Objectives
Catch dataCatches (Table 3.3.3.3.8) have remained significantly less than the quota (Table 3.3.3.3.6) since 1993.
Catch optionsData 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. |