Characteristics, operational pattern and fishery production of the bottom-liner fleet off Southeastern Brazil

Abstract

This paper deals with the characteristics, operational pattern and fishery production of the bottom-liner fleet off Brazilian Southeast coast during 1991 to 1995, with landings at the ports of Rio de Janeiro/Niterói (Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil). The used data are from IBAMA/Superintendência Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (Brazilian Institute for Environment and Natural Renewable Resources/Superintendence of Rio de Janeiro State), found on the files and logbooks of the mentioned fleet. The bottom-liners were sorted into two size categories: small boats - with less than 20 tons of gross tonnage and maximum total length around 15 meters; large boats - with more than 20 tons of gross tonnage and total length bigger than 15 meters. The average age of the boats is statistically different between size categories. There is a small renovation of this fleet, which reflects the low capacity of new investiments of the ship-owners and/or insufficient fishing productivity. Small and large boats operate until more than 200 sea days/year and the averages of the on board fishermen tend to grow up with the increase in the operation time for the small ones, keeping some stability for the larges. The results that were found confirm that higher productivity of the large boats is concerned to the higher number of fishermen on board. Mean yields for of boats of size categories small and large had values of 19.4 ton. year-1 and 39.2 ton.year-1. About 60% of sea days corresponded to fishery days for both types of boats.