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[troutbreath]

But it won't help idiotfisher.


High price of fuel may help save the idiotfish
Large trawlers stay closer to shore, giving the deep-sea 'species of special concern' a reprieve
 
Suzanne Ahearne
Vancouver Sun


Friday, August 01, 2008


The poor idiotfish -- nicknamed by fishermen for its gawky, bulbous eyes -- might get the last laugh yet.

The high cost of fuel is keeping large numbers of British Columbia's deep-sea trawlers closer to shore, giving the idiotfish, one of the newest darlings of the fishing industry, a bit of a reprieve.

However, the David Suzuki Foundation is calling on the federal government to impose a full closure on the fishery to ensure the idiotfish population and sensitive habitat are protected.

The longspine thornyhead, as it's formally known, thrives in low-oxygen, high-pressure waters more than 800 metres deep.

The fish was listed last year as a species of special concern by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada and is being considered for legal listing under the federal Species at Risk Act.

Long a bycatch of deep-sea trawlers fishing for more lucrative mackerel, the idiotfish became a targeted species just eight years ago.

Since then, the population off the Pacific coast has been in decline, dropping by approximately 50 per cent, said Bill Wareham, the Suzuki Foundation's senior marine conservation specialist.

Scott Moorehead of Longliner Seafoods said the industry has been trying to create a domestic market for the thornyhead, but that his Granville Island fish stand doesn't sell much of it.

The little orange rockfish is mostly head and bones.

Its spines can cause irritation, the bright colour fades quickly to off-white after it is caught, and its big eyes become concave.

As well, Moorehead said, many of his customers are environmentally aware and try to stay away from groundfish, much of which is caught in an unsustainable fishery.

Most of the year-round catch goes for export to Japan and Korea and small quantities are sold locally in Chinatown.

The quota for thornyhead, set by the federal fisheries department, is 425 tonnes but over the last year, the catch has been only about half of that.

The trawlers have not gone out for their full quotas because the economics currently don't make sense.

The bottom-draggers are required to pull a net for 30 km, making for huge fuel costs.

sahearne@png.canwest.com

© The Vancouver Sun 2008

[rsmirfitt]

I have worked for a major seafoods processor involved in the trawl fisheries off and on for 17 years at the highest level of management (new industry for past 2 yrs). So much is not mentioned. First off, mackerel in BC waters was not fished commercially at anytime I was invovled, so doubtful if trawlers fishing for mackerel accidentally discovered this fishery. Idiotfish are specifically targeted by a very small percentage (less than 10%) of the trawl fleet due to the great depth that these fish normally are found at. No other trawl fish is at this depth. Trawls are generally pulled every 2 - 4 hours based upon many factors, so travelling at a few knots per hour it doesn't make sense that they tow for 30KMS as mentioned, that would mean the net in the water all day before coming on board.

Idiotfish is the highest value per pound fish that the trawl industry can catch, followed by black cod and then petrale sole.

But, idiotfish colour and quality are quickly washed out if the tow is of any duration or the fish not boxed and frozen on board. Not processing immediatley on board reduces the value to minimal for the vessel.

I suspect that fuel cost is a major factor but that the dwindling average size and volume of catch has much more to do with fishermen not targeting them.

[Fish Assassin]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/schuberts/500224621/

[Sam Salmon]

rsmirfitt  Thanks for the knowledgeable input much appreciated.

I've read that high fuel prices are impacting the Tuna Seine fleet in the Pacific even with high prices for fish they can't make any money because of long distances they have to travel.

[rsmirfitt]

Fishassasin, those are really high quality WHOLE (guts in) FRESH fish. The vast majority is sent to the Japanese as they had historical dependence on seafoods for diet and value placed on the colours red & gold. Idiotfish are not sold to any other culture that I'm aware of.

Commercial fishing is dying, as witnessed by the huge drop in per pound value for herring roe. In the early 80's a fisherman could expect to get from $1500 - $3000 per ton of herring in this fishery, now 20 years later if they got paid $700 - $1000 that would be considered normal. When I quit the industry in 2006 the company I worked for saw the sales value go from a high of C$17.50 in 80's to C$8.00 for #1 finsihed roe, with corresponding reduction in quota from overall 55,000 tons to around 13,500. Why such a huge drop in overall value to the fishery, not because the herring is in trouble anymore, it's biomass is actually increasing all along the coast, but because the economic values to fish it are not there anymore due to changing customer (Japan) preference.
The days of the bragging rich commercial fisherman is gone. Many, many fishermen in their late 50's and 60's have totally uneconomical assets in the form of vessels, gear, licences. etc. that cannot be supported anymore by the industry. No one, and I mean no one with an ounce of business sense would pay cash for a commercial vessel, licnece or gear in the province today. You could not earn the cost of capital never mind a wage for your efforts. Yet thay still have to pay moorage, insurance and maintain these. Crewing is becoming impossible. the trawl industry is the richest overall and yet a crew member who spends from 5 - 7 days aboard the vessel at a time with 2-3 days in bewteen and may have a month reprive in winter would be very lucky to take home before taxes $65K. Not my idea of big money.