Estimating relative abundance of kawakawa (Euthynnus affinis Cantor, 1849) landed in eastern indian ocean using catch and effort data

Abstract

Kawakawa (Euthynnus affinis) is a neritic tuna commodity with high economic value, especially for coastal states such as Indonesia. However, there is a lack of information about kawakawa abundance in the Eastern Indian Ocean. This research aims to estimate the relative abundance of kawakawa using catch and effort data, which is often used as a method in fisheries stock assessments. The size distribution of kawakawa was also analyzed in this study. The data was collected through daily monitoring from 16 landing sites along the Fisheries Management Area (FMA) 572 to 573 from 2015 to 2021. The data recorded included catch, day of fishing, fishing gear, and biological data (length and weight). The annual catch per unit of effort (CPUE) analysis of kawakawa reached its maximum in 2018, while the minimum value occurred in 2015. Furthermore, the monthly CPUE demonstrated that the highest catch occurred during the observation years in February and March. The highest catch proportion of kawakawa reached 87.21% in 2017. Finally, the gross tonnage (GT) of the gear showed the most significant factor in the catch.