Abstract

This poster presents data on the spatio-temporal patterns of effort and catches by United States and Mexican pelagic longline fleets operating in the Gulf of Mexico. These data were collected through the scientific observer programs of each country, beginning in 1992 for the U.S. and in 1993 for Mexico. The combined database was jointly analyzed under the auspices of MexUS-Gulf (the cooperative program between the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service and the Mexican National Fisheries Institute, INP). The distribution of effort across years and seasons/quarters is examined, along with its relationship to depth contours and to other factors such as seas surface temperature patterns. Likewise, the distribution of catches is studied, scaled by relative catch rate levels. The primary focus is on yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) as this is the main target species of these fisheries, but attention is also given to various other species which are caught

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