Science Advisory Report 2017/029
An Assessment of the Sea Cucumber (Cucumaria frondosa) resource on the St. Pierre Bank (NAFO Subdivision 3Ps) in 2016
Summary
- The fishery was initiated in 2003 with an allocation of 454 t. This allocation was gradually increased to 2,242 t in 2013, where it has remained. The landings averaged approximately 1,200 t since 2010 with the highest catch in 2015 at 2,297 t.
- The catch per unit effort (CPUE) increased in the beginning of the fishery from 2003 to 2008 and has remained stable since 2009 with a mean CPUE of 597 kg/tow.
- The biomass index based on the emerging cucumber fishery survey from 2004 to 2008 (excluding 2005) averaged 89 kt in the northwest area and 210 kt in the southeast area. The 2005 estimate is not considered reliable due to gear configuration issues.
- In 2016, the cucumber survey biomass index was 187 kt in the southeast area, and the survey in the northwest area was incomplete in 2016. The abundance in 2016 in the southeast area was above the 2004-08 average.
- Sustainable exploitation rates are unknown.
- Given the uncertainties with this species on the St. Pierre Bank, there is no scientific basis for assessing the risk of any increase in harvest level.
This Science Advisory Report is from the Regional Peer Review Meeting of February 21, 2017 on the Assessment of Sea Cucumber in NAFO Subdivision 3Ps. Additional publications from this meeting will be posted on the Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Science Advisory Schedule as they become available.
Accessibility Notice
This document is available in PDF format. If the document is not accessible to you, please contact the Secretariat to obtain another appropriate format, such as regular print, large print, Braille or audio version.
- Date modified: