
About The Species
U.S. wild-caught Pacific bigeye tuna is a smart seafood choice because it is sustainably managed and responsibly harvested under U.S. regulations.

Population Level
Above target population levels in the Western and Central Pacific and the Eastern Pacific.

Fishing Status
At recommended levels in the Western and Central Pacific and the Eastern Pacific.

Habitat Impacts
Fishing gear used to catch bigeye tuna rarely contacts the seafloor so habitat impacts are minimal.

Bycatch
Regulations are in place to minimize bycatch.
Status
-
There are two stocks of Pacific bigeye tuna: the Western and Central Pacific stock and the Eastern Pacific stock. According to the most recent stock assessments:
-
The Western and Central Pacific stock is not overfished and not subject to overfishing (2017 stock assessment). Summary stock assessment information can be found on Stock SMART.
-
The Eastern Pacific stock is not overfished and is not subject to overfishing (2017 stock assessment). Summary stock assessment information can be found on Stock SMART.
-
- Since hitting a low in 2004, the Eastern Pacific population has been increasing in abundance and is now above its target population level. The increase is partly due to international tuna conservation measures, which established time/area closures for the purse seine fleets and instituted catch quotas in the longline fleets.
Appearance
- Bigeye tuna are dark metallic blue on the back and upper sides and white on the lower sides and belly.
- The first fin on their back is deep yellow, the second dorsal and anal fins are pale yellow, and the finlets are bright yellow with black edges.
- Bigeye and yellowfin tuna look fairly similar. In fact, it’s hard to distinguish the two species without experience.
- Among other characteristics, the bigeye’s eyes are larger than the yellowfin’s and their finlets have black edges.
Biology
- Bigeye tuna grow fast and can reach about 6.5 feet in length.
- They live 7 to 8 years and are able to reproduce when they are 3 years old.
- Bigeye tuna spawn throughout the year in tropical waters and seasonally in cooler waters.
- They’re able to spawn almost daily, releasing millions of eggs each time.
- Eggs are found in the top layer of the ocean, buoyed at the surface by a single oil droplet until they hatch.
- Bigeye tuna feed near the top of the food chain, preying on fish, crustaceans, and squid.
- They are prey for many top predators, including larger tunas and billfish.
Where They Live
- Bigeye tuna are found throughout the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans, including the waters around the U.S. Pacific Islands and off southern California.
Management
- NOAA Fisheries and the Pacific Fishery Management Council manage this fishery on the West Coast.
- Managed under the Fishery Management Plan for U.S. West Coast Fisheries for Highly Migratory Species:
- Fishermen are required to have permits and to record catch in logbooks.
- Gear restrictions and operational requirements are in place to minimize bycatch.
- Large purse seine vessels that fish for tuna in the eastern Pacific Ocean are required to have 100 percent observer coverage.
- All other commercial vessels based on the U.S. West Coast must carry an observer if requested by NOAA Fisheries.
- Longline fishing is prohibited within 200 miles of the U.S. West Coast.
- Annual training in safe handling and release techniques for protected species is required and all vessels must carry and use specific equipment for handling and releasing these animals.
- NOAA Fisheries and Western Pacific Fishery Management Council manage this fishery in the Pacific Islands.
- Managed under the Fishery Ecosystem Plan for the Pelagic Fisheries of the Western Pacific:
- Fishermen are required to have permits and to record catch in logbooks.
- Gear restrictions and operational requirements are in place to minimize bycatch and potential gear conflicts among different fisheries.
- A limit on the number of permits for Hawaii and American Samoa longline fisheries controls participation in the fishery.
- Longline fishing is prohibited in some areas to protect endangered Hawaiian monk seals, reduce conflicts between fishermen, and prevent localized stock depletion (when a large number of fish are removed from an area).
- These areas are enforced through the NOAA Fisheries vessel monitoring system program (longline boats must be equipped with a satellite transponder that provides real-time position updates and tracks vessel movements).
- Hawaii-based and American Samoa–based longline vessels must carry onboard observers when requested by NOAA Fisheries, in part to record interactions with sea turtles, seabirds, and marine mammals.
- Annual training in safe handling and release techniques for protected species is required and all vessels must carry and use specific equipment for handling and releasing these animals.
- Management of highly migratory species, like Pacific bigeye tuna, is complicated because the species migrate thousands of miles across international boundaries and are fished by many nations.
- Effective conservation and management of this resource requires international cooperation as well as strong domestic management.
- Two international organizations, the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) and the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC), manage this fishery internationally. Working with the U.S. Department of State, NOAA Fisheries domestically implements the IATTC and WCPFC conservation and management measures.
- Under the South Pacific Tuna Treaty, U.S. purse seine vessels operating throughout the western and central Pacific Ocean must be registered and are monitored through logbooks, cannery landing receipts, national surveillance activities, observers, and port sampling.
- Purse seiners in the eastern Pacific Ocean also operate under the International Dolphin Conservation Program, a multilateral agreement aimed at reducing and minimizing bycatch of dolphins and undersize tuna.
- In 2000, the United States established the Dolphin-Safe Tuna Tracking and Verification Program to monitor the domestic production and importation of all frozen and processed tuna products nationwide and to authenticate any associated dolphin-safe claim.
Featured News

Recreational Fishing Regulations
Commercial Fishing Regulations
Subsistence Fishing Regulations
Documents
Evaluation of Electronic Monitoring Pre-implementation in the Hawaiʻi-based Longline Fisheries
The Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) is currently evaluating how to effectively use…
Data & Maps
American Samoa Longline Logbook Reports 2019
Logbook summary reports for the 2019 calendar year.
Hawaii and California Longline Logbook Reports 2019
Logbook summary reports for the 2019 calendar year.
Hawaii and California Longline Logbook Reports 2018
Logbook summary reports for the 2018 calendar year.
American Samoa Longline Logbook Reports 2018
Logbook summary reports for the 2018 calendar year.
Research
Toward an Environmental Predictor of Tuna Recruitment
Researchers used phytoplankton size to predict catch rates and weight of bigeye tuna in the Hawaiʻi…
Economics and Human Dimensions of Eastern Pacific and West Coast Fisheries
The primary goal of the Economics and Human Dimensions Program is to conduct research and inform fisheries management in support of the West Coast Geographic Strategic Plan goals of amplifying the economic value of commercial and recreational fisheries…
Rights-Based Management, Competition, and Distributional Equity in Hawaii’s Largest Commercial Fishery
Many global fisheries have transitioned to rights-based management to improve bioeconomic outcomes,…
Relative Impacts of Simultaneous Stressors on a Pelagic Marine Ecosystem
Model suggests that due to climate change, a decline in the yield of Hawaii's longline fishery may…