Georgia Cannonball Jellyfish Trawl Fishery - MMPA List of Fisheries
U.S. fisheries are classified under the Marine Mammal Protection Act according to the level of interactions that result in incidental mortality or serious injury of marine mammals.
Current Classification on the List of Fisheries
Category |
III |
|
Estimated Number of Participants |
1 |
|
Target Species |
Cannonball jellyfish |
|
Applicable Take Reduction Plans |
N/A |
|
Observer Coverage |
N/A |
|
Marine Mammal Species/Stocks Killed or Injured |
Bottlenose dolphin, SC/GA coastal |
^ 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
Listed as Category III based on commercial fishery permit. No observer, logbook, or stranding data are available.
Distribution
Fishing occurs in state and federal waters in and adjacent to Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina. Season is open year round but typically targeted in peak spring and fall seasons.
Gear Description
Trawl nets must have a minimum of 4 inch mesh size and be equipped ( in Georgia and South Carolina) with a Turtle Excluder Device (TED). Many Georgia trawlers target cannonball jellyfish in Federal waters to avoid state regulations requiring a TED. Trawl times are typically less than 30 minutes.
Management
This fishery is managed by GA DNR and SC DNR.
Historical Information
|
Original Category (Year added to the LOF) |
III (2007) |
|
Original Number of Participants |
1 |
|
Basis for Original Classification |
Experimental midwater trawl fishery operating in state and Federal waters that requires a permit and the use of a TED. Less than 5% of the fishery has been assessed for the last several years combined. |
|
Past Names |
N/A |
|
Species/stocks historically documented as killed or injured (but not currently on the list) |
N/A |
Timeline of Changes
|
2013 |
|