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Vol. 53 - Alaska Resources Library and Information Services

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around the traditional king crab fishing areas.<br />

By 1969 the directed<br />

harvest of this species had increased to the level where fishing quotas<br />

became necessary.<br />

As a result of restrictions imposed by the United<br />

States, foreign vessels began harvest of C. opilio, a smaller animal<br />

which occurs in greater numbers <strong>and</strong> over a wider geographic area than<br />

its congener.<br />

As total l<strong>and</strong>ings of Tanner crab from the eastern Bering Sea (EBS)<br />

increased (from 12 to 24 million crabs from 1967 to 1970), so did<br />

American interest in the fishery.<br />

Through a series of unilateral (U.S.)<br />

harvest quotas <strong>and</strong> bilateral agreements, foreign participation in the<br />

EBS Tanner crab fishery was gradually reduced <strong>and</strong> forced north <strong>and</strong> west.<br />

Today, all Tanner crab fishing in the southeastern Bering Sea (except<br />

for by-catch) is conducted aboard American vessels (154 vessels in 1979-<br />

8U) <strong>and</strong> is directed at both C. bairdi <strong>and</strong> C. opilio. L<strong>and</strong>ings from this<br />

region steadily increased from 1975 to 1980 <strong>and</strong> totaled more than 74 million<br />

pounds (40.4 million crabs) during the 1979-80 fishing season (November-September,<br />

Fig. 4.1).<br />

The contribution of C. opilio to the Tanner<br />

crab fishery has increased dramatically in recent years (Table 4.1).<br />

In<br />

1981 <strong>and</strong> 1982, total Tanner crab l<strong>and</strong>ings, mostly from the SEBS, exceeded<br />

those of king crab by 65% <strong>and</strong> 140%, respectively.<br />

However, total<br />

l<strong>and</strong>ings of Tanner crabs also have declined over the past two fishing<br />

seasons (unpublished data, National Marine Fisheries <strong>Services</strong>, R. Otto,<br />

pers. communication).<br />

Eastern Bering Sea stocks of Tanner crabs have been assessed by<br />

annual trawl surveys conducted by the National Marine Fisheries Service<br />

596

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