BERING SEA FISHERIES RESEARCH FOUNDATION

BRISTOL BAY RED KING CRAB RESEARCH: DURING 2024, BSFRF ACTIVITIES INCLUDED SEVERAL PROJECTS FOR BRISTOL BAY RED KING CRAB (BBRKC). A WINTER/SPRING DISTRIBUTION POT AND TRAWL SURVEY (CPS2) WAS CONDUCTED IN MARCH AND APRIL 2024 IN COLLABORATION WITH NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE (NMFS) AND THE ALASKA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME (ADF&G). THE FOUNDATION CHARTERED THREE FISHING VESSELS (THE FV VESTERAALEN, THE FV ARCTIC LADY, AND THE FV SEABROOKE) TO COMPLETE A WINTER/SPRING BBRKC SURVEY IN BRISTOL BAY, ALASKA. THIS WAS THE SECOND IN A SEQUENCE OF COLLABORATIVE POT SAMPLING (CPS) PROJECTS FOCUSING ON SEASONAL DISTRIBUTION OF BBRKC AND ADDED A SECOND GEAR TYPE TO SAMPLE WITH THE BSFRF NEPHROPS SURVEY TRAWL. THE PROJECT PLACED SUBCONTRACTORS FROM BSFRF ALONG WITH PERSONNEL FROM NMFS AND ADF&G ONBOARD THE CHARTERS AS SCIENTIFIC PARTIES TO COMPLETE THE RESEARCH. THIS PROJECT ADDRESSED A PRIMARY RESEARCH PRIORITY OF COLLECTING MORE INFORMATION ON THE WINTER/SPRING DISTRIBUTION OF BBRKC TO REVIEW THE EFFICACY OF CURRENT SPATIAL CONSERVATION MEASURES. THE COOPERATIVE PROCUREMENT OF SATELLITE TAGS FOR BBRKC WAS A HIGH-PRIORITY RESEARCH ITEM AND PART OF ONGOING RESEARCH TO ADDRESS BBRKC MOVEMENT AND SEASONAL DISTRIBUTION IN BRISTOL BAY. THE FOUNDATION PURCHASED APPROXIMATELY $242,000 OF SMART-TECHNOLOGY TAGS TO BE SHARED WITH NMFS SCIENTISTS FOR PLACEMENT ON BBRKC DURING THE BERING SEA NOAA SUMMER SURVEY. TAGS WERE PURCHASED FROM WILDLIFE COMPUTERS BY BSFRF AND SHIPPED TO NMFS KODIAK SCIENTISTS FOR DEPLOYMENT DURING THE SURVEY.

BERING SEA SNOW CRAB AND OPILIO RESEARCH: A HIGH-PRIORITY PILOT FIELD PROJECT WAS COMPLETED ON BERING SEA OPILIO (SNOW CRAB) IN THE LATE SUMMER OF 2024 BY BSFRF IN COLLABORATION WITH NMFS AND ADF&G. TWO INDUSTRY VESSELS (THE FV VESTERAALEN AND THE FV CONFIDENCE) WERE CHARTERED TO COMPLETE SAMPLING AT SPECIFIED STATIONS ACROSS THE BERING SEA SHELF OPILIO GROUNDS. PORTIONS OF THIS SAMPLING WERE CONDUCTED IN COORDINATION WITH THE NMFS SURVEY OPERATING IN THE SAME TIME AND AREA. THE TWO CHARTERS USED POT AND TRAWL SAMPLING GEAR FOR COMPARATIVE CATCHES TO INFORM FURTHER FULL-SCALE OPILIO RESEARCH OF SIMILAR NATURE. IN EARLY MAY 2024, THE BSFRF CO-HOSTED A SNOW CRAB WORKSHOP IN ST. JOHNS, NEWFOUNDLAND, IN COLLABORATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES AND OCEANS (DFO), CANADA. SEVERAL BERING SEA CRAB RESOURCE STAKEHOLDERS (BSFRF, ADF&G, AND NMFS) TRAVELED TO ST. JOHNS FOR A THREE-DAY WORKSHOP HOSTED IN-PERSON BY CANADIAN SNOW CRAB RESEARCHERS. THE WORKSHOP WAS INTENDED TO HEAR FROM ALASKA, CANADA, AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL EXPERTS FOR ADVICE ON SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF GLOBAL SNOW CRAB FISHERIES DURING PERIODS OF ECOSYSTEM CHANGE AND VARIABLE STOCK DYNAMICS. FINDINGS FROM THE WORKSHOP ARE IN PRESS WITH A PEER-REVIEWED PUBLICATION.