Pacific Fisheries Bycatch Program

Prior Projects

Groundfish Bottom Trawl Fishery
Testing the efficacy of a flexigrid sorting system designed to reduce bycatch of juvenile sablefish in the West Coast groundfish bottom trawl fishery. Collaborators: PSMFC, OSU CIMERS & MRM, NMFS NWFSC, SINTEF Ocean, Oregon Trawl Commission, and F/V Last Straw.

Assessing the efficacy of semi-pelagic trawl gear to harvest demersal fishes in the U.S. West Coast groundfish bottom trawl fishery. Collaborators: PSMFC, OSU CIMERS & MRM, NMFS NWFSC, SINTEF Ocean, Oregon Trawl Commission, and F/V Last Straw.

Investigating how artificial light on a high-rise hooded bottom trawl affects Pacific halibut bycatch and catches of target groundfishes. Collaborators: PSMFC, VIMS, Trident Seafoods, OSU CIMERS, NMFS NWFSC, SINTEF Ocean, and F/V Last Straw.

Evaluating off-bottom sweeps of a West Coast groundfish bottom trawl and its effect on catch efficiency and seafloor interactions. Collaborators: PSMFC, OSU CIMERS, NMFS NWFSC, SINTEF Ocean, UiT, and F/V Last Straw.

Evaluating how illuminating the headrope of a selective flatfish trawl can affect catches of groundfishes, including Pacific Halibut. Collaborators: PSMFC, NMFS NWFSC, SINTEF Ocean, and F/V Miss Sue.

Examining the size-selection characteristics of T90 mesh and diamond mesh codends and evaluating their efficacy to improve catch utilization. Collaborators: PSMFC, NMFS NWFSC, ODFW, F/V Last Straw, and NET systems.

Evaluation of selective flatfish sorting grid bycatch reduction devices designed to reduce catches of rockfishes, sablefish, and Pacific halibut in the nearshore flatfish fishery. Collaborators: PSMFC, NMFS NWFSC, SINTEF Ocean, F/V Miss Sue, and Foulweather Trawl.

Testing of flexible sorting grid excluders designed to reduce Pacific halibut bycatch. Collaborators: PSMFC, NMFS NWFSC, F/V Miss Leona, F/V Miss Sue, Dantrawl, and Foulweather Trawl.

Ocean Shrimp Trawl Fishery
Measuring the overall efficacy of LEDs placed along ocean shrimp trawl fishing lines and determining the degree that eulachon and other fishes escape (or do not escape) trawl entrainment in response to illumination. Collaborators: PSMFC, ODFW, OSU CIMERS, NMFS NWFSC, SINTEF Ocean, UiT, and F/V Ms. Julie.

Determining how catches of eulachon, juvenile groundfishes, other fishes, and ocean shrimp are affected by altering the level of artificial illumination (e.g., number of LEDs) along an ocean shrimp trawl fishing line. Collaborators: PSMFC, ODFW, SINTEF Ocean, NMFS NWFSC, and F/V Miss Yvonne.

Investigating how artificial light in the vicinity of the rigid-grate bycatch reduction device and along the fishing line of an ocean shrimp trawl can alter eulachon, groundfishes, and ocean shrimp catches. Collaborators: PSMFC, ODFW, and F/V Miss Yvonne.

Testing footrope modifications designed to reduce the bycatch of demersal groundfishes, and eulachon, and minimize disturbance rates of benthic macroinvertebrates. Collaborators: PSMFC, ODFW, NMFS NWFSC, and F/V Kylie Lynn.

Pacific Hake Midwater Trawl Fishery
Examining how artificial illumination (e.g., LEDs) can influence the behavior and escapement of Chinook salmon out a bycatch reduction device. Collaborators: PSMFC, NMFS NWFSC, and F/V Miss Sue.

Evaluation of flexible sorting grid excluders designed to reduce salmon and rockfish bycatch. Collaborators: PSMFC, NMFS NWFSC, F/V Perseverance, F/V Raven and Foulweather Trawl.

Testing of an open escape window bycatch reduction device designed to reduce Chinook salmon and rockfish bycatch. Collaborators: PSMFC, NMFS NWFSC, F/V Miss Sue, F/V Predator, and Foulweather Trawl.

Pacific Halibut Longline Fishery
This study evaluated how hook appendages and hook size affects the catch efficiency of Pacific halibut and yelloweye rockfish, document the hooking location probabilities for Pacific halibut and yelloweye rockfish for the hooks tested, and test if there is a difference in the time of capture between Pacific halibut and yelloweye rockfish. Collaborators: PSMFC, OSU CIMERS & MRM, IPHC, NMFS NWFSC, SINTEF Ocean, and R/V Pacific Surveyor.