Regional Governance of Pacific Tuna Fisheries

摘要

The Pacific Ocean supports valuable commercial fisheries for tuna. The tuna fishery in the Pacific mainly targets populations of five tuna species: albacore Thunnus ala-lunga, bigeye T. obesus. Pacific bluefin T. orientalis, yellowfin T. albacares andskipjack Katsuwonus pelamis tuna. The world demand and catch for these five species, commonly referred to as principal market species, have increased steadily over the last fifty years and as of 2004, the annual world catch was over 4 million metric tons (WCPFC 2005). The principal market species of tunas are among the most important fish commodities in the world and are traded extensively in the global market for canning and Sashimi. In terms of world catch, the Pacific Ocean has been predominant andwith the exception of bluefin tuna, the Pacific Ocean also produces the greatest quantities of each of the principal market species. There are three species of bluefin tuna species in the world oceans with two in the Pacific, but for this chapter only Pacific bluefin tuna orientzalis will be discussed.