Abundance Estimation of Dolphin Stocks Involved in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Yellowfin Tuna Fishery Determined from Aerial and Ship Surveys to 1979

摘要

The purse seine fishery in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP) Ocean uses several species of dolphin as a guide to locating and encircling schools of tuna, principally the yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares). However, in the fishing process many dolphins become entrapped in the net and drown. Under provisions of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) was given the responsibility for (1) assessing the impact of the take of marine mammals incidental to commercial fishing, and (2) issuing permits and regulations governing that take.