California Anchovy, Mackerel, Sardine Purse Seine Fishery - MMPA List of Fisheries

Current Classification on the List of Fisheries

^ Number of participants estimates are based on state and federal fisheries permit data. The estimated number of participants is expressed in terms of the number of active participants in the fishery, when possible. If this information is not available, the estimated number of vessels or persons licensed for a particular fishery is provided. If no recent information is available on the number of participants, then the number from the most recent LOF is used. NOAA Fisheries acknowledges that, in some cases, these estimations may be inflating actual effort.

*Observer coverage levels include the latest information reported in the most current final Stock Assessment Report (SAR).

¹ Indicates the stock or species is driving the classification of the fishery.

Basis for Current Classification

Classified as a Category III fishery based on the limited amount of documented mortality or serious injuries of marine mammals based on the available data.

Distribution

Coastal pelagic species (CPS), which include northern anchovy, Pacific mackerel, jack mackerel, and Pacific sardine, are targeted in the water column above the continental shelf extending from the surface to roughly 555 fathoms (1,015 m) deep. The area encompasses federal waters (3 nm – 200 nm) off California with most of the fishing activity occurring near the coast. The fishery occurs throughout the coast but mainly operates in  San Diego, Oceanside, Dana Point,  San Pedro, and Monterey. The fishing year for northern anchovy and jack mackerel is January 1 to December 31. The fishing year for Pacific sardine and Pacific mackerel is July 1 to June 30 (the following year). 

Gear Description

CPS are mainly harvested using purse seine gear. A purse seine is a large wall of netting deployed around an entire school of fish. It consists of floats adhered to the “float line” of the seine with a lead line threaded through rings at the bottom. When a school is located, a skiff will encircle the school with one end of the seine attached to it while the other end is attached to the fishing vessel itself, and circle back to the fishing vessel. Once the skiff reaches the vessel, the lead line at the bottom of the seine is pulled in, “pursing” the net closed on the bottom, thus preventing the fish from escaping when swimming downward.

Management

The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) CPS Fishery Management Plan (FMP) specifies a management framework for CPS. A limited entry permit is required for anyone using purse seine gear for fishing or landing CPS finfish over 5 mt in the Limited Entry Zone south of 39°00′00″ N latitude off California. CPS may be caught for the live bait market with seine gear and does not require a limited entry permit provided that landings are under 5 mt. Market squid is included under the CPS FMP, which specifies a management framework for all CPS. However, this fishery is principally managed by the State of California under the Market Squid Fishery Management Plan (MSFMP) since 2005.

Pacific sardine and Pacific mackerel are “actively managed” under the CPS FMP, which means they have biological and socioeconomic considerations requiring intense harvest management procedures that are adopted annually. Both active stocks have harvest specifications, which include overfishing limits, acceptable biological catches, and annual catch limits. Northern anchovy and jack mackerel are considered “monitored” stocks, which means they do not require intensive harvest management and are only assessed periodically. Stocks can be moved from “active” to “monitored” and vice versa. The NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) assesses the northern subpopulation of sardine  annually, with fishery management measures set at the April PFMC meeting. Pacific mackerel are assessed and management measures set biennially in odd-numbered years at the June PFMC meeting.

Historical Information

Timeline of Changes