Development of performance indices for the Newfoundland and Labrador snow crab ( Chionoecetes opilio) fishery using data from a vessel monitoring system

Abstract

This study investigates the potential for using data from a vessel monitoring system (VMS) to create indices of commercial fishery performance that may be used in monitoring snow crab resource status. Fishing hours were screened from hourly positional signals to create an index of fishing effort (hours fished) for comparison with that derived from logbooks (number of trap hauls). Similarly, a VMS-based fishing catch per unit of effort (CPUE) index was developed for comparison with CPUE derived from logbooks. Analysis of these indices showed that VMS-based fishing effort and CPUE indices can be interpreted to provide reliable complementary or alternative indices to logbooks for assessment of fishery performance in the Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) snow crab ( Chionoecetes opilio) fishery. We also developed a VMS-based index of fishing efficiency and illustrate how it can be applied toward understanding various behaviors and anomalies in the fishery. VMS data may offer other potential applications for snow crab assessment and management. Our approach and methods are applicable to other commercial fishery resources worldwide that are monitored using vessel monitoring systems.