coastal fishes of New Zealand: An identification Guide. 3rd Edition. Reed Publishing (NZ) Ltd.
Ecological concerns: Uncertainty about the state of the stocks, the lack of a stock assessment, limited research and no
management plan. Bycatch of sharks and seabirds in associated fisheries is also of concern, as are impacts on seafloor
habitats when caught with bottom trawl gear.
Economic value: The main market is domestic and Australia with exports of $660,000 in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and B)
Method: Bycatch in a range of trawl fisheries including those targeting trevally, red gurnard, snapper and squid.
Habitat damage: Trawl fishing with bottom gear scrapes the seabed, reducing species diversity and altering habitat composition.
Bycatch: As a bycatch species itself, this fishery is associated with the bycatch problems of other fisheries, including sharks and
seabirds.
Ecological effects: Damage to seafloor habitats and removal of this coastal species has knock on impacts on associated species
and food webs.
References: Final Advice Paper ; Setting of Sustainability and Other Management Controls for Stocks to be Introduced into the QMS on 1 October 2003. 18 July
2003 Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi Science Group,Ministry of Fisheries; The
Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Ling is a bottom dwelling species of the eel family, which lives at depths of 300-700m throughout New
Zealand. It is often caught as bycatch in hoki and hake trawl fisheries, though it is also targeted with bottom longline
and bottom trawl methods. The ling trawl and longline fishery is currently seeking environmental certification under
an international body - the Marine Stewardship Council.
Ecological concerns: Damage to fragile deepwater species and habitats caused by bottom trawling and the high
level of globally threatened seabird species and NZ fur seals caught as bycatch. Also of concern is the unknown
long-term sustainability of some current catch limits and landings, the uncertainty of stock boundaries, tthe lack of a
management plan for the fishery and the loss of ling from diving depths.
Economic value: The main export markets are in Asia, particularly Hong Kong and Japan plus Australia and Spain.
Exports were worth $40 million in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and E)
Fishing method(s): Ling is mainly caught in targeted bottom longline and bottom trawling operations.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries;
Guidebook The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; SeaFIC website 2004.
Description: An offshore, deepwater species that is widely distributed around New Zealand and caught as bycatch in
trawl fisheries, particularly the hoki fishery.
Ecological concerns: The absence of some basic biological information, the absence of a quantitative stock
assessment, the unknown sustainability of recent catch levels and the absence of a management plan. The fishery
also has direct impacts on seafloor communities as a result of trawl fishing. As lookdown dory is a bycatch of other
fisheries, it is also associated with seabird, marine mammal and other non-target fish bycatch.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method: Trawling - lookdown dory is caught as bycatch in the hoki fishery and to a much smaller extent in the barracouta,
hake, ling and scampi fisheries.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawl fishing scrapes the seabed, reducing species diversity and altering habitat composition.
Bycatch: As a bycatch species of other fisheries, lookdown dory is associated with seabird and marine mammal bycatch problems.
It is also associated with high non-target fish bycatch.
Ecological effects: The combined effects of seafloor damage and alteration, high non-target fish bycatch plus seabird and marine
mammal bycatch has considerable ecological implications.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi , Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Mako sharks, like most shark species, are slow growing and highly vulnerable to overfishing. They are
?
related to porbeagle sharks and are listed as a vulnerable threatened species on the IUCN-Red list of threatened
species. A highly migratory species, Mako sharks are taken in large numbers in New Zealand‟s tuna longline fisheries,
mainly in the West and East Coast of the North Island from the Bay of Plenty north. About 75% of mako sharks caught
are processed and the rest are dumped at sea. Mako shark are the third most common species of shark that are
targeted for their highly priced fins, with about 47% of the reported catch recorded as finned. Jointly with snapper,
oreo/deepwater dory and southern bluefin tuna, mako shark has the second worst ecological ranking of any commercial
fishery in New Zealand.
Ecological concerns: Limited research on mako sharks, lack of a stock assessment and uncertainty about the state of
the stocks. The high number of juveniles in the catch is also of concern, as is the bycatch of other sharks, seabirds and
fur seals. Where mako sharks are caught using bottom fishing methods, impacts on the seafloor and associated
communities are also of concern.
Whilst there is no management plan for mako sharks, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the
Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for
makos, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo. The practise of shark finning makos and other
sharks continues to be legal in New Zealand, which is enormously wasteful.
Economic value: The primary value is in the highly priced fins (and tails), which are exported to East Asian markets.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method(s): Primarily pelagic longlining around the North Island, with a smaller catch caught by bottom longliners and
trawlers.
Habitat damage: Low except when caught by bottom trawling, which alters seafloor community structure and function.
Bycatch: Other sharks, seabirds and New Zealand fur seals are caught in the longline fishery.
Ecological effects: Removal of a large predatory species has wide implications for oceanic food webs. The practise of shark finning
– cutting off the high-priced fins of sharks and dumping the rest of the body at sea – is contributing to the decline of shark species
worldwide. Shark finning is legal in New Zealand.
References: Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary (November 2008) Stock assessments and yield estimates..Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries;
The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; Bishop, S.D.; Francis, M.P.; Duffy,
C. (2006). Age, growth, maturity, longevity and natural mortality of the shortfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) in New Zealand waters. Marine and Freshwater
Research 57: 143-154; New Zealand National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of sharks (October 2008), Ministry of Fisheries;
Description: Moonfish are a bycatch in tuna longline fisheries on the west coast of both main islands.
Ecological concerns: the uncertainty of some basic biological information, uncertainty about the state of the stocks, basic
biology, the bycatch of sharks, seabirds and fur seals, and the lack of a stock assessment, or a management plan. There
are also ecological concerns given removal of this large predator species from the food web.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method: Moonfish are caught mainly by pelagic longline vessels targeting tuna on the west coast of the North Island and
East Coast, with pelagic trawling for southern blue whiting and hoki being the second main method.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: Sharks, seabirds and New Zealand fur seals are caught in the longline fishery.
Ecological effects: Removal of moonfish and non-target species from marine systems.
References: Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2008: stock assessments and yield estimates. Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries;
The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Orange Roughy is a very slow growing and long-lived (120 – 130 years) deepwater fish, making it highly vulnerable to
fishing pressure and overfishing. It does not breed until 23-31 years old and does so once a year in large spawning aggregations,
often around deepwater seamounts, pinnacles and canyons around New Zealand. There are nine distinct orange roughy fisheries
within the New Zealand EEZ, each managed independently. The East and South Chatham Rise fishery is the largest and oldest
orange roughy fishery in the world. Jointly with porbeagle shark, orange roughy has the lowest ecological ranking on the Best Fish
Guide.
Ecological concerns: New Zealand‟s orange roughy have suffered from years of over-fishing on the spawning
grounds, which has decimated populations. Although quotas have been reduced in recent years, serious concerns
remain as they may not be enough. Nothing is known about roughy recruitment and there is a mismatch between
model projections and catch information. Most populations are now below 20% of their original unfished size with one
reduced to just 3%.
As well as stock concerns, orange roughy is caught by bottom trawling, which destroys sea floor species
assemblages and fragile seamount habitats. It effectively bulldozes the sea floor demolishing black corals, lace
corals, coral trees, colourful sponge fields and long-lived bryozoans, some aged at over 500 years old. Deepwater
sharks and other non-target fish species are also caught, which alters marine food web dynamics. As a prey species
for sperm whales and giant squid, orange roughy depletion has a direct impact on these deepwater species. Some
orange roughy fisheries have also caught seabirds and marine mammals.
Economic value: Orange Roughy is one of the most valuable export fish species, worth $57 million in 20086.
Previously this was $200 million. Most is exported to the USA and Australia, with some to the UK where it is
reportedly used by some fast food chains as fish fillet burgers. Orange roughy is also sold in New Zealand, for example
as frozen fish fillets.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing method: Bottom trawling between 750 and 1200m.
Habitat Damage: Bottom trawling destroys sea floor species assemblages and fragile seamount habitats. It decimates black coral,
lace corals, colourful sponge fields, long-lived bryozoans and many other invertebrate species.
Bycatch: Includes coral trees, sponges and gorgonians which have been aged at over 500 years old. A range of non-target fish
species are also caught including deepwater dory or oreo, Baxter‟s dogfish and basket-work eels. There is a bycatch of marine
mammals and seabirds in some fisheries.
Ecological effects: In addition to the ecological effects of habitat damage, Orange Roughy is a prey species of sperm whale and
giant squid, so the commercial catch also reduces the amount of available food for species further up deep sea food chains. Fishing
for Orange Roughy and oreos also removes a large proportion of deep sea benthic biomass, significantly altering these unique
communities.
References Clark M (2001) Are deepwater fisheries sustainable? – the example of Orange Roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) in New Zealand. Fisheries research
51:123-135; Clark MR, Anderson OF, Francis RICC, Tracey OM (2000) The effects of commercial exploitation on Orange Roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) from the
continental slope of the Chatham Rise, NZ from 1979 to 1997. Fisheries Research 45:217-238; Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock
assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi. Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; SeaFIC website 2004; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish
Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Oreos are deepwater fish that are long-lived (up to 150 years) and slow growing, making them highly
vulnerable to fishing pressure and overfishing. There are three species in New Zealand, but they are all managed
as one quota management species. They are predominantly found in deep waters off the east and south of the
South Island and off the Chatham Islands. Jointly with snapper, mako shark and southern bluefin tuna, oreos have
the second worst ecological ranking on the Best Fish Guide of any commercial fishery in New Zealand.
Ecological concerns: Management of the three oreo species as one, a declining stock trend, uncertainty over
stock boundaries, lack of stock assessments in some areas, unknown sustainability of catch limits and lack of a
management plan. Attempts to improve research in the oreo fishery have been hampered by the seafood industry
challenging and preventing the Ministry of Fisheries from commissioning research surveys.
Also of great concern is the destructive impact of deep sea trawling on seamount habitats and high levels of non
target fish bycatch. There is also a bycatch of marine mammals and seabirds.
Economic value: Key markets are the USA, Australia, Germany and Switzerland, with smooth oreo being the main
market species. Exports were worth $7.47 million in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing method: Deepwater trawling, mainly on the south Chatham Rise, eastern Southland and Sub-Antarctic Plateau.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling decimates seabed habitats and fragile seamount species assemblages.
Bycatch: A range of non-target species are caught including deepwater sharks such as seal shark, Baxter‟s dogfish and shovel-
nosed dogfish. Deepwater invertebrates such as soft corals, tall sponges, bryozoans, gorgonian corals and other corals are also
caught, some of which have been aged at over 500 years. There is also a bycatch of seabirds and marine mammals.
Ecological effects: Combined with the ecological effects of the closely associated orange roughy, the oreo fishery is responsible for
considerable damage to seamounts, other special deepwater habitats and associated communities.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi. Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Wild caught oysters or dredge oysters are endemic to New Zealand and are found in coastal waters, often in dense
communities. The fishery is seasonal (open from March to August), with the main commercial fishery operating in Foveaux Strait. A
small catch is also taken when harvesting scallops in Tasman and Golden bays and a new fishery has started in Clifford and Cloudy
Bays.
Ecological concerns: Wild oysters are collected by dredging – a highly destructive fishing method that digs into the
seafloor, destroying seafloor communities in it‟s path. The use of heavy box dredgers is especially damaging.
Dredging creates considerable sedimentation, which smothers seabed communities in the areas where the fishery
operates. In much of the Foveaux Strait, dredging has removed bryozoan reef communities, which has exposed some
previously sheltered marine life to storm and tide action. Some oyster beds have not recovered from dredging, even
after 50 years.
The oyster fishery also catches a range of non-target species and has impacts on a number of fish populations,
especially blue cod stocks. In Tasman Bay and Golden Bay, oysters have declined to low population levels and the
fishery has been associated with a decline in fish stocks. The lack of a management plan and inadequate
consideration of the impact of dredging in new areas (eg Clifford and Cloudy Bay) is also of concern. The presence of
a disease in Foveaux Strait oysters in recent years, which has killed over 60% of the population, has made it difficult to
estimate the current status of the population there.
Economic value: Foveaux Strait oysters are sold in New Zealand, while some Nelson/Marlborough oysters are exported
(up to a value of $10 million per year).
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and B)
Fishing method: Bottom dredging with a heavy metal dredger.
Habitat damage: Dredging in effect bulldozes the sea floor, causing extensive habitat destruction, including the loss of bryozoan
reefs from large areas of Foveaux Strait. Bryozoan reefs are not only important habitat types for species diversity, they are also
important settlement areas for oysters and important for other commercial species (e.g. blue cod).
Bycatch: Dredging collects everything that is large enough to be retained by the mesh. In an experiment, bottom dredging killed 19–
36% of small oysters (Cranfield et al 1999).
Ecological effects: Dredging causes considerable ecological damage, both directly to seafloor communities and indirectly by
increasing sedimentation and smothering, and by altering food web dynamics. A disease (Bonamia) has repeatedly infected oysters
in the Foveaux Strait fishery in recent years causing large-scale mortality. This is likely to have been exacerbated by the impacts of
dredging, which has highly modified the seabed and stressed oysters. In areas where dredging stopped, blue cod and dredge oyster
numbers increased and seafloor habitats have started to regenerate (Cranfield et al 2001).
References: Cranfield H J, Michael K P and Doonan I J, 1999 Changes in the distribution of epifaunal reefs and oysters during 130 years of dredging for oysters in
Foveaux Strait, southern New Zealand. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems 9, 461-483. Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May
2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake, Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species,
Revised Edition 2007, The New Zealand Seafood Industry council Ltd.; Ministry of Fisheries 2004. H J Cranfield, G Carbines, K P Michael, A Dunn, D R Stotter, D J
Smith (2001) Promising signs of regeneration of blue cod and oyster habitat changed by dredging in Foveaux Strait, southern New Zealand. NZ Journal of Marine
and Freshwater Research, 2001, Vol. 35.
Ecological concerns: Limited research, uncertainty about stock assessments and the state of stocks (including the
potential that they are overfished), unclear international management across different Pacific tuna management
agreements and the lack of a management plan. The bycatch of seabirds, a range of shark species and NZ fur seals is
also of concern, as is the removal of this important predatory species from oceanic food webs.
Economic value: Pacific bluefin tuna are sold in Japan, USA and Canada where it is highly prized for sashimi and
sushi. Almost all large bluefins are shipped to Japan where they can fetch very high prices. The export value of all tuna
species combined was $42 million in 2002.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method: Longlining on the West Coast of the South Island and around Northland and Bay of Plenty.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: Seabirds, sharks and New Zealand fur seals are caught in the longline fishery.
Ecological effects: Excess removal of this and other large predatory species has knock-on effects on the wider food web.
References: The distribution of Pacific bluefin tuna (Thunnus orientalis) in the south east Pacific Ocean, with emphasis on New Zealand waters, T Murray, NIWA,
Aug 2005 NZFAR 2005/42; Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2008: stock assessments and yield estimates. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Found in the north and east of the North Island, Packhorse rock lobster live around rocky reefs at ?
depths of 5 to 275m. They are larger and have a slightly greener colour than rock lobster (crayfish) and are mainly
caught in the far north waters of New Zealand.
Ecological concerns: Concerns include the lack of basic biological data about the species, the absence of any
stock assessment or directed research on this species, the unknown causes of the decline in reported catch since
1998-99, the apparent decline within diving depth and the lack of a management plan. Catching packhorse lobster ?
with cray pots may have impacts on some sensitive seabed habitats.
Best option: Whilst assessed as a species of concern, Packhorse lobster is one of the better seafood choices in 2009.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and B)
Fishing method: Cray pots (often large, heavy and baited), which are dropped down to the seafloor to depths of 200m.
Habitat damage: Minimal, but when carried out over sensitive habitats, may damage seafloor species such as soft corals.
Bycatch: Minimal, but some octopus and shag species may be caught.
Ecological effects: Unknown. Packhorse lobster are important generalist predators of a range of species including kina, so their
depletion from an area may cause wider ecological impacts.
References: Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2008: stock assessments and yield estimates. Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries;
The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; New Zealand commercial fisheries:
The atlas of area codes and TACCs 2008/2009. Clement and Associates Limited, Nelson (2008).
Ecological concerns: There is limited research on paddle crabs, resulting in the unknown sustainability of recent
catch levels, uncertainty over stock status and basic biological information. There is also no management plan and
some concern about habitat damage caused by the fishing methods, particularly when caught as bycatch in trawl
and dredge fisheries.
Economic value: Paddle crabs are sold in New Zealand and Japan.
Best option: Paddle crabs caught using cray pots. Avoid crabs caught as bycatch in trawl and dredge fisheries.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and B)
Fishing method(s): Baited traps and pots, but also caught as bycatch in trawl and dredge fisheries.
Habitat damage: Low for trapping and potting, except in sensitive habitats. Trawling and particularly dredging can have significant
habitat impacts, altering seafloor communities.
Bycatch: Minor for baited traps or pots, apart from some octopus and hagfish. Trawling, however, catches a range of seabed
dwellers and fish species that live on or close to the seafloor.
Ecological effects: Paddle crabs are a food source for other marine species, such as octopus. Their depletion may alter food web
dynamics and any damage caused to seafloor habitats, may impact associated communities.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi. Science Group Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: As with the dark ghost shark, this species is a slow growing deepwater shark that is found throughout
New Zealand‟s offshore waters. It has soft skin that is easily damaged. It is caught almost entirely as a bycatch of
other target trawl fisheries operating around the Chatham Rise and in southern waters, most notably the hoki
fishery, but also the silver warehou, arrow squid and barracouta fisheries.
Ecological concerns: There is a lack of some basic biological data on pale ghost sharks, little directed research
and no quantitative stock assessment (resulting in unknown sustainability of current catch limits). Also of concern is
the possible dumping of catches in past years. Habitat damage is caused by trawling and, as a bycatch species of
other fisheries, it is associated with seabird, marine mammal and other non-target fish bycatch.
Whilst there is no management plan for pale ghost sharks, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the
Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for
ghost sharks, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo.
Economic value: Ghost sharks are exported to Australia, with the shark fins being exported to Asia, at a value of
around $2 million.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method: Trawling - caught as bycatch in hoki, silver warehou, arrow squid and barracouta fisheries.
Habitat damage: Trawling, especially bottom trawling for hoki, which bulldozes the sea floor destroying soft corals, sponges, long-
lived bryozoans and other associated seafloor communities.
Bycatch: As a bycatch species, pale ghost shark associated with the capture of a range of other species, including seabirds, fur
seals and non-target fish.
Ecological effects: Broad ecological impacts as a result of seafloor damage and removal of a wide variety of non-target catch. (See
hoki, silver warehou, arrow squid, barracouta).
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 1: Alfonsino to Hake. Science Group Science
Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; New
Zealand National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of sharks (October 2008), Ministry of Fisheries.
Description: Paua is a large sea-snail that lives in shallow coastal waters, usually in large groups on rocky reefs, and feeds of
algae. There are two species in New Zealand (black-footed and yellow-footed paua), but it is black-footed paua that is most
abundant, with virtually the entire commercial fishery targeting it. Paua is taken by hand, mainly by commercial fishers. The attractive
shell also has some commercial value. Most wild paua are taken from the South Island, Chatham Islands, Stewart Island and the
southern coast of the North Island.
Ecological concerns: The depleted state and unsustainable current catch levels in a number of areas, for example,
declining stocks around Stewart Island (area 5B) and parts of Southland (area 5A), the potential for serial depletion
and small-scale recruitment failure and the lack of a management plan. As paua is a highly sought after resource, a
black market for paua has led to widespread illegal harvesting. Paua is an important algal grazer within marine
ecosystems, so depletion raises wider ecological concerns.
Economic value: 80% is exported to the western Pacific Rim, including Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia. Total
exports were worth $46 million in 2008.
Best option: Make sure you only buy paua from a reputable retailer to avoid eating illegal caught fish. Paua caught off the West
Coast of the South Island are currently the most sustainable.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score A and A)
Fishing method: Paua is collected by hand by free divers using a knife. Underwater breathing apparatus is not allowed.
Habitat damage: Minimal. Other marine species may be damaged when paua are cut from rocks.
Ecological effects: Removal of this important algal grazer from sub-tidal communities may alter algal community structure and
modify food web dynamics. However, impacts will depend on scale and intensity of harvesting.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2: Hoki to Pipi. Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Only recently identified as a separate species, the NZ pilchard is a small (up to 25cm), short-lived, but
?
relatively fast growing fish found in mid to surface coastal waters. It is widely distributed around New Zealand, but
found in heavy concentrations in sheltered bays such as the Hauraki Gulf and Tasman Bay, sometimes in mixed
schools with sprat and anchovy. Pilchards are mainly targeted throughout the year by purse seiners, but also beach
seine and lampara nets. In 1995 some populations were severely impacted by a natural mass mortality, thought to
have been caused by a virus. Jointly with anchovy and sprats, pilchard has the highest ecological ranking of any
New Zealand commercial fishery and is therefore one of the best fish choices.
Ecological concerns: There is an absence of research on pilchards and the lack of a stock assessment, meaning
that the sustainability of the current catch levels is unknown. There is also no management plan and concern that
reducing their population could disrupt marine food chains as it is a prey item for many other fish species, seabirds
and some marine mammals.
Economic value: Exports of $140,000 to Asia with some locally available pilchards in New Zealand.
Best option: Try to choose pilchards caught by purse seine rather than beach seine, as this fishing method is a more selective and
does not contact the seafloor.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and B)
Fishing method(s): Mainly purse seine, but also beach seine and lampara nets.
Habitat damage: Low impact from fishing methods, especially when caught by purse seine.
Bycatch: Sometimes catches other pelagic fish, such as anchovy, jack mackerel (in north) and sprats (in south).
Ecological effects: Reducing the pilchard population disrupts marine food chains, reducing a prey species for other marine life
including larger fish, seabirds and marine mammals. This disruption to food webs has occurred in similar fisheries overseas.
References: Pilchard biology and fisheries in New Zealand, and a review of pilchard biology, fisheries and research in the main world fisheries, LJ Paul et al, NZ
Fisheries Assessment report 2001/37, NIWA, July 2001; Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 2:
Hoki to Pipi. Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood
Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Pobeagle sharks, like most shark species, are slow growing and highly vulnerable to overfishing. They
are related to mako sharks and are listed as a vulnerable threatened species on the IUCN-Red list of threatened
species. Porbeagle sharks are highly migratory and are mainly caught as bycatch in a range of tuna longline
fisheries on the west coast of both main Islands. They are also caught as bycatch in some mid-water and bottom
trawl fisheries. Most of the porbeagle sharks landed (around 85%) are caught just for their highly priced fins, with the
rest of the carcass dumped at sea. Jointly with orange roughy, porbeagle shark has the lowest ecological ranking on
the Best Fish Guide.
Ecological concerns: there is limited research on porbeagle sharks and no stock assessment. As a result there is
uncertainty about the state of the stocks and the sustainability of catch limits. The fisheries associated with the
porbeagle shark catches also catch other sharks, seabirds and fur seals. When caught as bycatch in bottom trawl
fisheries, seafloor habitats are also damaged.
Whilst there is no management plan for porbeagle sharks, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the
Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for
porbeagle sharks, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo. The practise of shark finning
porbeagles and other sharks continues to be legal in New Zealand, which is enormously wasteful.
Economic value: The primary value is in the highly priced fins (and tails), which are exported to East Asia.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Method: longlining around the North Island, and bottom trawling.
Habitat damage: Low for longlining but high for bottom trawling.
Bycatch: Sharks, seabirds and New Zealand fur seals are caught in the longline and trawl fishery.
Ecological effects: Removal of large predator species as bycatch in the longline and trawl fishery.
Description: This is the smaller of two scallop species in New Zealand. It is found mainly in southern waters from ?
South Canterbury and Stewart Island to the Sub-Antarctic Islands. As with the more common scallops (Pecten
novaezealandiae), they are found on the seafloor in sandy or muddy habitats. Queen scallops are a deeper species,
found in waters up to 400m. They are harvested by dredging.
Ecological concerns: Dredging is a highly destructive fishing method that digs into and is dragged along the
seafloor. It results in a high bycatch of many non-target species, including invertebrates, and dramatically alters
seabed ecology and associated species assemblages. Also of concern is the absence of directed research,
unknown sustainability of current catch levels, absence of population size or yield estimates and the lack of a
management plan.
Economic value: The market for queen scallops includes New Zealand and Europe.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and B)
Fishing method: Dredging.
Habitat damage: Dredging bulldozes the seabed and removes a range of fragile invertebrate species including bryozoans and
sponges.
Bycatch: Non-target shellfish species and invertebrate species including bryozoans and sponges.
Ecological effects: Dredging dramatically alters seabed ecology and associated species assemblages.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This fast growing, but short-lived species is found throughout New Zealand, but is more common in
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southern waters at depths of 100 to 300m. They are mainly targeted by trawlers at depths of 30-200m in the
Canterbury Bight and off Westland, but are also caught as bycatch in deepwater fisheries off the south of the South
Island.
Ecological concerns: Globally threatened Hector‟s dolphins have been caught in the east coast South Island trawl
fishery. Restrictions on trawling introduced in May 2008 have reduced the risk of catching these dolphins. However,
dolphins outside closed areas are still at risk and a pending court ruling may reopen areas to trawling. Trawling
also catches non-target fish and, when fished at the bottom or using bottom trawl gear, causes considerable
damage to deepwater seabed habitats and ecosystems. Also of concern is the absence of directed research on red
cod, the unknown or uncertain sustainability of current catch limits and the lack of updated assessments and a red
cod management plan.
Economic value: Red cod is sold in New Zealand and is exported to Australia, Canada, Japan, and United States, with
a value of over $9 million in 2008.
Best option: Red cod that are caught in areas other than the east coast South Island trawl fishery and fish that are not caught by
bottom trawling.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing method: Trawling, mainly bottom trawling
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This distinctive fish is widespread around New Zealand on sand and sandy shell seabeds. It is a major
bycatch in inshore trawl fisheries for red cod, flatfish and jack mackerel, and is directly targeted in some areas
including by longline and set net.
Ecological concerns: Globally threatened Hector‟s dolphins have been caught in the associated red cod east coast
South Island trawl fishery. Restrictions on trawling introduced in May 2008 have reduced the risk of catching these
dolphins. However, dolphins outside closed areas are still at risk and a pending court ruling may reopen areas to
trawling. Trawling also catches non-target fish and, when fished at the bottom or using bottom trawl gear, causes
considerable damage to seabed habitats and ecosystems. Also of concern is the absence of recent directed research
on red gurnard and lack of current stock assessments, the inclusion of several stocks in one quota management area
and the lack of a management plan.
Best option: Red gurnard caught by longline or by trawling in areas where there is minimal risk to Hector‟s dolphins (e.g. east coast
North Island).
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method: Mainly trawling, but also longline and set net.
Habitat damage: Trawling for red gurnard uses bottom trawl gear, which damages seafloor habitats and communities.
Bycatch: Trawling and set netting for gurnard poses a risk to threatened Hector‟s dolphins, particularly in the east coast South
Island trawl fishery, where they have been killed. Restrictions on trawling in areas where the dolphins are found, introduced by the
Ministry of Fisheries in May 2008, have significantly reduced this threat. However, fishing in areas outside these colures still poses
some risk of catching the dolphins. Non-target fish species caught include stargazer, red gurnard, elephant fish, rig and school shark.
Ecological effects: Changes in seafloor communities from bottom trawling and possible impacts on marine food web dynamics due
to impacts on ecosystems, plus species diversity.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group
Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council
Ltd.
Description: Red snapper is a schooling fish, related to alfonsino, found around the coast of northern New Zealand ?
from depths of 10 to 400m. It is mostly caught as a bycatch in the longline fishery for snapper (an unrelated species
despite the name) off the East Coast of Northland, in the tarakihi trawl fishery around Northland. It is also caught in
the set net fishery for snapper and trevally in the Bay of Plenty.
Ecological concerns: Little is known about the biology of red snapper and there is considerable uncertainty about
whether separate stocks exist, stock boundaries and the state of the stocks due to the lack of a stock assessment.
Also of concern is the bycatch of sharks and seabirds in longline fisheries, impacts on seabed ecology from trawling,
non target fish bycatch and the lack of a management plan.
Economic value: Red snapper are mainly sold on the domestic market.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and C)
Fishing method: longline fishery off the East Coast of Northland, trawl fishery around Northland and set net fishery in the Bay of
Plenty.
Habitat damage: Low for longline and set net fisheries, high for bottom trawling.
Bycatch: Sharks and seabirds are caught in the longline fishery and a variety of non-target fish are caught by trawl and set net
fisheries.
Ecological effects: Wasteful removal of non-target species from the marine ecosystem and damage to bottom dwelling species and
habitats caused by trawling.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2005: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This deep-sea relative of red cod occurs around New Zealand and southern Australia at depths of 200 to
1,300m. It is most common between 500m and 1,000m and is caught on bottom longlines and as a bycatch of
deepwater trawling and longlining. In recent years, most of the catch comes from longlining for ling, but historically, from
the late 1970s to 1990, it was a bycatch from target trawling for hoki, orange roughy and ling.
Ecological concerns: The bycatch of seabirds in the longline fishery, the bycatch of NZ fur seals and seabirds
associated with trawl caught ribald and the impact of bottom trawling on seabed communities. Also of concern is the
absence of directed research and a quantitative stock assessment, the lack of basic biological information on ribaldo,
the unknown sustainability of recent catches and the commercial catch limit plus the lack of a management plan.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and C)
Fishing method(s): Trawl and longline – most catch since 1990 is bycatch from ling longlining.
Habitat damage: Minimal impact from longlining. When caught by bottom trawl, deepwater habitats and associated communities are
damaged.
Bycatch: Same bycatch as in the ling longline fishery - vulnerable seabirds and deepwater shark species. (See ling for more
information on bycatch species associated with ribaldo catches.) When caught in the orange roughy and hoki fisheries, a wider range
of species are caught as bycatch, including NZ fur seals and seafloor invertebrates.
Ecological effects: As a bycatch species in the ling fishery, this fish is associated with impacts on vulnerable seabird species and
removal of a range of non-target fish from marine food webs. When caught by trawling, it is associated with significant alterations to
deepwater ecosystem and species diversity.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This small species of shark is a popular “fish and chip” fish, which has moderately fast growth and
reproductive rates that make it less prone to overfishing than most shark species. Rig is found around New Zealand,
usually in waters no more than 200m deep. It is caught in very long bottom set nets and in trawl nets, with a
proportion also caught as bycatch in other targeted trawl fisheries.
Ecological concerns: The rig fishery is notorious for posing a significant threat to globally threatened Hector‟s and
Maui‟s dolphins, where they have been caught and killed in nets (especially set nets). Set nets and inshore trawling
are also responsible for the bycatch of other dolphins, fur seals and seabirds. Restrictions on set netting and trawling
introduced in May 2008 have reduced the risk of catching these endangered dolphins and other bycatch species.
However, offshore fishing outside the closed areas still poses a significant risk plus, pending the decision of a high
court challenge, the risk may return if regulations are dropped.
Other concerns with the rig fishery include the limited research on it, the lack of quantitative stock assessments,
unknown sustainability of some catch levels and limits (with declines in some stocks) and the lack of a
comprehensive management plan. There are also concerns about seabed damage caused by trawling.
Economic value: Rig is sold in New Zealand and Australia, with exports of about $2.5 m.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Rock lobster is found throughout New Zealand coastal waters living in and around rocky reefs at depths ?
of 5 to 275m. Rock lobster are caught year round and the fishery is New Zealand‟s third largest seafood export earner.
In addition to an annual quota, there are size restrictions in place to protect juveniles and egg carrying females.
Ecological concerns: The depleted state of some stocks, the Gisborne stock in particular, which is half of the legally
required population size, and the unknown status of some other stocks. While some stocks are recovering, they are
still well below original levels. Also of concern is the increasing uncertainty of annual catch levels in the medium-term
and the lack of a management plan. Cray potting is a relatively harmless fishing method, but it can have impacts on
marine mammals, seabirds and sensitive seabed habitats.
Economic value: Over 90% is exported "live" to Asian markets (Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong). Exports were worth
$127 million in 2006.
Best option: The best option is to buy rock lobster that have not been caught from the Gisborne area or from the
southern South Island region.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and C)
Fishing method: Cray pots (often large, heavy and baited), which are dropped down to the seafloor to depths of 200m.
Habitat damage: Minimal, but when carried out over sensitive habitats, may damage seafloor species. Long-lived, slow growing soft
corals are broken when large heavy baited pots are dropped onto them in the deep waters of Fiordland.
Bycatch: Globally threatened Chatham Island shags, Hector‟s dolphins and sperm whales are known to drown when they get
entangled on pot lines, for instance near Kaikoura.
Ecological effects: Rock lobster is a generalist predator, so their depletion affects a range of species including kina. Fishing in
sensitive areas may also alter seafloor community composition and diversity,
References: Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2008: stock assessments and yield estimates. Sullivan (Comp), Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; MFish Starfish web pages 2004; SeaFIC website 2004; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The
New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This very long-lived (90 years or more), slow growing fish is found from mid-to-deepwater, where they ?
school over the seafloor and off deepwater banks and reefs. Normally a southern ocean species, in New Zealand
rubyfish prefer the warmer northern and central waters and are most common at depths of 200 to 400m. Rubyfish are
caught throughout the year, mainly as bycatch in trawl fisheries for alfonsino, gemfish, barracouta, hoki and jack
mackerel. There is also a developing target trawl fishery. At least a third of recent annual catches were from targeted
mid-water trawling fished close to the bottom.
Ecological concerns: The lack of some basic biological information about rubyfish, the absence of directed research,
the lack of a quantitative stock assessment and, as a result, the unknown sustainability of recent catch levels. Also of
concern is the recent decline in landings off the east coast of the North Island and the lack of a management plan.
Non-target fish bycatch (including marine mammals and seabirds) and trawl impact on seabed communities are also of
concern.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method: Mainly caught as bycatch in trawl fisheries (alfonsino, gemfish, barracouta, hoki and jack mackerel) and targeted
by mid-water trawling where the gear is usually fished close to the bottom.
Habitat damage: Trawling on seamount features, close to or on the seabed, can cause significant damage to habitats and
associated communities.
Bycatch: As a bycatch species, rubyfish are associated with a range of non-target fish, including quota management system species
(e.g. tarakihi, silver warehou, gemfish and ling) and the captures of seabirds and marine mammals. (See alfonsino, gemfish,
barracouta, hoki and jack mackerel fisheries for associated bycatch.)
Ecological effects: Disruption to marine webs by the removal of a wide range of fish species, and destruction of deep water
ecosystems and species when fishing occurs on or close to the seafloor.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This is the larger and shallower distributed of two scallop species in New Zealand. It is found on the
seafloor in sandy or muddy habitats of sheltered bays, from the low tide mark down to about 50m water depth. The
main commercial fisheries are in the Nelson-Marlborough region, with other fisheries off Northland, Coromandel
Peninsula and around the Chatham Islands. They are harvested before they spawn by dredging. The scallop dredge
fishery in the Nelson-Marlborough region is currently seeking environmental certification under an international body -
the Marine Stewardship Council.
Ecological concerns: Dredging is a highly destructive fishing method that digs into and is dragged along the seafloor.
It results in a high bycatch of many non-target species, including fish and invertebrates. It causes incidental damage to
scallops (as much as 50% of those not caught) and dramatically alters seabed ecology and associated species
assemblages, including high biodiversity habitat (eg Spirits Bay and Tom Bowling Bay). Also of concern is the unknown
sustainability of current catch levels and limits, variations in stock sizes depending on survey timing and fishing
season plus the absence of a management plan.
Economic value: Most are exported to France, with an export value of over $2.3 million in 2008, down from $14.6 million in 2001.
Coromandel scallops are sold in New Zealand.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing method: Dredging at depths of 10–50 m (85 m at the Chatham Islands).
Habitat damage: Dredging bulldozes the seabed and removes a range of non-target species including horse mussels, bryozoans
and sponges. It also kills up to 50% of the scallops that are not caught. The sponge garden area of high biodiversity in Spirits Bay
and Tom Bowling Bay was destroyed by scallop dredging in the 1990‟s.
Bycatch: Non-target shellfish species and other invertebrates, plus occasional benthic fish (e.g., stargazers).
Ecological effects: Dredging dramatically alters seabed ecology, reduces habitat variability and species diversity, and removes
sensitive species such as horse mussels.
References: Survey of scallops and oysters in Golden Bay, Tasman Bay, and the Marlborough Sounds, May 2007. Brown S and Horn P L June 2007. NIWA. An
appraisal of an in-season depletion method of estimating biomass and yield in the Coromandel scallop fishery, M Cryer, NZ Fisheries Assessment Report 2001/8,
NIWA, April 2001; Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet., Science
Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This is the largest prawn-like species found in New Zealand waters, although it is actually a small lobster.
It is found all around New Zealand at depths of 200 to 750m. The commercial fishery is now under the quota
management system after some controversy over allocation of quota. It is caught using specialised deepwater bottom
trawls, with fine mesh nets.
Ecological concerns: due to the fishing method, there is a high level of bycatch of fish, invertebrates, marine mammal
and seabirds. There is also considerable destruction to seabed habitats, species and associated marine life. Also of
concern is the unknown sustainability of recent catch levels and limits in all of the larger quota management areas, the
uncertainty about stock boundaries, and the absence of a management plan.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and E)
Fishing method: Bottom trawling with fine mesh gear.
Habitat damage: Trawling for scampi has significant adverse impacts on seafloor habitats as it scrapes the seabed, impacting a
range of non-target species. In the Bay of Plenty, over 1,100 km2 is swept by trawlers each year, which is one of the smaller scampi
fisheries (Cryer et al, 2002).
Bycatch: There is a high level of a range of quota and non-quota species caught in scampi trawls (up to five times the target catch).
Around the Auckland Islands, threatened NZ sea lions are occasionally caught as well as observed captures of globally threatened
black-browed, Salvin‟s and white-capped (shy) albatrosses, plus sooty and flesh-footed shearwaters.
Ecological effects: Scampi trawling causes significant disruption to seabed species assemblages, reduces deepwater biodiversity
and modifies the structure of marine communities.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.; Cryer, Hartill
& O‟Shea 2002. Ecological Applications 12:1824–1839.
Description: School shark, is a long-lived and slow growing species that is late to mature. This means the fishery has low overall
productivity and, as with most other sharks, the species is highly vulnerable to fishing pressure. Like rig, it is sold as a “fish and chip”
option. It is widespread throughout the coastal waters of New Zealand, but is particularly abundant in the north at depths of at least
200m. It is caught throughout the year, mainly by set netting.
Ecological concerns: The school sharks fishery poses a threat to globally endangered Hector‟s and Maui‟s dolphins,
which may be caught and killed in nets (particularly set nets) and risks catching other marine mammals, seabirds and
non-target fish. Trawling for schools shark may also impact seabed habitats. Restrictions on set netting and trawling
introduced in May 2008 have reduced the risk of catching endangered dolphins and other bycatch species. However,
offshore fishing outside the closed areas still poses a significant risk plus, pending the decision of a high court
challenge, the risk may return if regulations are dropped.
Other concerns include the uncertainty about basic biological information on school sharks, the absence of quantitative
stock assessments and consequently the unknown sustainability of current catch levels and limits. Lack of information
on the size and sex composition of the catch and the lack of a management plan are additional concerns.
Whilst there is no management plan for school sharks, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the
Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for
school sharks, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo.
Economic value: School shark is sold for the New Zealand fish and chip market and is exported to main markets in
Australia, fetching $6.15m in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method(s): Set netting, trawling and lining, with some also caught by tuna longliners well offshore.
Habitat damage: Trawling damages seafloor habitats.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; New Zealand
National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of sharks (October 2008), Ministry of Fisheries.
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Description: Sea perch is a relatively slow growing, long-lived fish (up to 45 years) that is related to scorpionfish. It
is widely distributed around New Zealand, ranging from just a few metres water depth to very deep waters (1200m).
It is mostly caught as bycatch in red cod and hoki trawl fisheries off the east coast of the South Island, including the
Chatham Rise. A small targeted catch comes from some central and southern line fisheries, including the groper
fishery and a small bycatch comes from bottom longlining.
Ecological concerns: The lack of a quantitative stock assessment, the unknown sustainability of current catch
levels (particularly given it is a long-lived species) and the lack of a management plan. Also of concern are the
destructive impacts of bottom trawling on fragile deepwater habitats and species and the capture of non-target fish,
seabirds and marine mammals associated with other fisheries.
Economic value: Sea perch are sold in New Zealand and exported to Australia, Japan and Korea at a value of
$1million.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method(s): Sea perch is caught as a bycatch species by trawl and line vessels (mainly in red cod, hoki, barracouta and
flatfish fisheries).
Habitat damage: When caught as part of bottom trawling, there are impacts on sea floor habitats and bottom dwelling species.
Bycatch: Sea perch is associated with the bycatch of red cod, hoki, barracouta and flatfish fisheries. The bycatch in these fisheries
includes marine mammals, seabirds and a wide range of non-target fish species (see bycatch report for these fisheries for more
information).
Ecological effects: Due to the broad range of non-target bycatch associated with sea perch catches, there is likely to be multiple
disturbances to marine food web dynamics. There is also disturbance to bottom dwelling species and diversity as a result of bottom
trawling.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Like the white warehou, silver warehou are a deeper ranging warehou species than the blue warehou, living ?
off the continental shelf edge and its upper slope. It is mostly caught from the Chatham Rise (their major spawning
ground), Canterbury Bight, southeast of Stewart Island and the west coast of the South Island at depths of 200-800m.
Ecological concerns: The absence of a quantitative stock assessment, resulting in the unknown sustainability of current
catch levels and limits, the lack of current or reference biomass estimates and the uncertainty about stock boundaries.
Also of concern is the overfishing of current catch limits, problems associated with the past mis-reporting of silver warehou
as white warehou and the lack of a management plan. Trawling impacts on seabed habitats and communities is also of
concern, as is seabird, marine mammal and non-target fish bycatch associated the fisheries in which this species is
caught.
Economic value: Export value of about $23 million, with the main market being Japan.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and D)
Fishing method: Trawling – caught as a bycatch in hoki, arrow squid, barracouta and jack mackerel fisheries.
Habitat damage: Impact of trawling on bottom dwelling species and associated communities.
Bycatch: As silver warehou is caught in other target fisheries, it is associated with a wide range of non target catch, including marine
mammals, seabirds and non-target fish. (See hoki, arrow squid, barracouta and jack mackerel for more information.)
Ecological effects: Alteration of seafloor species and associated diversity due to trawling, plus removal of a range of fish from the
system.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Skates are very closely related to sharks and are members of the cartilaginous fishes group (they have ?
no bones). They are very distinctive, with flattened, wing-like bodies, and occur all around New Zealand from coastal
waters to depths of about 200m. There are two species of skate commonly caught in our commercial fisheries –
rough skate and smooth skate, the latter more common in deeper waters, living longer and growing larger. They are
caught as a bycatch species in trawl nets and on lines across a number of fisheries in multiple management areas,
each as a separate quota management species. The largest of these, extending from the coast of Fiordland out and
round to just north of Kaikoura and including the Chatham Islands (QMA 3), accounts for more landings than all
others combined.
Ecological concerns: The limited research on skates and absence of basic biological information on each skate
species, the unknown sustainability of recent catch levels in QMA 3 or the total quota area, the lack of a quantitative
stock assessment and the lack of a management plan. Also of concern are the impacts on deepwater habitats as a
result of trawling and the bycatch of marine mammals, seabirds and non-target fish in other fisheries where skates
are caught as bycatch.
Whilst there is no management plan for skates, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the Conservation
and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for skates, nor is
there any difference in its management from the status quo. Skates are finned at sea.
Economic value: Exports of around $0.6 m to Asia and Europe, especially France and Italy.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Rough Smooth
Maximum age (years): 9 28+
Age at sexual maturity: 4-6 8-13
Growth rate: Unknown Unknown
Reproductive output: High Medium
Size/age exploited: Unknown Unknown
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method(s): Trawling and on lines. Skates are caught as bycatch in a range of fisheries including hoki.
Habitat damage: Trawling damages deepwater habitats and associated seafloor communities.
Bycatch: As a bycatch of other fisheries, skates are associated with the captures of non-target fish, seabirds and marine mammals.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 1997: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; New Zealand
National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of sharks (October 2008), Ministry of Fisheries.
Description: This top predator is a highly migratory species of tuna found worldwide in tropical and subtropical waters, usually
preferring the warmer surface waters. New Zealand is the southern limit of the skipjack tuna migration route (which is well known for
being very long) where they visit the northeast from December to May, or in later months from New Plymouth to Cape Farewell.
Skipjack are predominantly caught by purse seine vessels operating North of New Plymouth and Hawkes Bay. The New Zealand
catch is a small part of the Pacific fishery, which is now managed by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission
(WCPFC).
Ecological concerns: Uncertainty about the state of the stocks, the bycatch of sharks, the bycatch of yellowfin and
bigeye tuna in the Pacific fishery, plus the lack of a stock assessment, catch limits or a management plan.
Economic value: The main market is for canning outside New Zealand, primarily in Indonesia and Thailand. The
export value of skipjack tuna is about $10 million.
Best option: Skipjack is the most ecologically sustainable tuna species on the Best Fish Guide. If possible, try to
avoid skipjack caught in association with catches of yellowfin and bigeye tuna, which are overfished.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and C)
Fishing method: Predominantly purse seine fishery around the North Island with some troll caught fish.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: .Sometimes skipjack are caught with over-fished bigeye and yellowfin tuna, which is a concern in the Pacific fishery.
Ecological effects: Excess removal of this and other large predatory species (e.g.tuna) has knock-on effects on the wider food web.
References: Overview of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean Tuna Fisheries, 2000, A Lewis and P Williams, Oceanic Fisheries Programme, Secretariat of the
Pacific Community, New Caledonia, August 2001; National Tuna Fishery Report 2001 – New Zealand, T Murray and L Griggs, NIWA; Langley A, Hampton J and
Ogura M 2005. Stock Assessment of skipjack tuna in the western and central Pacific Ocean. SC-1 SA-WP-4. First meeting of the WCPFC-Scientific Committee,
Noumea, New Caledonia. Report from the Md-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Science Group, Ministry of
Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: A slow growing, long-lived (up to 60 years) member of the sea bream family, snapper is one of largest
and most valuable coastal fisheries in New Zealand. It is common around the North Island and upper South Island
and is mainly caught by bottom longlining or trawling operations, generally at depths of 10-100 metres. Jointly with
oreos/deepwater dory, mako shark and southern bluefin tuna, snapper have the second worst ecological ranking on
the Best Fish Guide of any commercial fishery in New Zealand.
Ecological concerns: The depleted status of the stocks (primarily as a result of historical depletion), the
management of two stocks as one, the uncertainty in stock assessments for some areas and the lack of a
management plan. As snapper are also a common target for recreational fishing, a sector in which there is limited to
no assessment of catch, the impacts of the combined recreational and commercial catches are also of concern.
The impacts of bottom trawling, the bycatch of seabirds in the longline fishery (including the globally threatened black
petrel) and the possible bycatch of the critically endangered Maui‟s dolphin in the trawl fishery are other concerns.
Restrictions on trawling introduced in May 2008 have reduced the risk of catching Maui‟s dolphins. However, offshore
fishing outside the closed areas still poses a risk plus, pending the decision of a high court challenge, the risk may
return to inshore coastal waters if regulations are dropped.
Economic value: Japan is the single largest export market (around 50%), while Australia and Taiwan take some 30%
between them. The export value of snapper was about $32 million in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and E)
Fishing method(s): Bottom longlining, bottom trawling and some set netting.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling damages seafloor habitats and leads to a loss in biodiversity. (Thrush et al 1998)
Bycatch: Seabirds are caught as by-kill on longlines, including flesh-footed shearwaters and globally threatened black petrels. while
trawling and set netting catch a range of non target fish species. Snapper fisheries may also risk possible bycatch of critically
endangered Maui‟s dolphins. Restrictions on set netting and trawling in areas where the dolphins are found were introduced in May
2008, which has significantly reduced the threat to these dolphins plus other marine mammals and wildlife. However, captures may
still exist where trawl fishing overlaps with dolphins areas outside the closed areas.
Ecological effects: Modification and damage to seafloor habitats, associated species and food webs.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; SeaFIC website 2004; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry
Council Ltd; S. F. Thrush, J. E. Hewitt, V. J. Cummings, P. K. Dayton, M. Cryer, S. J. Turner, G. A. Funnell, R. G. Budd, C. J. Milburn, M. R. Wilkinson (1998)
Disturbance of the marine benthic habitat by commercial fishing: impacts at the scale of the fishery. Ecological Applications: Vol. 8, No. 3, pp. 866-879.
Description: This deepwater cod species is only found in waters around the Sub-Antarctic Islands, where it schools
near the seabed at depths of 450 to 650m. It is therefore targeted and caught as bycatch in trawl fisheries operating in
this region, particularly during its spawning season in August to early October. The southern blue whiting trawl fishery
is currently seeking environmental certification under an international body - the Marine Stewardship Council.
Ecological concerns: The recorded and projected declines in biomass for two stocks (Campbell and Bounty‟s), the
unknown sustainability of current catch limits in the two other stocks and the lack of a management plan. Of particular
concern is the increasing trend of threatened NZ sea lion captures in this fishery, which has relatively low observer
coverage. Also, the impact of bottom trawling, the very high bycatch of NZ fur seals (the highest of any NZ fishery),
especially around the Bounty Islands and the deaths of seabirds are of serious concern.
Economic value: The southern blue whiting fishery has an export value of about $22.7 million (2008), with the main
markets in Japan, Bulgaria, Australia and China. This fish is also used to make crabsticks or surimi.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method: Trawling, mainly by foreign chartered vessels.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; SeaFIC website 2004; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry
Council Ltd; Albatross predation of juvenile southern blue whiting (Micromesistius australis) on the Campbell Plateau Cherel, Waugh and Hanchet, 1999 New
Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 1999 Volume 33.
Description: Southern bluefin tuna is a long-lived migratory species, found throughout the Southern Hemisphere,
which can move thousands of kilometres in a year. It is a highly sought after tuna species, due to its flesh being of high
oil and low moisture content. Iin 1996 it‟s depleted status resulted in it being ranked by the International Union for the
Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as critically endangered. Southern bluefin tuna breed in the Indian Ocean off western
Australia, arriving in New Zealand in prime condition at around the age of 5 years old, where they are caught off the
east coast by longlining and trolling. Jointly with mako shark, snapper and oreo/deepwater dory, southern bluefin tuna
has the second worst ecological ranking on the Best Fish Guide of any commercial fishery in New Zealand.
Ecological concerns: Southern bluefin stocks are severely over-fished – the breeding population is severely depleted
and there is a high level of unreported and illegal catch (up to 30% of the reported catch). The lack of a management
plan and the bycatch of seabirds, NZ fur seals, a range of shark species and the huge non-target fish bycatch are also
of concern.
Economic value: Southern bluefin tuna are exported to Japan, the USA and Canada where it is highly prized for sashimi
and sushi. Almost all large bluefins are shipped to Japan where they can fetch very high prices. An individual 444 pound
bluefin sold for a record US$173,000 in Tokyo in 2001. The export value of southern blue fin tuna was $7million in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
References: Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries;
SeaFIC website 2004; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Like rig, this small shark species has moderately fast growth and reproductive rates that make it less ?
prone to overfishing than most shark species. It lives near the seafloor, in deeper waters than rig (100 – 700m),
occuring almost worldwide in cool temperate waters. In New Zealand they are most commonly found off the south and
east coasts of the South Island. It is mainly caught as bycatch in several deepwater trawl fisheries plus by inshore
trawlers, set netters and longliners.
Ecological concerns: The limited research on this species, the absence of a quantitative stock assessment, which
results in the unknown sustainability of current catch limits, the uncertainty about stock boundaries and the absence of
a management plan. Also of concern is the impact of trawling on seabed habitats and, due to the association with
other fisheries where it is caught, seabird, marine mammal and other fish bycatch.
Whilst there is no management plan for spiny dogfish, in 2008 a New Zealand National Plan of Action for the
Conservation and Management of Sharks was developed. However, there are no specific conservation actions for
spiny dogfsh, nor is there any difference in its management from the status quo.
Economic value: Spiny dogfish is sold in New Zealand and is exported, mainly to Western Europe and China with a
value of $2.4 million in 2008.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing method: Trawling, set netting and longlining. It is mainly caught as bycatch in a range of trawl fisheries including hoki,
barracouta and red cod.
Habitat damage: When caught by bottom trawl, or from mid-water trawls close to the seafloor, bottom dwelling species and habitats
are damaged.
Bycatch: Spiny dogfish is caught in association with other fisheries where there seabirds, marine mammals and a range of non-
target fish are caught as bycatch. (See hoki, barracouta and red cod for more information.)
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; New Zealand
National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of sharks (October 2008), Ministry of Fisheries.
Description: Sprats, also commonly referred to as sardines or New Zealand herring, actually incorporate two different species of
sprat. They are a small, fast growing schooling fish found in coastal waters, particularly in sheltered bays. They are often used (long
with anchovy and pilchards) by recreational fishers as baitfish and are caught commercially in a minor and intermittent fishery. They
are a schooling fish, most commonly found around the South Island, sometimes in mixed schools with anchovy and pilchards. Jointly
with anchovy and pilchard, sprats have the highest ecological ranking of any commercial fishery in New Zealand.
?
Ecological concerns: The lack of basic biological information on both species, the lack of a quantitative stock
assessment, the impact of trawling on seafloor species and the lack of a management plan. There is also some concern
about the impact of fishing this species on predatory species further up the food chain, such as marine mammals,
seabirds and larger fish. However, these concerns have not yet been assessed.
Best option: Try to choose sprats caught by purse seine or beach seine.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score B and B)
Method: Mainly purse seine but also set net and beach seine.
Habitat damage: Impact of bottom trawling on seafloor habitats and species diversity.
Bycatch: Associated with pilchard in the south, and purse seine bycatch species.
Ecological effects: This is an important food species for larger fish, seabirds and marine mammals. “Excessive localised
harvesting may disrupt ecosystems.” (MFish 2009, p 940)
Description: Stargazer or monkfish is actually one of a few species of stargazer in New Zealand. It (the giant
stargazer) is widespread in New Zealand coastal waters between 50 and 500m, living on or partially buried in soft
sediments on the seabed. It is caught year round, mainly around the South Island, where it is most common, as a
bycatch in domestic trawl fisheries targeting red cod, tarakihi, flatfish, barracouta and scampi. It is also caught as
bycatch in some deepwater fisheries.
Ecological concerns: The absence of quantitative stock assessments for any areas, uncertainty over stock
boundaries, unknown sustainability of some catch levels and limits and the lack of a management plan. Also of concern
is the habitat destruction caused by bottom trawling plus the non-target fish, seabirds and marine mammal bycatch
associated with other fisheries in which it is caught.
Economic value: Stargazer is sold in New Zealand and had an export value of about $4 million in 2008, mainly sold to
Japan, Latvia and Germany.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and C)
Fishing method: Trawling. Stargazer is a bycatch in red cod, tarakihi, flatfish, barracouta and scampi fisheries.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling bulldozes the seabed, destroying and altering bottom habitats and species assemblages.
Bycatch: Stargazer is associated with the bycatch problems of the fisheries in which it is caught, which includes captures of non-
target fish, seabirds and marine mammals. (See red cod, flatfish, barracouta and scampi for more information.)
Ecological effects: The combined effects of seafloor damage and alteration (especially for the scampi fishery) plus non-target
bycatch has considerable ecological implications on seabed and wider marine systems.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Striped marlin is a highly migratory species (HMS) of broadbill fish and an important oceanic predator. ?
The management responsibility for this species, as with other Western Pacific HMS, lies with an international body –
the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries commission (WCPFC). However, the Ministry of Fisheries is responsible for
upholding WCPFC rules in New Zealand waters.
Between 1987 and 1991 there was a moratorium on landing any broadbill species (marlin and swordfish) in the area
between Mokau and East Cape (Auckland Fisheries Management Area) due to concerns about depleted stocks. In
1991, the moratorium was replaced with a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between recreational and
commercial fishers, to allow for the commercial take of swordbill. Since 1995, there is a requirement to report all
catches of billfish. The MOU was last singed in 1996.
As a result of the agreement on billfish, striped marlin is principally a recreational only fish (about 65% tagged and
released to aid research), with any commercial captures the result of accidental capture in the tuna surface longline
fishery in northern waters.
Ecological concerns: Uncertainty about the stock assessment plus the state of the stocks and catch limits. Commercial captures of
marlin are associated with the bycatch of sharks, seabirds and fur seals. One of the key concerns is the ecological impacts of
removing this key predator species from oceanic food webs.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method: Pelagic / Surface longlining for tuna around the North Island.
Habitat damage: None.
Bycatch: Sharks, New Zealand fur seals and seabirds are caught in the longline fishery.
Ecological effects: Removal of some of these important large predators may impact oceanic food web dynamics, including other
species caught as bycatch in the longline fishery.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2005: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, Revised Edition 1990, NZ Fishing Industry Board.
Description: Swordfish is a highly migratory species (HMS) of broadbill fish and an important oceanic predator found ?
worldwide in temperate, tropical and subtropical seas. The management responsibility for this species, as with other
Western Pacific HMS, lies with an international body – the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries commission
(WCPFC). However, the Ministry of Fisheries is responsible for upholding WCPFC rules in New Zealand waters, with
catch limits set under the quota management system. They are targeted and caught as a bycatch in the northern
bigeye and southern bluefin tuna longline fisheries.
Ecological concerns: Uncertainty about the stock assessments, catch limits and state of the stocks, plus the potential
for serial depletion of large swordfish. There is also concern about the bycatch of sharks, seabirds, fur seals and sea
turtles. In November 2006, a single surface longline vessel targeting swordfish around the Kermadec Islands caught 51
threatened antipodean albatrosses, 7 white-chinned petrels and 2 sea turtles. Another key concerns is the ecological
impacts of removing this key predator species from oceanic food webs.
Economic value: Main markets are Japan, Australia and USA. The export value of all tuna species combined was $42 million in
2002.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Method: Pelagic / surface longlining - they are caught on the west and east coast of the North Island, plus around the Kermadecs.
Habitat damage: None.
Bycatch: Seabirds, sharks, New Zealand fur seals and turtles are caught in the longline fishery. In November 2006, a single surface
longline vessel targeting swordfish around the Kermadec Islands caught 51 threatened antipodean albatrosses, 7 white-chinned
petrels and 2 sea turtles.
Ecological effects: Removal of these important large predators (Southern bluefin and sharks) impacts oceanic food web dynamics.
References: Overview of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean Tuna Fisheries, 2000, A Lewis and P Williams, Oceanic Fisheries Programme, Secretariat of the
Pacific Community, New Caledonia, August 2001; National Tuna Fishery Report 2001 – New Zealand, T Murray and L Griggs, NIWA; Kolody, D., Campbell, R.,
Davies, N. (2008). A Multifan-CL Stock Assessment of South-Western-Central Pacific Swordfish 1952-2007. Working Paper SA-WP-6 to WCPFC SC4, held 11-22
August 2008, Port Moresby PNG. 89 p.. Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Science
Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Tarakihi is a long-lived relative of red moki that is common around New Zealand, but mostly found south
of East Cape and around the South Island. They are associated with shallow reefs as juveniles but then school over ?
open seafloors as adults from 50 to 250m water depth.
Ecological concerns: Tarakihi is caught by trawling, so there is some concern about habitat damage if trawl gear
touches the seafloor. Trawling also catches a range of other fish. Other concerns include the limited amount of some
basic biological information, the absence of quantitative stock assessments, the uncertainty over stock boundaries and
the lack of a management plan for Tarakihi.
Economic value: Tarakihi are sold in New Zealand, Japan and Australia and had an export value of $0.5 million in
2008.
Best option: Try to avoid Tarakihi caught in association with red cod off the East coast of the South Island or caught in association
with gemfish.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; Cryer, Hartill
& O‟Shea 2002. Ecological Applications 12:1824–1839.
Description: Trevally is a long-lived species (up to 45 years) that lives near the seabed when young, but schools as ?
adults in the open water, where they feed on krill and other plankton. It is common around many parts of the North
Island and the top half of the south Island and most abundant at depths of around 80m. It is caught year round,
mainly around the North Island in conjunction with the snapper trawl fishery. It is also caught by purse seiners in the
Bay of Plenty and in set nets.
Ecological concerns: The over-catch of Trevally off the east coast of the North Island, the absence of a
quantitative stock assessment, the uncertainty of the stock status and the lack of a management plan.
Trawling catches non-target fish and, when fished at the bottom or using bottom trawl gear, may cause considerable
damage to seabed habitats and ecosystems. The fishery may also risk captures of critically endangered Maui‟s
dolphins off the west coast of the North Island. Restrictions on trawling and set netting introduced in May 2008 have
reduced the risk of catching these dolphins. However, dolphins outside closed areas are still at risk and a pending
court ruling, the risk of catching these dolphins may once again increase.
Economic value: The main markets for Trevally are in New Zealand, Japan, UK and the Middle East. It had an export
value of $3.2 million in 2008.
Best option: Trevally caught of western New Zealand appear healthier, but avoid fish caught using bottom trawl or set net. Purse
seine caught trevally is the best option.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This moki relative occurs in the cool, temperate waters of the Southern Hemisphere from the Indian ?
Ocean to South America. In New Zealand it is found from the Bay of Plenty southwards to the Auckland Islands, but is
mainly caught on the east coast of both main islands, ranging from 20 to 200m water depth. There is little targeted
fishing for trumpeter - it is mainly caught s a bycatch fish in line fisheries, with some caught in trawl and set nets.
Ecological concerns: The absence of basic biological information about Trumpeter, the lack of a quantitative stock
assessment and the unknown sustainability of recent catch levels. Also, the uncertainty over stock boundaries and the
potential for localised depletion of some populations, plus the lack of a management plan. As a bycatch species itself,
trumpeter fishing is also associated with other non-target fish bycatch.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and C)
Fishing method(s): Mostly caught as bycatch in coastal line-fisheries, with some caught in trawl nets and set nets.
Habitat damage: Unknown.
Bycatch: A range of fish species also caught as bycatch in fisheries where trumpeter is caught.
Ecological effects: Unknown.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd; MFish Final
Position Paper for the 1998-99 Sustainability Round.
Description: White warehou is the deepest ranging of the three warehou species in New Zealand and is common in ?
southeastern waters and on the Campbell Plateau in the Subantarctics. It is mostly taken as a bycatch in bottom trawl
fisheries for hoki and silver warehou.
Ecological concerns: The absence of some basic biological information about white warehou, the absence of a
quantitative stock assessment, the unknown stock size, the uncertainty over stock boundaries and the unknown
sustainability of recent catch levels. There are also concerns about past mis-reporting of white warehou as silver
warehou catches, plus there is no management plan. Bottom trawling causes considerable damage to seafloor
communities and, due to white warehou being a bycatch species of other fisheries, it is also associated with the
bycatch of seabirds, marine mammals and other non-target fish.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score E and D)
Fishing method: Trawling, especially bottom trawling. White warehou is caught as bycatch in the hoki and silver warehou fisheries
and to a lesser extent the hake, ling and scampi fisheries. Only 8% of the catch is from targeted fishing.
Habitat damage: Bottom trawling scrapes the seabed, reducing species diversity and altering habitat composition.
Bycatch: As a bycatch species in a range of middle-depth fisheries, it is associated with non-target fish, marine mammal and
seabird captures. (See hoki and silver warehou for more information.)
Ecological effects: Trawling destroys bottom dwelling species assemblages and habitat composition. Wider ecological effects on
food webs are largely due to the captures of non-target wildlife in the fisheries it is associated with.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: Yellowfin tuna is a migratory species, found mainly in the warm ocean waters of northern New Zealand
and moving south in summer to East Cape. Like many tuna, it is an important oceanic predator, regulating the
abundance of other marine species. They are caught as a bycatch in the northern bigeye and southern bluefin tuna
longline fisheries on the west and east coast of the North Island. The New Zealand catch is a very small part (0.03%) of
the Pacific fishery, which is now managed by an international body – the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries
Commission (WCPFC).
Ecological concerns: The lack of a stock assessment, catch limits and a management plan, therefore the high
uncertainty about the state of the stocks. Other concerns include declining catch rates, the bycatch of sharks, seabirds
and fur seals, plus and ecological impact of removing this top predator species on wider oceanic food webs.
Economic value: The export value of yellowfin tuna was $150,000 in 2008, with the main markets in Japan, Australia
and the USA.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and E)
Fishing method: Pelagic longlining around the North Island.
Habitat damage: None.
Bycatch: Seabirds, sharks and New Zealand fur seals are caught in the longline fishery.
Ecological effects: Excess removal of this and other large predatory species has knock-on effects on the wider food web.
References: Overview of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean Tuna Fisheries, 2000, A Lewis and P Williams, Oceanic Fisheries Programme, Secretariat of the
Pacific Community, New Caledonia, August 2001; National Tuna Fishery Report 2001 – New Zealand, T Murray and L Griggs, NIWA; Hampton, J., Langley, A and
Kleiber, P. (2006). Stock assessment of yellowfin tuna in the western and central Pacific Ocean, including an assessment of management options. WCPFC-SC2-
2006/SA WP-1. . Second meeting of the WCPFC-Scientific Committee, 7-18 August 2006, Philippines. (www.wcpfc.org/); Anon. 2007. Commission or the
Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean: Scientific Committee Summary report. Western and
Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. 244pp. Report from the Mid-Year Fishery Assessment Plenary, November 2009:
stock assessments and yield estimates. Science Group, Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The
New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Description: This relatively short-lived surface dwelling, coastal species is found throughout New Zealand, but is most ?
abundant in northern waters. It is smaller and more slender than grey mullet, forming schools in shallow coastal waters,
harbours and estuaries. It is caught using set nets or by beach seining.
Ecological concerns: The absence of some basic biological information on yellow-eyed mullet, the absence of a
quantitative stock assessment and so the unknown stock size and sustainability of recent catch levels (especially in
combination with non-commercial take of this species). There is also concern about the uncertainty over stock
boundaries and the likelihood of sub-stocks being managed together within quota areas, plus the absence of a
management plan. Set net fisheries can have considerable non-target fish bycatch. In the past this fishery has posed a
serious threat to critically endangered Maui‟s dolphins. Set netting also risks capture of other marine mammals and
seabirds. Restrictions on set netting off the west coast of the North Island introduced in 2003 and again in May 2008
have reduced this risk, but set netting still poses a threat outside these areas. Pending a high court ruling on a
challenge to the restrictions, the risk to Maui‟s dolphins may return.
Economic value: Yellow-eyed mullet are sold in New Zealand and Australia.
ASSESSMENT OUTPUT
Impact of fishing method and protected, threatened and endangered species captures (score D and B)
Fishing method(s): Mainly set nets and beach seine nets.
Habitat damage: Low.
Bycatch: The small mesh nets used may increase fishing pressure on grey mullet and a range of other shallow water species. There
is also a potential bycatch of seabirds, dolphins and other marine mammals in the set net fishery. However, restrictions on set netting
in areas where the endangered Maui‟s and Hector‟s dolphins are found, introduced in May 2008, have significantly reduced this
threat. (Depending on the results of legal action to reopen closed areas, the dolphins may again be put at risk.)
Ecological effects: The localised nature of the fishery in some harbours means there could be a risk of serial depletion in some
places.
References: Report from the Fishery Assessment Plenary, May 2009: stock assessments and yield estimates. Part 3: Porae to Yellow-eyed Mullet. Science Group,
Ministry of Fisheries; The Guidebook to New Zealand Commercial Fish Species, 2007 Revised Edition, The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd.
Hard copies of the Best Fish Guide wallet card are available from Forest & Bird and numerous nationwide
outlets. For example, Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater Aquarium (Auckland), Portabello Marine Laboratory
(Dunedin), Burger Wisconsin (nationwide) plus libraries, health food shops, cafes and other retail outlets.
Using the Best Fish Guide Assessment Methodology New Zealand fish are given an overall rank, from A
(highest ecological sustainability) to E (lowest ecological sustainability). This is derived by awarding a score
of 1 to 5 (ranks A to E) to six different assessment criteria, (some weighted more heavily than others). The
sum of these scores provides the overall assessment score and rank.
For more information on the assessment methodology, please download the Best Fish Guide 2009-2010:
How it works (Assessment Methodology) from www.bestfishguide.org.nz.
Table: Best Fish Guide 2009-2010: Ecological assessment scores for New Zealand’s wild caught
seafood species, showing individual scores for each criterion, the multipliers applied – high
importance (x3) to low importance (x1) – and the overall score and rank.
Criteria Scores
Criterion importance High Medium Low
Management Unit
Biology & risk of
species bycatch
sustainability of
Fishing method
Management &
MFish species
Protected or
overfishing
threatened
Overall Overall
research
Status &
catches
score Rank
code
Species
Albacore ALB 3 3 4 3 4 3 43 D
Alfonsino BYX 4 2 5 3 5 4 48 E
Anchovy ANC 4 2 2 1 3 5 35 D
Arrow Squid SQU 4 5 5 1 5 5 54 E
Barracouta BAR 4 4 5 2 3 4 48 E
Bigeye Tuna BIG 4 5 4 3 4 3 52 E
Black cardinal
CDL 5 4 4 5 3 4 55 E
fish
Blue cod BCO 4 2 2 3 3 3 37 D
Blue mackerel EMA 4 4 3 3 3 3 45 E
Blue moki MOK 3 3 5 4 1 4 42 D
Blue shark BWS 4 5 4 4 4 4 55 E
Blue warehou WAR 4 3 5 3 3 4 47 E
Bluenose BNS 5 5 4 4 2 4 54 E
Butterfish BUT 4 2 4 3 4 4 44 D
Cockles COC 4 1 4 2 3 3 36 D
Dark ghost
GSH 4 3 5 4 2 5 48 E
shark
Eels EEL 5 3 2 5 5 3 51 E
Elephantfish ELE 4 5 4 3 2 3 48 E
Flatfish FLA 4 4 5 2 5 4 52 E
Frostfish FRO 4 3 5 2 3 5 46 E
Garfish GAR 4 1 2 2 4 5 36 D
Gemfish SKI 5 3 5 4 2 3 49 E
Grey mullet GMU 4 2 4 2 4 3 41 D
Groper / Hapuku HPB 4 2 4 4 5 5 49 E
Management Unit
Biology & risk of
species bycatch
sustainability of
Fishing method
Management &
MFish species
Protected or
overfishing
threatened
Overall Overall
research
Status &
catches
score Rank
code
Species
Hake HAK 3 4 5 3 3 3 46 E
Hoki HOK 3 5 5 3 3 2 48 E
Jack mackerel JMA 3 5 5 3 5 4 54 E
John dory JDO 4 2 5 2 2 4 40 D
Kahawai KAH 4 1 2 3 4 4 37 D
Kina SUR 4 1 2 3 3 5 36 D
Kingfish KIN 4 2 4 3 3 4 42 D
Leather jacket LEA 4 2 5 2 4 5 45 E
Ling LIN 3 5 5 3 3 3 49 E
Lookdown dory LDO 4 3 5 3 4 5 50 E
Mako shark MAK 4 5 4 4 4 5 56 E
MO
Moonfish 4 5 4 2 4 5 52 E
O
Orange roughy ORH 5 4 5 5 4 3 58 E
Oreos OEO 4 4 5 5 5 2 56 E
Oyster OYS 5 2 5 4 4 3 50 E
Pacific bluefin
TOR 3 5 4 4 4 4 52 E
tuna
Packhorse
PHC 4 2 2 4 2 5 39 D
lobster
Paddle crabs PAD 4 2 4 2 4 5 43 D
Pale ghost shark GSP 4 3 5 4 3 5 50 E
Paua PAU 5 1 1 5 5 3 43 D
Pilchards PIL 4 2 2 1 3 5 35 D
Porbeagle shark POS 4 5 4 5 4 5 58 E
QSC
Queen scallops 4 2 5 3 4 4 46 E
C
Red Cod RCO 3 4 5 2 2 4 43 D
Red Gurnard GUR 3 3 5 2 2 4 40 D
Red snapper RSN 4 3 4 4 4 5 50 E
Ribaldo RIB 4 3 4 4 2 5 46 E
Rig RIG 4 5 4 4 3 4 53 E
Rock lobster CRA 5 3 2 4 1 2 40 D
Rubyfish RBY 4 3 5 5 3 4 51 E
Scallops SCA 4 4 5 2 3 3 47 E
Scampi SCI 4 5 5 4 2 3 52 E
School shark SCH 4 5 4 4 2 4 51 E
Sea perch SPE 5 3 5 4 3 4 52 E
Silver warehou SWA 4 4 4 2 3 4 46 E
Management Unit
Biology & risk of
species bycatch
sustainability of
Fishing method
Management &
MFish species
Protected or
overfishing
threatened
Overall Overall
research
Status &
catches
score Rank
code
Species
Skates SKA 4 3 5 4 5 4 53 E
Skipjack tuna SKJ 2 3 2 3 4 3 36 D
Snapper SNA 5 5 5 4 3 2 56 E
Southern blue
SBW 3 5 4 4 1 3 45 E
whiting
Southern bluefin
SBT 5 5 4 4 4 2 56 E
tuna
Spiny dogfish SPD 4 4 5 4 2 4 50 E
Sprats SPR 4 2 2 1 3 5 35 D
Stargazer STA 4 3 5 3 2 4 45 E
Striped marlin STM 4 5 4 3 4 4 53 E
SW
Swordfish 4 5 4 3 4 3 52 E
O
Tarakihi TAR 3 4 5 3 2 3 44 D
Trevally TRE 3 2 5 4 1 3 38 D
Trumpeter TRU 4 3 4 3 3 5 46 E
WW
White warehou 4 4 5 3 1 5 47 E
A
Yellow fin tuna YFN 4 5 4 3 4 3 52 E
Yellow-eyed
YEM 4 2 4 1 3 4 38 D
mullet
Aquaculture - Aquatic species, such as fish and shellfish, in salt, brackish, or freshwater. Farming implies
private ownership and enhancement of production by stocking, feeding, providing protection from
predators and other management measures.
Beach-seine - A large enclosing net, brought out by boats and dragged to the (sandy) shore. Also a net
used to encircle fish in shallow water; usually operated by two people wading out from shore, the net
has lead weights to keep the bottom on the sea floor and floats to keep the top of the net at or near
the surface. The seine may be set from a boat but hauled in from the land. Also called shore seine,
drag seine, draw net, haul seine, yard seine and sweep net.
Benthic species or benthos – Animals or plants living on the bottom of the ocean or lake.
Biological diversity - The variability among living organisms, including diversity within species, between
species, and of ecosystems (Section 2 of the Fisheries Act 1996). The Convention on Biological
Diversity also defines this as: the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter
alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they
are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems.'
Biomass - An aggregate weight, at a particular time, of fish (or other organisms) in a stock or in a fishery.
Bottom trawl net - A net designed to trawl along the seabed and catch fish found close to the bottom, such
as Orange Roughy and oreos.
Bottom pair-trawl - A net designed to trawl along the seabed and catch fish found close to the bottom but
towed between two similar trawlers.
Bycatch - Those species killed in a fishery targeted on other species or a different size range of the same
species and includes that part of the catch that has no commercial value and is discarded.
Catch - The total number or weight of fish and other marine life, including bycatch, taken by fishing from an
area over a period of time, as opposed to landings, which do not reflect the amount of discards.
Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Living Marine Resources (CCAMLR) - Established by
treaty in 1980, the CCAMLR is unique among fisheries agreements in that the conservation
measures adopted by the Commission must include a fishery's impact on the entire ecosystem,
rather than on just the targeted species. This ecosystem approach aims to prevent a decrease in the
size of harvested populations to levels that threaten their stable recruitment, and to minimize the risk
of changes in the marine ecosystem that are not potentially reversible over two or three decades.
The meetings of the Commission are held annually in Hobart, Australia, with representatives of the
23 CCAMLR member states.
Continental shelf - The continental shelf is a gradually sloping undersea shelf of land that extends beyond
shore of the continent. The nature of this geologic "shelf" is home to a great diversity of fish and
shellfish species.
Copepods - A large group (approximately 6,000 species) of tiny shrimp-like crustaceans. They are an
important food source for many larger animals, including fish, seabirds, and baleen whales.
Coral reefs – Reefs built up over hundreds of years by colonies of small animals, called coral polyps, and
their skeletons of calcium carbonate. Coral reefs cover less than 1% of the ocean area but are home
to one-third of all marine fish species.
Crustacean - The aquatic equivalent of insects, also from the phylum Arthropoda. Found in both fresh and
salt water, crustaceans are invertebrates and characteristically have a segmented body and
exoskeleton, with limbs that are paired and jointed. Lobsters, crabs, shrimp and barnacles are
examples of crustaceans.
Danish seine - A method of seining with a large net but the catch is landed on the vessel. Can be a single or
two boats net where an area of water of about 2 square kilometres is swept as two encircling ropes
leading to a trawl-like net are retrieved by the vessel(s). Fish within the ropes are herded into the net
during hauling.
Demersal species - Fish found on or near the bottom of the ocean, for example Orange Roughy.
Depleted fishery - A fishery where the population has been reduced to less than that which would support
the maximum sustainable yield.
Flatfish Flatfish
Paatiki Flatfish
hound