The implications of spatially varying catchability on bottom trawl surveys of fish abundance: a proposed solution involving underwater vehicles

Abstract

Bottom trawl sampling is used to estimate trends in stock abundance for groundfishes worldwide, including Pacific rockfishes (Sebastes spp.). However, trawl sampling efficiency varies spatially and the distribution of groundfish populations may change among easy- and difficult-to-survey areas over time. These concerns have prompted interest in using underwater vehicles (UVs), for which catchability is likely to decrease less in rocky habitats. In this study, we use simulation modeling to evaluate the abundance trends arising from bottom trawl sampling given density-dependent habitat selection and spatially varying catchability. We first demonstrate that relative abundance indices in this case will generally be biased measures of changes in population abundance. We also propose and evaluate a sampling design that combines data from bottom trawl and UV gears. Combined sampling has greater precision than UV sampling, lower bias than bottom trawl sampling, and is robust to moderately violated assumptions regarding sampling strata or spatial catchability. We conclude by recommending future research that could test the assumptions under which combined sampling is a feasible solution to spatially varying catchability.