Unravelling the dynamics of a multi-gear fleet – Inputs for fisheries assessment and management under the Common Fisheries Policy

Effective species management requires good knowledge on vessel dynamics, either at a stock basis or through the establishment of multiannual management plans as advisable under the new European Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). Achieving such knowledge on Portuguese multi-gear fisheries is challenging given the large number of species caught and the different management measures applied to potential target species. The latter ranges from no input or output controls to output controls based on individual vessel quotas (IVQ). To provide accurate regional knowledge to the CFP, the dynamics of vessels involved in the trammel net fishery targeting anglerfish (Lophius spp.) was characterised based on onboard sampling data and logbook reports. The selected vessels were very dynamic, and were found to target other species such as hake (Merluccius merluccius), John Dory (Zeus faber) and octopus (Octopus vulgaris). Anglerfish landing trends can be explained by changes in abundance, quota availability and shifts/changes in fishing effort. Overall, the dynamics of these vessels varied with area of exploitation, IVQ value and anglerfish total allowable catch (TAC). These results show the influence of different management systems in the dynamics of vessels and the advantage of an IVQ management system, where fishers can spatially and temporally allocate effort. Results also highlight a fishing effort shift towards unregulated species in face of IVQ or TAC restrictions.     

基于提升回归树的东、黄海鲐鱼渔场预报

为提高东、黄海鲐鱼渔场预报准确率、降低渔业生产成本,研究提出了一种基于提升回归树的渔场预报模型。研究采用2003—2010年我国大型灯光围网渔捞日志数据,以有网次记录的小渔区为渔场,以渔捞日志未记录的区域作为背景场随机选择假定非渔场数据,以海表水温等环境因子作为预测变量构建东、黄海鲐鱼渔场预报模型并以2011年的实际作业记录对预报模型进行精度验证。验证计算得到预报模型的AUC(area under receiver operating curve)值为0.897,表明模型的预报精度较高。模型的空间预测结果表明,预报渔场与实际作业位置基本吻合,其位置移动也与实际情况相符。这表明基于提升回归树的渔场预报模型可以用来进行东、黄海鲐鱼渔场的预报。     

基于空间自相关模型的西北太平洋日本鲭渔场时空变动研究

日本鲭（Scomber japonicus）是西北太平洋渔业捕捞的主要种类,了解其渔场变动对探究日本鲭种群分布、资源评估、开发利用和管理等意义重大。为获知其渔场的时空变动特征,本研究根据中国2014−2019年西北太平洋公海灯光围网渔业统计资料,运用全局莫兰指数、局部热点分析、重心迁移轨迹模型和标准差椭圆模型对西北太平洋日本鲭渔场时空分布模式、特征和变动趋势进行了研究。结果显示：（1）日本鲭渔获量主要集中在39°～44°N,147°～155°E范围内,地理上分布不均;年间产量先增后降,年间CPUE逐年降低;月间产量先增后降,其中6−10月均维持在较高水平,CPUE逐月增加;捕捞网次核密度显示,核密度高值发生区域与产量高值具有高度一致性;（2）日本鲭年间、月间渔获量均存在空间自相关并呈现显著聚集分布模式,月间空间自相关性比年间强;（3）年间、月间日本鲭渔获量分布的热点区和冷点区均表现出一定空间集聚特征,但是不同年份、月份的热点区和冷点区的分布区域、面积均存在较大差异;（4）日本鲭渔场重心年间移动轨迹呈右转约90°的扁“W”形状,总体上往西北移动;月间变化显示,从4月份开始逐渐向东北移动,8月到达东北端后向西南折返;（5）日本鲭渔场年间、月间变动方向一致,呈西南−东北格局,且方向性、向心力均较强,日本鲭渔场具有较高的聚集性。该研究引进了空间自相关模型及相关地理空间分析方法,为探讨西北太平洋日本鲭渔场变动特征提供了一种新思路。     

东海南部海洋净初级生产力与鲐鱼资源量变动关系的研究

海洋初级生产力决定海洋渔业资源的潜在产量,我国应用海洋初级生产力方法估算渔业资源量亦已取得不少研究成果,但海洋生态系统中的营养控制机制复杂多样,将影响海洋初级生产力与鱼类资源量的关系。本文利用中国大型灯光围网渔业在东海南部渔场的鲐鱼(Scomber japonicus)捕捞数据与海洋净初级生产力的遥感资料分析了鲐鱼资源量变化与净初级生产力的关系,探讨了其生态系统营养控制机制。研究结果表明,净初级生产力与标准化CPUE(Catch Per Unit Effort)不存在显著的线性关系(P>0.05),但呈显著非线性关系(P<0.05),且这种非线性关系表现为倒抛物线,即鲐鱼资源量随净初级生产力的增加而提高,但当净初级生产力进一步增加,鲐鱼资源量则呈下降趋势。净初级生产力与标准化CPUE呈显著的倒抛物线关系表明生态系统存在上行控制机制,但并非受该机制完全控制。种间竞争或浮游动物资源量的变动均可能引起鲐鱼资源的相对丰度与净初级生产力呈倒抛物线关系。     

A New model to forecast fishing ground of Scomber japonicus in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea

The pelagic species is closely related to the marine environmental factors, and establishment of forecasting model of fishing ground with high accuracy is an important content for pelagic fishery. The chub mackerel(Scomber japonicus) in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea is an important fishing target for Chinese lighting purse seine fishery. Based on the fishery data from China's mainland large-type lighting purse seine fishery for chub mackerel during the period of 2003 to 2010 and the environmental data including sea surface temperature(SST), gradient of the sea surface temperature(GSST), sea surface height(SSH) and geostrophic velocity(GV), we attempt to establish one new forecasting model of fishing ground based on boosted regression trees. In this study, the fishing areas with fishing effort is considered as one fishing ground, and the areas with no fishing ground are randomly selected from a background field, in which the fishing areas have no records in the logbooks. The performance of the forecasting model of fishing ground is evaluated with the testing data from the actual fishing data in 2011. The results show that the forecasting model of fishing ground has a high prediction performance, and the area under receiver operating curve(AUC) attains 0.897. The predicted fishing grounds are coincided with the actual fishing locations in 2011, and the movement route is also the same as the shift of fishing vessels, which indicates that this forecasting model based on the boosted regression trees can be used to effectively forecast the fishing ground of chub mackerel in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea.     

基于最大熵和栖息地指数模型预测东、黄海日本鲭渔场分布

最大熵模型（Maximum Entropy Model,Maxent）和栖息地指数（Habitat Suitability Index,HSI）模型均广泛应用于渔情预报研究中。为比较两模型渔情预报效果以提升日本鲭（Scomber japonicus）资源的科学管理水平,本研究利用2003−2012年东、黄海日本鲭的渔业数据以及海表温度、海面高度、海表盐度、海表温度梯度等海洋环境数据,构建最大熵模型和HSI模型,以分析、比较两模型对东、黄海日本鲭栖息地的预测效果,并利用受试者工作特征（Receiver Operating Characteristic,ROC）曲线下面积（Area Under Curve,AUC）、模型预测的渔场概率与实际渔获量百分比之间的对应关系对两模型渔情预报效果进行了定量评价。结果表明：（1）最大熵模型预测的渔场发生高概率位置与捕捞位置基本重合,在无历史捕捞数据海域预测渔场发生的概率较低;HSI模型预测的高栖息地指数位置与捕捞位置部分重合,在无历史捕捞数据海域也可获得较高的栖息地指数,将非渔场预测为渔场的概率较高;（2）最大熵模型和HSI模型的月平均AUC值分别为0.95和0.66,故最大熵模型的预测结果相对较好;（3）使用HSI模型时,应在模型中加入非渔场数据,并加强对此类数据的收集,否则该类模型预报渔场时有扩大化的可能;使用最大熵模型时,必须提高渔业数据的空间覆盖率,否则无法全面反映渔场时空分布动态。本文研究结果可为提升东、黄海日本鲭渔情预报精度提供参考。     

Ecological Risk Assessment for seabird interactions in Western and Central Pacific longline fisheries

The risk of seabird–fishery interactions in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) was examined by analysing the overlap of seabird distributions with tuna and swordfish pelagic longline fisheries managed by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) and its constituent members. The study used spatially-explicit Productivity–Susceptibility Analysis (PSA). Key data inputs were species productivity, fishing effort, likelihood of capture and species density by region. The outputs tailored results to the needs of fisheries- and wildlife-managers, indicating areas of greatest risk of species interactions, species of greatest concern for population impacts, and the flags or fisheries most likely to contribute to the risk. Large albatross species were found to be most likely to suffer population effects when exposed to longline fishing activity, followed by the larger petrels from the genuses Procellaria, Macronectes and Pterodroma. A mixture of coastal states with nesting seabird populations in their Exclusive Economic Zones (New Zealand, Australia and United States of America), distant water fishing nations (Japan, Taiwan) and flags of convenience (Vanuatu) contributed 90% of the risk to seabird populations. Recommendations include enhancing the level of fisheries observer monitoring in areas indicated as high to medium risk for seabird interactions, and consideration of spatial management tools, such as more intensive or more stringent seabird bycatch mitigation requirements in high- to medium-risk areas. The methods used, and similar studies conducted in the Atlantic Ocean could lead to improved targeting of monitoring resources, and greater specificity in the needs for seabird-mitigation measures. This will assist in reducing seabird mortality in longline fishing operations and with more effective use of resources for fishery managers in both domestic fisheries and RFMOs.     

Lessons for fisheries management from the EU cod recovery plan

The performance of the EU long-term management plan for cod stocks, in force since 2009, is analysed focusing on the human and institutional factors. The plan operates through landings quotas (TACs) and effort restrictions following a Harvest Control Rule, and deploys a novel instrument allowing Member States to ‘buy back’ or increase fishing effort for fleet segments engaged in cod-avoidance measures. The stipulated fishing mortality reductions have not been achieved. On the positive side, the ‘buy-back’ instrument has led to increased uptake of selective gear and implementation of permanent and real-time temporary closures. On the negative side, ignoring the dimension of fishers as reactive agents in the design, the impact assessment, and the annual implementation of the measures has contributed to the failure to adequately implement the plan and achieve its objectives. The main problem is that the landings quotas taken in a mixed fishery did not limit catches because fishers were incentivised to continue fishing and discard overquota catch while quota for other species was available. The effort limitations intended to reduce this effect were insufficient to adequately limit fishing mortality in targeted fisheries, although fishers experienced them as prohibiting the full uptake of other quotas. Recommendations for future plans include (i) management through catch rather than landings quotas, (ii) the internalisation of the costs of exceeding quotas, (iii) use of more selective gear types, (iv) the development of appropriate metrics as a basis for regulatory measures and for evaluations, (v) participatory governance, (vi) fishery-based management, (vii) flexibility in fishing strategy at vessel level.     

A decade of exploitation and management of the Namibian hake stocks

The hake resource is the most important commercial fish species in the demersal sector of Namibia's fisheries, both in terms of annual catch and contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The fishery now spans four decades. In the 1960s and 1970s, hake were exploited heavily by mainly foreign fleets, total catches peaking at more than 800 000 tons in 1972. The first control measures, the use of a minimum mesh size of 110 mm and the allocation of quotas to each member country participating in the hake fishery, were implemented by the International Commission for the Southeast Atlantic Fisheries in 1975. In 1990, the Namibian Government took action to control fishing activities in Namibian waters, and the enactment of its Fisheries Policy (1991) and Sea Fisheries Act of 1992 provided for the control measures to be taken. The conservative management strategy adopted between 1990 and 1993 resulted in gradual increase in hake biomass, but thereafter the stock declined. The hake fishery is currently managed on the basis of a total allowable catch that takes into consideration the rate of increase or decrease in the size of the resource. Since 1990, the demersal trawl fishery has accounted for approximately 90% of the total hake catch. The resource is subjected to both directed fishing and bycatch, the latter taken in directed fisheries for species such as horse mackerel, monkfish and sole.     

Analysis of bycatch in the South African midwater trawl fishery for horse mackerel Trachurus capensis based on observer data

The South African midwater trawl fishery targets adult horse mackerel Trachurus capensis. The bulk of the catch is taken by a single freezer-trawler, the biggest fishing vessel operating in South African waters. As fishing takes place off the south coast in ecologically sensitive areas, there are concerns about the potential impacts of this fishing operation on non-target species. Fishing behaviour and bycatch of this fishery from 2004 to 2014 were investigated by analysing observer records with regard to catch composition, volume and temporal and spatial patterns. The midwater trawl fishery was estimated to have caught 25 415 tonnes annually, with a bycatch of 6.9% of the total catch, by weight. There are species overlaps with various fisheries, namely the demersal trawl, small-pelagic, line, shark longline and squid fisheries, yet the total bycatch estimates from this fishery are generally small relative to catches taken in the target fisheries. Bycatch species with the highest average annual catches were chub mackerel Scomber japonicus, redeye roundherring Etrumeus whiteheadi, ribbonfish Lepidopus caudatus and hake Merluccius spp. Large-fauna bycatch species included sunfish Mola mola as well as a number of CITES II- and IUCN-listed species, such as Cape fur seal Arctocephalus pusillus, dusky shark Carcharhinus obscurus, smooth hammerhead shark Sphyrna zygaena and thresher sharks Alopias spp. The 97.9% observer coverage is high and the 6.9% bycatch rate low compared to other South African fisheries; however, due to the large size of the individual hauls (average of 46.3 t), the average sampling rate of 1.56% is low. Our analyses suggest that bycatch in the South African midwater trawl fishery has been lower than in other South African fisheries and similar fisheries elsewhere, but due to the combination of high catch volumes and low sampling rates, estimation errors for rare species are high and there is a substantial risk of incidental unmonitored bycatch of rare large fauna and aggregations of small fauna. This could be mitigated by spatio-temporal management of this fishery, to avoid fishing in high-risk areas, and the introduction of an electronic monitoring programme.     

Improving fleet efficiency to maximise economic yield in a Western Australian prawn fishery

The Shark Bay trawl fishery is Western Australia's most valuable prawn fishery (worth AUD$25 million in 2014). The 18-vessel fleet targets western king prawns (Penaeus latisulcatus), brown tiger prawns (P. esculentus) and also retains saucer scallops (Ylistrum balloti) and blue swimmer crabs (Portunus armatus). Increased fuel prices, falling prawn prices and lower catches of other species, following extreme environmental events, have impacted fishery profits. A biomass dynamics model with an economic component indicated that total revenue levels start to decline when annual effort increases beyond ~ 200 fishing days per boat. Annual effort required to achieve MEY, when based solely on prawn fishing, is 115–150 days per boat after accounting for fixed and variable fishing costs and annual fishing efficiency increases of 1–2%. From 2007–2014, the adjusted effort was 188–192 days per boat. Fishing occurred between March and November during 7–8 fishing periods, separated by 5–8 day (low catchability) moon closure periods. An empirical daily profit assessment (2007–2015), accounting for recruitment variation, daily prawn size compositions, monthly market prices for different prawn species and sizes, and daily fishing costs, showed vessels made profits on ~ 115–160 days and losses on ~ 15–55 days per year, when fishing occurred near the full moon. The fishery benefitted in 2013–2015 by starting later in the year and better targeting within-season effort. This management strategy within the effort-control framework, which improved profitability, maintained higher spawning stocks and reduced ecosystem fishing impacts, has wider application in prawn fishery management.     

大西洋大眼金枪鱼渔业概况

大西洋大眼金枪鱼（Ｔｈｕｎｎｕｓ ｏｂｅｓｕｓ）是高经济价值鱼种,其分布几乎覆盖整个大西洋水域。研究大西洋大眼金枪鱼的渔业对于我国远洋渔业意义重大。所以在此对其渔业及资源状况进行研究。根据三种主要渔业（延绳钓、围网和竿钓）的渔获量,可看出大眼金枪鱼渔业的发展概况。为了分析资源状况,文中使用了Ｗａｌｔｉｒｓ ａｎｄ Ｈｉｌｂｏｒｎ（１９７６）产量模型。其结果是９９．６千公吨的最大持续产量和１１４．７     

Management of the precious coral fishery in Taiwan: Progress and perspectives

Precious corals have been commercially exploited because of their legendary and cultural importance for many centuries in the Mediterranean and for almost one century in the Northwest Pacific. Although the precious coral fishery in Taiwan dates back to the 1920s, relevant studies on biology and ecology of resources are relatively scarce. The management of the precious coral fishery in Taiwan was officially instituted in January 2009, when data on the catch and effort of the fishery were recorded. In this study, the catch-effort data of the fishery were examined to explore the temporal and spatial patterns in composition and abundance of Corallium and Paracorallium spp. around Taiwan. A total landing of 3233.0 and 2906.8 kg precious corals were recorded for 2009 and 2010, respectively. Less than 5% of those amounts were from live colonies. A high proportion of fossilized colonies in the catch reflect the non-selective nature of the fishing gear; however, the factors that cause colonies to collapse are not exclusive to the impact of the fishery. Momo coral was dominant in the production for both years, followed by Miss coral. The total production of precious corals correlated positively with fishing efforts, while a weak relationship was found between the production of live colonies and fishing efforts. The fishing efforts mainly aggregated in designated fishing ground A (DFG-A) for both years, while the production of live colonies mainly occurred in DFG-E. The monthly occurrence rate of live colonies decreased over the past 2 years. Although fluctuating significantly, the CPUE of dominant species exhibited an apparent decreasing pattern. High aggregation of the fishing efforts in specific regions and low numbers of live colonies in the production should be carefully taken into account when amending management regulations in the future. The establishment of marine protected areas, in addition to the strict controls that already apply, should be considered to not only sustain the population structure of the sessile animals but also their function in the marine ecosystem.     

Bridges to best management: Effects of a voluntary bycatch avoidance program in a mid-water trawl fishery

The catch of non-target species or discarding of target species (bycatch) in commercial fisheries can result in negative species level and ecosystem wide impacts as well as adverse social and economic effects. Bycatch has become one of the foremost, global issues of fishery managers and conservationists, especially when the non-target species is from a protected or threatened population. However, the impact and spatial distribution of bycatch is frequently unknown making it difficult to develop effective, justifiable mitigation regulations. This challenge is exemplified by the bycatch of river herring (alewife, Alosa pseudoharengus, and blueback herring, A. aestivalis) and American shad (A. sapidissima) in the northwest Atlantic mid-water trawl fishery targeting Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) and Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus). As an alternative to immediate management action, a voluntary bycatch avoidance program was established through an industry, state government, and university partnership. Here the program is described and its impact is evaluated by comparing fleet behavior and bycatch prior to and during the program. The combined results suggest that consistent communication, facilitated by the avoidance program, positively influenced fishing habits and played a role in the approximately 60% decrease in total bycatch and 20% decrease in the bycatch ratio observed during the program. However, the success of small scale move-along strategies to reduce bycatch ratios varied greatly in different areas of the fishery and years. This suggests the program is best viewed as an intermediate or complimentary solution. Overall, this project exemplifies of how collaborative programs can help alleviate difficult management scenarios.     

History,effort distribution and landings in an artisanal bottom longline fishery: An empirical study from the North Atlantic Ocean

Commercial fishing data were used to reconstruct historical spatio-temporal patterns of fishing effort and landings in the bottom longline fishery of the Azores. Key events during an important 15-year period were charted, through fisher interviews together with GIS analysis. While effort distribution varied over time, the prevailing pattern was a shift in focus from eastern to western areas and from shelf/slope to offshore banks and seamounts in response to policy measures (e.g. banning bottom longline inside 3 NM, public aids for modernization of the fleet) and reduced fishing yields. Areas 12–50 NM from shore represented the most vital fishing grounds in terms of fishing effort and production. Declining landings of the major demersal species, in recent years, indicate that present catch levels are not sustainable and further measures need to be taken in order to sustain fisheries resources. Knowledge of fleet behavior and the distribution of fishing effort, particularly in patchy environments, provide valuable insights into the impacts of past management decisions and help predict the outcome of new policies both in this region and elsewhere.     

Participatory assessment of management measures for octopus vulgaris pot and trap fishery from southern Portugal

Co-management has shown promising results for the sustainable use of fishery resources. The common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) pot and trap fishery in the Algarve (Portugal) holds the potential for implementation of a co-management system. To explore this potential, seven participatory workshops took place between 2014–2015, bringing together 60 participants from 10 fishing associations and 16 fisheries management and research institutions. The exercise resulted in promising outcomes with regards to the possible implementation of a co-management system for the fishery. In the present work an overview of the outcomes of the participatory workshops is given and compared with initiatives worldwide. Among the management actions identified, some have direct impacts on the octopus’ life cycle, while all target the same overall objective: to regulate fishing effort. In the informal setting of the workshops, a formal request was developed: the establishment of an annual closed season in the Algarve. This request was taken into consideration by the responsible management institution.     

Spatial patterns and environmental risks of ringnet fishing along the Kenyan coast

Ringnet fishing began in the early 20th century and is practised worldwide, mainly to target nearshore pelagic species. The method was introduced to Kenya’s coastal waters by migrant fishers from Tanzania. However, the impacts of this fishing gear remain poorly assessed. We assessed the spatial distribution of ringnet fishing effort and its possible effects on ecosystem components, such as coral reefs, marine megafauna and marine protected areas, on the south coast of Kenya. We tracked 89 ringnet fishing trips made from December 2015 to January 2016 and used spatial multicriteria analysis to determine hotspots of possible environmental risks. The results showed that habitat type and bathymetric profile influenced the spatial distribution of ringnet fishing effort. Mixed seagrass and coral habitats had the highest concentration of the effort. Most of the habitats in the study area were moderately exposed to the impacts of the ringnet fishery. The study identifies high-risk areas that require spatial measures to minimise possible environmental risks of the gear both to habitats and to endangered sea turtles.     

基于个体模型的东海鲐鱼渔场形成机制研究

鲐鱼Scomber japonicus资源丰富,在我国近海渔业中占有重要地位。其渔场的形成受海洋环境的制约,本文确定鲐鱼运动和物理环境之间的响应关系,建立起了基于个体的东海鲐鱼生长洄游模型。结果显示,鲐鱼集群分布与捕捞生产渔场基本吻合,鲐鱼聚集主要受台湾暖流、大陆沿岸水、黑潮影响,往往集群在一定温度范围内并在冷暖交汇区温盐梯度大偏暖水一侧。在台湾暖流和沿岸水交汇的锋面附近、台湾暖流暖水舌前端、黑潮与中国大陆沿岸水形成的潮境区域均有大量的鲐鱼聚集,并形成渔场。产卵位置的变动使偏西产卵位置的鲐鱼由于受台湾暖流影响较大,鲐鱼会呈长带状大量聚集在台湾暖流和沿岸水的锋面附近,并使在台湾暖流暖水舌前端的聚集数量增多,而偏东的产卵的鲐鱼受黑潮影响较大,聚集分布范围较大,会使黑潮形成的锋面附近聚集数量增多,而使台湾暖水舌的前端的聚集量减少。正常产卵位置在生存率方面是最佳产卵位置。研究表明鲐鱼所处空间位置不同,会影响其集群的位置,用数值模型验证了物理环境会对鲐鱼的洄游和渔场的形成产生影响。     

Accounting for indirect effects and non-commensurate values in ecosystem based fishery management (EBFM)

Ecosystem-based fishery management (EBFM) requires taking account of indirect effects (such as habitat destruction, incidental mortality, and competition between the fishery and marine mammals or birds) and dealing with non-commensurate values (such as yield from the fishery and production of offspring by the birds or mammals competing for the same resource). The perspective of EBFM requires that the rate of fishing mortality is less than the value that provides maximum sustainable yield (MSY), but the question is how far below this level should the fishery operate? For this problem in multiobjective programming, simple method of solution was developed and illustrated with the fishery for sandeels (Ammodytes spp.) in the Shetland Islands. The yield from the fishery at a given fishing mortality F is scaled by MSY (so that this quantity increases as fishing mortality increases from 0 to that giving MSY) and the breeding success of predators (black-legged kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla and Arctic terns Sterna paradisaea) at a given fishing mortality is scaled by that in the absence of fishing. The result is two non-dimensional quantities that can be combined into a single value function, which can then be explored or optimized. It is shown that a reduction of only about 20 percent in yield can nearly double the breeding performance of the more sensitive predator. Extensions of the method are discussed; these include the use of maximum economic yield (MEY) and state dependent life history, as implemented by stochastic dynamic programming.     

Fishery trends, resource-use and management system in the Ungwana Bay fishery Kenya

The present study assessed trends in resource-use, partitioning and management in the Ungwana Bay fishery, Kenya, using surplus production models. The fishery is one of East Africa’s important marine fisheries sustaining a bottom trawl commercial fishery and a resident-migrant artisanal fishery. Two models: Schaefer (1954) and Gulland and Fox (1975) were applied to catch-effort data over a 21-year period to model maximum sustainable yield (MSY) and optimal effort (f_MSY) to examine the status of resource exploitation and provide reference points for sustainable management. In the artisanal fishery, model MSYs range from 392-446 t to 1283-1473 t for shrimps and fish respectively compared to mean annual landings of 60 t for shrimp and 758 t for fish. These landings represent <50% of the model MSYs suggesting under exploitation in the sub-sector. Moreover, current fishing effort applied stands at <0.5 f_MSY. On the other hand, mean annual landings in bottom trawl commercial fishery, at about 330 t for shrimps and 583 t and fish represent about 90% of the model MSYs of 352-391 t and 499-602 t for shrimps and fish respectively. Therefore, the bottom trawl commercial fishery is likely under full exploitation. Similarly, the current effort is estimated at >0.7 f_MSY. Resource management in the bay is faced with numerous problems including resource-use conflicts, poor economic conditions in artisanal fishery, poor legislation, and inadequate research augmented by poor reporting systems for catch-effort statistics. Thus, the fishery lacks clearly defined exploitation regimes. Fisheries research and assessment of the marine resources are important for sustainability of the fishery. Moreover, income diversification in the poverty ridden artisanal fishery would go a long way in addressing resource-use conflicts and use of deleterious fishing methods in the sub-sector. Borrowing from the successes of the Japanese community-based fisheries resource management (CBFRM) which has easily resolved numerous fisheries management issues in coastal small-scale commercial fisheries, and the beach management unit (BMU) system which has been applied to the artisanal fisheries of south coast Kenya with enormous benefits, it is envisaged that a hybrid CBFRM-BMU system presents the best approach to sustainable resource-use in the Ungwana Bay fishery.