Catch data

Catches (Table 3.3.3.3.8) have remained significantly less than the quota (Table 3.3.3.3.6) since 1993.

Catch options

Data for the White Sea and Barents Sea harp seal stock was poor, and the catch model was considered unreliable to estimate the impact of future catches. Therefore, catch options should be based on the use of the Potential Biological Removals (PBR) approach (ICES, 2006a). It was regarded appropriate to set the recovery factor (F_r) to 0.5 given the unexplained sudden drop of the observed pup production and data limitations (Wade and Angliss, 1997). Using the CV = 0.20 from the pup production estimate to obtain an estimate of N_min = 729367, a PBR level of removal would be 21881 animals in the White Sea and Barents Sea. This assumes that the age structure of the removals is proportional to the age composition of the population (i.e. 14% pups). A catch consisting of a higher proportion of pups would be more conservative, but a multiplier to convert 1+ year-old animals to pups is inappropriate.

The fit of the available population model for the White Sea/Barents Sea harp seal population was too poor to allow for a reliable assessment of the impact of the three catch options under consideration by Norway (i.e., current harvest level, sustainable level, twice sustainable level).


Table 3.3.3.3.8. Catches of harp seals in the White and Barents Seas (“East Ice”), 1946–2008a,b.

Year	Norwegian catches			Russian catches			Total catches
	Pups	1 year and older	Total	Pups	1 year and older	Total	Pups	1 year and older	Total
1946–50			25057	90031	55285	145316			170373
1951–55			19590	59190	65463	124653			144243
1956–60	2278	14093	16371	58824	34605	93429	61102	48698	109800
1961–65	2456	8311	10767	46293	22875	69168	48749	31186	79935
1966–70			12783	21186	410	21596			34379
1971	7028	1596	8624	26666	1002	27668	33694	2598	36292
1972	4229	8209	12438	30635	500	31135	34864	8709	43573
1973	5657	6661	12318	29950	813	30763	35607	7474	43081
1974	2323	5054	7377	29006	500	29506	31329	5554	36883
1975	2255	8692	10947	29000	500	29500	31255	9192	40447
1976	6742	6375	13117	29050	498	29548	35792	6873	42665
1977	3429	2783	6212c	34007	1488	35495	37436	4271	41707
1978	1693	3109	4802	30548	994	31542	32341	4103	36344
1979	1326	12205	13531	34000	1000	35000	35326	13205	48531
1980	13894	1308	15202	34500	2000	36500	48394	3308	51702
1981	2304	15161	17465d	39700	3866	43566	42004	19027	61031
1982	6090	11366	17456	48504	10000	58504	54594	21366	75960
1983	431	17658	18089	54000	10000	64000	54431	27658	82089
1984	2091	6785	8876	58153	6942	65095	60244	13727	73971
1985	348	18659	19007	52000	9043	61043	52348	27702	80050
1986	12859	6158	19017	53000	8132	61132	65859	14290	80149
1987	12	18988	19000	42400	3397	45797	42412	22385	64797
1988	18	16580	16598	51990	2501e	54401	51918	19081	70999
1989	0	9413	9413	30989	2475	33464	30989	11888	42877
1990	0	9522	9522	30500	1957	32457	30500	11479	41979
1991	0	9500	9500	30500	1980	32480	30500	11480	41980
1992	0	5571	5571	28351	2739	31090	28351	8310	36661
1993	0	8758f	8758	31000	500	31500	31000	9258	40258
1994	0	9500	9500	30500	2000	32500	30500	11500	42000
1995	260	6582	6842	29144	500	29644	29404	7082	36486
1996	2910	6611	9521	31000	528	31528	33910	7139	41049
1997	15	5004	5019	31319	61	31380	31334	5065	36399
1998	18	814	832	13350	20	13370	13368	834	14202
1999	173	977	1150	34850	0	34850	35023	977	36000
2000	2253	4104	6357	38302	111	38413	40555	4215	44770
2001	330	4870	5200	39111	5	39116	39441	4875	44316
2002	411	1937	2348	34187	0	34187	34598	1937	36535
2003	2343	2955	5298	37936	0	37936	40279	2955	43234
2004	0	33	33	0	0	0	0	33	33
2005	1162	7035	8197	14258	19	14277	15488	9405	22474
2006	147	9939	10086	7005	102	7107	7152	10041	17193
2007	242	5911	6153	5276	200	5476	5518	6111	11629
2008 g	0	0	0	13331	0	13331	13331	0	13331
a For the period 1946–1970 only 5-year averages are given. b Incidental catches of harp seals in fishing gear on Norwegian and Murman coasts are not included (see Table 6). c Approx. 1300 harp seals (unspecified age) caught by one ship lost are not included. d An additional 250–300 animals were shot but lost as they drifted into Soviet territorial waters. e Russian catches of 1+ animals after 1987 selected by scientific sampling protocols. f Included 717 seals caught to the south of Spitsbergen, east of 14°E, by one ship which mainly operated in the Greenland Sea.

Table 3.3.3.3.9. Summary of sealing regulations for the White and Barents Seas (“East Ice”), 1979–2008.1

Year	Opening Dates		Closing Date	Quota-Allocation
	Soviet/Rus.	Norway		Total	Soviet/Rus.	Norway
1979–80	1 March	23 March	30 April3	50 0004	34 000	16 000
1981	-	-	-	60 000	42 500	17 500
1982	-	-	-	75 000	57 500	17 500
1983	-	-	-	82 000	64 000	18 000
1984	-	-	-	80 000	62 000	18 000
1985–86	-	-	-	80 000	61 000	19 000
1987	-	-	20 April3	80 000	61 000	19 000
1988	-	-	-	70 000	53 400	16 600
1989–94	-	-	-	40 000	30 500	9 500
1995	-	-	-	40 000	31 250	8 7505
1996	-	-	-	40 000	30 500	9 500
1997–98	-	-	-	40 000	35 000	5 000
1999	-	-	-	21 4006	16 400	5 000
2000	27 February	-	-	27 7006	22 700	5 000
2001–02	-	-	-	53 0006	48 000	5 000
2003	-	-	-	53 0006	43 000	10 000
2004–05				45 1006	35 100	10 000
2006	-	-	-	78 2006	68 200	10 000
2007	-	-	-	78 2006	63 200	15 000
2008	-	-	-	55 1006	45 100	10 000
1 Quotas and other regulations prior to 1979 are reviewed by Benjaminsen (1979). 2 Hooded, bearded, and ringed seals protected from catches by ships. 3 The closing date may be postponed until 10 May if necessitated by weather or ice conditions. 4 Breeding females protected (all years). 5 Included 750 weaned pups under permit for scientific purposes. 6 Quotas given in 1+ animals, parts of or the whole quota could be taken as pups, where 2.5 pups equalled one 1+ animal.