Stock Status and Conservation Information
(From ISC20 Plenary Report)

Blue shark

Target and limit reference points have not yet been established for pelagic sharks in the Pacific Ocean by either the WCPFC or the IATTC. Stock status is reported in relation to MSY-based reference points. The following information on the status of NP BSH is provided.

Click here to see the ISC19 stock status and conservation information.

Stock Status

1. Female spawning biomass in 2015 (SSB₂₀₁₅) was 69% higher than at MSY and estimated to be 295,774 t;
2. The recent annual fishing mortality (F_2012-2014) was estimated to be well below FMSY at approximately 38% of F_MSY;
3. The reference run produced terminal conditions that were predominately in the lower right quadrant of the Kobe plot (not overfished and overfishing not occurring).

Conservation Information

Future projections under different fishing mortality (F) harvest policies (status quo, +20%, -20%, F_MSY) show that median BSH spawning biomass in the NPO will likely remain above SSB_MSY in the foreseeable future. Other potential reference points were not considered in these evaluations.

The Plenary noted that the average annual catch of BSH by ISC members in 2012-2014 was 29,992 t and that the average annual catch in the 2015-2019 period was 25,742 t. As ISC member countries account for at least 90% of the overall catch, these figures are believed to provide a reliable estimator of catch in North Pacific BSH.