Ray’s Bream

“No biomass estimates are available for Ray’s bream. There are no other yield estimates or stock assessment results available for Ray’s bream.” (MPI 2015, p294-297).

The level of protected species bycatch depends on the fishing method

Squid trawl fishery: This fishery catches globally threatened New Zealand sea lions, protected New Zealand fur seals, threatened seabirds and threatened basking sharks. An estimated 1950 seabird deaths (including cryptic mortality) occur annually in the squid trawl fishery. The main species observed caught were white-capped albatross, Salvin’s and southern Buller’s albatross, sooty shearwater and white-chinned petrels. The squid fishery makes up 32% of white-capped albatross and 35% of sooty shearwater captures.

Hoki trawl: An estimated 192 fur seals are captured in the hoki fishery (5-year average). Based on the recent catch spread of hoki, the main captures are in the Cook Strait (54%), off the West Coast of the South Island (24%), off the east coast of the South Island and Chatham Rise (15%). The hoki fishery catches about half of fur seals estimated as caught by trawling. The sub-Antarctic and Snares Shelf hoki fishery has a low capture rate for nationally critical New Zealand sea lions of about one each year. The trawl fishery also captures about 1420 seabirds a year (5-year average): the main species are Salvin’s albatross, southern Buller’s and white-capped albatross, sooty shearwater, white-chinned petrel, and cape petrels. Protected coral species are also reported caught in hoki tows in most quota areas. The corals caught include gorgonian, hydrocorals, black corals (Antipatharia) and stony corals (Scleractinia) – which includes reef-like, tree-like, and solitary small corals. Other bycatch species include vulnerable deepwater sharks (e.g. shovelnose dogfish, seal shark and Baxter’s dogfish). These low productivity species also include threatened basking sharks (observed at one per year, but could be higher), deepsea skates and some other elasmobranchs.

Surface longline fishery: Some of these longline fisheries also catch vulnerable turtles at an observed rate of about one per year but, given level of observer coverage, actual numbers could be 10-40 times this. In the bigeye tuna fishery an estimated 593 seabirds a year including vulnerable threatened Gibson’s and Antipodean albatross and near-threatened southern Buller’s albatross (includes cryptic mortality) are caught. Also in the bigeye tuna fishery, four New Zealand fur seal captures occur per year (based on the last 5 years). In the southern bluefin tuna fishery, an estimated 623 seabirds are caught, and an estimated 100 fur seals a year (based on the last 5 years).