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Preliminary Trials To Assess Bycatch Reduction Potential For Deep-Set Pelagic Longline Gear In The U.S. Atlantic Fishery, Sean T. Wilms

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The U.S. Atlantic pelagic longline fishery uses a shallow-set gear configuration to primarily target swordfish (Xiphias gladius) and yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) at depths of around 75-100 m. However, the fishery has been the subject of several bycatch reduction regulations due to incidental catch and mortality of sea turtles, seabirds, marine mammals, and istiophorid billfishes. An alternative deep-set technique, used by the U.S. pelagic longline fishery based in Hawaii and several non-U.S. fleets, differs from the shallow-set pelagic longline gear by deploying a greater length of mainline per unit distance using a mechanical line shooter, resulting in a deeper catenary …