2024 Gulf of Mexico Menhaden Purse Seine 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	II
Estimated Number of Participants	40-42
Target Species	Menhaden and thread herring
Applicable Take Reduction Plans	N/A
Observer Coverage	Observed in 1992, 1994, and 1995 through an observer program conducted by Louisiana State University. There has been no observer coverage since 1995.
Marine Mammal Species/Stocks Killed or Injured	Bottlenose dolphin, GMX bay, sound, estuarine; Bottlenose dolphin, Mississippi River Delta; Bottlenose dolphin, Mississippi Sound, Lake Borgne, Bay Boudreau; Bottlenose dolphin, Northern GMX coastal¹; Bottlenose dolphin, Western GMX coastal¹

^ 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

Based on a review of observer data from 1992-1995. Observers recorded nine incidental takes, eight (three mortalities) from the Western Gulf of Mexico [GMX] coastal bottlenose stock and one from the Northern GMX coastal stock. All of the lethal takes occurred in an area encompassing the Western GMX coastal stock of bottlenose dolphins. Extrapolating the takes from the average observer effort indicated the annual average mortality and serious injury was 68 animals/year, exceeding 100% of the Potential Biological Removal (PBR) level for the Western coastal stock (PBR=29), qualifying this fishery as a Category I fishery on the LOF. However, NOAA Fisheries categorized this fishery as a Category II pending a revised analysis of stock structure for bottlenose dolphin in the GMX. If all bottlenose stocks in the GMX were grouped together PBR would equal 154, putting the fishery in Category II (68 animals/year is 44% of PBR when PBR is 154).

Distribution

This fishery operates in bays, sounds, and nearshore coastal waters along the GMX coast. The majority of the fishing effort is concentrated off Louisiana and Mississippi, with lesser effort in Alabama and Texas state waters.

Gear Description

This fishery uses purse seine gear.

Management

Florida prohibits the use of purse seines in state waters. This fishery is managed under the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission Interstate Gulf Menhaden Fishery Management Plan.

Historical Information

Original Category (Year added to the LOF)	III (1996)
Original Number of Participants	50
Basis for Original Classification	Listed as Category III based on bycatch studies and Category III reports under section 114 of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). Data indicated that incidental take of bottlenose dolphins (Northern GMX coastal stock) does occur. In 1992 there were two observed mortalities, in 1994 there were two bottlenose dolphins caught and released live, and in 1995 there was one observed mortality. The Category III reports showed that two bottlenose dolphins were taken in 1993. Complete effort data for bycatch study was not available by the publication of the 1996 final LOF. However, information indicated that reclassification of the fishery may be proposed in a future LOF.
Past Names	N/A
Species/stocks historically documented as killed or injured (but not currently on the list)	Bottlenose dolphin, Eastern GMX coastal

Timeline of Changes

2020	Added bottlenose dolphin (Mississippi River Delta).
2017	Added Mississippi Sound, Lake Borgne, Bay Boudreau stock of bottlenose dolphin to the list of species killed/injured in this fishery based on a 2011 observed injury and two 2012 self-reported mortalities.
2009	Added a superscript “1” after bottlenose dolphin (Western GMX coastal) in the final 2009 LOF to correct a previous typographical error. The superscript “1” was inadvertently left off the 2006 LOF when superscripts were added to Tables 1 and 2. The Western GMX coastal stock is a stock driving the categorization of the fishery.
2007	Estimated number of participants updated from 50 to 40-42.
2006	Added a superscript “1” after bottlenose dolphin (Northern GMX coastal), indicating that this stock is driving the categorization of the fishery.
2005	Bottlenose dolphin (Eastern GMX coastal) and bottlenose dolphin (GMX bay, sound, estuarine) added to the list of species/stocks killed/injured in this fishery based on interactions documented in recent SARs.
1999	Elevated to Category II based on a review of observer data from 1992-1995. Observers recorded nine incidental takes, eight (three mortalities) from the Western GMX coastal bottlenose stock, and one from the Northern GMX coastal stock. All of the lethal takes occurred in an area encompassing the Western GMX coastal stock. Extrapolating the takes from the average observer effort indicated estimated annual mortality and serious injury was 68 animals/year. This data revealed that mortality and serious injury exceeded PBR for the Western coastal stock (PBR=29), which would qualify the fishery as a Category I. However, NOAA Fisheries categorized this fishery as a Category II pending a revised analysis of stock structure for bottlenose dolphin in the GMX. If all bottlenose dolphin coastal stocks in the GMX were grouped together, PBR would equal 154, putting the fishery in Category II. Bottlenose dolphin (Western GMX coastal stock) added to the list of species/stocks killed/injured in this fishery based on documented mortalities in the 1992-1995 observer data.

Last updated by Office of Protected Resources on 04/16/2025

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