It is well known that populations of small pelagic species in ISSCAAP Group 35 (herrings, sardines, anchovies) are subject to large environmentally driven fluctuations in their abundance.

The Eastern Central Pacific (FAO Statistical Area 77) covers a total surface area of 48.90 million km² including an estimated total shelf area of 0.81 million km². Area 77 is bounded by the west coast of the Americas to the east and the 175°00’W parallel to the west. In the north, it is bounded by latitudes 40°00’N and 40°30’N off northern California, the United States of America. Area 77 extends south to latitude 7°12’N, except close to the coast off southern Panama, where it stops at 5°00’N. Farther offshore, it extends down to 25°00’S off South America (Figure B13.1). The continental shelves in Area 77 rarely extend more than 20 km from the coast. Some regions off San Francisco Bay in El Salvador, Nicaragua and the Gulf of Panama are the exception. In these regions, it can widen to as much as 60 km. The benthic habitats on the sea floor of the continental shelf tend to be heterogeneous. There are several areas suitable for trawling, although there is little trawling except for shrimps. Trawling for coastal demersal fishes is limited and deep-water trawling has been done only occasionally, mostly for exploratory and research purposes. Two of the main features along the coast are the Gulf of California and the Gulf of Panama. There are also a few small coastal islands off southern California and Panama, and some other larger island groups in oceanic waters such as the Hawaii Islands. These island chains also have very narrow continental shelves.
Area 77 is influenced by two major surface current systems: the California Current, which spreads from northern California to Baja California (Parrish et al., 1983); and, to the south, the great trans-Pacific equatorial surface current system. This system consists of the westward flowing North and South Equatorial Currents, with the eastwardflowing Equatorial Counter-current in between (Bakun et al., 1999). These current systems, together with the prevailing equatorial winds that blow parallel to the coast, cause major upwelling to occur along the coast of California, Baja California and the Gulf of Panama and smaller upwelling along the Central American coast and offshore in the Costa Rica Dome. The coastal upwelling is the most important source of coastal water nutrient enrichment in the northern, more temperate subtropical part of the region off the Californias. The more tropical regions off Central America can be enriched by both coastal upwelling, driven by southeast trade winds, as well as by the coastal runoff. Farther offshore, the Costa Rica Dome appears to be an important source of upwelling and nutrient enrichment (Wyrtky, 1964; Bakun et al., 1999).
The distribution and abundance of marine resources and fishing activities in Area 77 is strongly influenced by the different climates, the interaction of complex wind and water circulation patterns, and the nature of the enrichment processes. Fishing for small and large pelagic species is particularly important within and around the major upwelling regions. Inshore, fishing for shrimps and, to a lesser extent, for coastal demersal fishes sustains major local fisheries in the more tropical regions off Mexico, Central America and Panama. Fishing for squids is also important in the richest areas off California and Mexico. The El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon is responsible for large interannual fluctuations in the conditions affecting marine populations in this region. It can cause natural perturbations that may take years to dissipate (Bakun, 1993). Some of the mid- to long-term fluctuations in annual catches of key species in Area 77 seem to be associated with these large interannual changes in environmental conditions (Lluch-Belda, Lluch-Cota and Lluch-Cota, 2005; Lluch-Cota et al., 2010).

Figure B13.1 The Eastern Central Pacific (Area 77)

Fisheries production from the Eastern Central Pacific comes mostly from small and large pelagic species, followed by squid, shrimp, coastal demersal fishes and a variety of other fish species (Figure B13.2,Table D15). Pelagic fisheries are particularly important off southern California, Baja California, the Costa Rica Dome and the Gulf of Panama. Squid are important off southern California and Baja California. Shrimp catches are much lower in volume than those of pelagic fishes, but their high unit price makes shrimp the other major commercial fishery in Area 77. Shrimp are important off Mexico and particularly off Central American, where they can be the most important fishery for most of the coastal countries there.
The first major development of fisheries in Area 77 can be traced to the beginning of the twentieth century with the first recorded multidecadal bloom of the California pilchard (or sardine) (Sardinops caeruleus) fishery off the United States of America. This fishery built up more or less steadily from less than 2 000 tonnes in 1915 to more than 700 000 tonnes in 1936. It then declined dramatically in the late 1940s and in the 1950s and 1960s (Murphy, 1966; Gulland, 1970; Troadec, Clark and Gulland, 1980). The catch began to increase again in the late 1970s and in more recent years (Kawasaki, 1983; Csirke, 1995; Lluch-Belda et al., 1992; Csirke and Vasconcellos, 2005). Fishing for tunas also expanded steadily in the first half of the past century. By 1950, the total catch of tunas (mostly skipjack and yellowfin) was already 170 000 tonnes and remained more or less stable until 1960. Catch continued to increase further and has been about half a million tonnes in recent years.
After a record low of 320 000 tonnes in 1953, total catches for Area 77 had a period of sustained increase to peak at 1.8 million tonnes in 1981. Since then, catches by major species groups have fluctuated, with accumulated total catches varying between a minimum of 1.2 million tonnes in 1983, 1984 and 1993 and almost 1.9 million tonnes in 2002 and 2009. (Figure B13.2, Table D15).

Figure B13.2 Annual nominal catches by ISSCAAP species groups in the Eastern Central Pacific (Area 77)

Figure B13.3 Annual nominal catches of selected species in ISSCAAP Group 35, Eastern Central Pacific (Area 77)

The main mid-size pelagic species in Area 77 are the chub mackerel (Scomber japonicus) and the Pacific jack mackerel (Trachurus symmetricus) in ISSCAAP Group 37 (miscellaneous pelagic fishes). These two resources sustained important fisheries off Mexico and the United States of America in the first half of the twentieth century. Chub mackerel yielded peak catches of 67 000 tonnes in 1935. The Pacific jack mackerel fishery started later and peaked at 66 000 tonnes in 1952 (Leet et al., 2001). Since then, catches of both species have been highly variable. Catches of Pacific jack mackerel have shown a clear downward trend with only 2 000 tonnes caught in 2001 and no recorded catch in 2009. Catches of chub mackerel have had prolonged periods of high and low catches, with only 12 000 tonnes in 2009 after peaking at 78 000 tonnes in 1999 (Figure B13.4). The severe decline and current low catches of Pacific jack mackerel seems to be due mostly to lack of commercial interest in this species.

Figure B13.4 Annual nominal catches of selected species in ISSCAAP Group 37, Eastern Central Pacific (Area 77)

Tunas and other large pelagic species in ISSCAAP Group 36 are important components of the marine fisheries in Area 77 (Figure B13.5). These species are widely distributed and highly productive. Catches of tunas also started to increase in the early 1900s, long before FAO started to gather global fish catch statistics. The total tuna catch from the South Central Pacific reached 170 000 tonnes by 1950. Total catches remained stable until the mid-1960s when they increased rapidly, peaking at 482 000 tonnes in 1976 and levelling off at about 420 000 tonnes until the early 1980s. Total tuna catch declined and increased again in 1983 and 1984, probably as a result of the strong 1982–83 El Niño. Tuna catches fluctuated between minimums of 363 000 tonnes and 371 000 tonnes in 1993 and 1994 and record highs of 570 000 tonnes and 547 000 tonnes in 2002 and 2003, respectively. The most recent recorded catch was 487 000 tonnes in 2009 (Figure B13.5). The main species of tuna caught in Area 77 are the yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) and skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis) followed by bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus)and albacore (Thunnus alalunga). The main nations fishing for tunas in Area 77 are Mexico and the United States of America, followed by Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of), Japan, the Republic of Korea, Spain and other Asian countries. Other large pelagic species in this ISSCAAP group being exploited in Area 77 include swordfish (Xiphias gladius), striped, black and blue swordfish (Tetrapturus audax, Makaira indica and M. mazara) and the Pacific sierra (Scomberomorus sierra). All together these species yield from 30 000 to 50 000 tonnes/year.

Figure B13.5 Annual nominal catches of selected species in ISSCAAP Group 36, Eastern Central Pacific (Area 77)

Shrimps and prawns sustain particularly valuable and important fisheries throughout Area 77. Total shrimp (ISSCAAP Group 45) catches were already at 50 000 tonnes/year when FAO catch records started in 1950. Shrimp catches reached a maximum of 86 000 tonnes in 1961, 1962 and 1963 before declining and have since fluctuated between 45 000 and 80 000 tonnes. Recent catches have declined from 73 000 tonnes in 1995–97 to between 49 000 tonnes in 2002 and 58 000 tonnes in 2009. It is worth noting that these catches represent the accumulation of a large number of stocks and more than 15 species (mostly from the genus Penaeus but also Xiphopenaeus, Trachypenaeus, Heterocarpus, Pandalus, Pandalopsis and others). Catches of each species tend to vary widely, even if most official catch statistics fail to identify them to species. The decline in catches off Central America has been particularly critical. The low catches have caused Nicaragua and El Salvador to close their shrimp fisheries completely or almost completely in recent years. At the same time, important catches of pelagic red crab (Pleuroncodes planiceps) in ISSCAAP Group 44 (king crabs, squat lobsters) have also been obtained by some countries in Central America. Total catches of up to 14 000 tonnes were made in 2005 and 4 000 tonnes and 3 000 tonnes in 2008 and 2009, respectively.
There have been large and highly variable catches of squids in ISSCAAP Group 57 in the Eastern Central Pacific. Squids represent most of ISSCAAP Group 57 landings in Area 77. These catches increased gradually from 3 000 tonnes in 1950 to 30 000 tonnes in 1980 and then rapidly increased with large year-to-year fluctuations. They peaked at 202 000 tonnes in 2000 before declining with some fluctuations to between a maximum of 190 000 tonnes in 2002 and a minimum of 107 000 tonnes in 2007, with 152 000 tonnes in 2009. The most abundant squid species in Area 77 is the jumbo flying squid (Dosidicus gigas). There was a rapid increase in fishing for this species with wide fluctuations in total catch, peaking at 19 000 tonnes in 1980, 121 000 tonnes in 1996 and 1997 and 82 000 tonnes and 166 000 tonnes in 2000 and 2002. The total catch of jumbo flying squid was 58 000 tonnes in 2009 (Figure B13.6). Also important in Area 77 is the market squid or opalescent inshore squid (Loligo opalescens). This species has been the basis of an important commercial fishery in California since the 1850s. It had a significant expansion in southern California waters in the 1980s and 1990s, to the point where it was ranked as the largest California commercial fishery by volume in six years of the 1990s (Leet et al., 2001). In 1981, the NMFS reported a total United States catch of market squid of 24 000 tonnes, and, since then, catches of this species have been increasing while remaining highly variable. Peak catches of 118 000 tonnes were reported in 2000, with 92 000 tonnes in 2009. Unlike squid, catches of octopus have been almost negligible in the Central Eastern Pacific. No octopus catches were reported prior to 1985, with about 1 000 tonnes most years since then and 2 000 tonnes in 2009. There is not much of an ongoing deeper-water trawl fishery in Area 77, and the catch of flatfishes, hakes and other deep-water demersal fishes in ISSCAAP Groups 31, 32 and 34 is very low. Most of the reported catches of other more coastal demersal species (miscellaneous coastal fishes in ISSCAAP Group 33), such as croakers, groupers and snappers, are taken by small local fleets that target them or take them as bycatch in shrimp fisheries. Catches of this ISSCAAP group have been fairly stable, with 44 000 tonnes taken in 2009.

Figure B13.6 Annual nominal catches of selected species in ISSCAAP Groups 45 and 47, Eastern Central Pacific (Area 77)

Sport fishing is becoming an important activity throughout Area 77, even if catch volumes are low. Well established off the United States of America, sport fishing has expanded along the coasts of Mexico and lately also in Central America. Target species for this fishery include tunas, billfishes and other large and mid-size pelagic fishes, and also coastal demersal species.

Tunas and other highly migratory species are exploited by both local fleets as well as distant-water fleets. Most of these tunas and other highly migratory species are assessed and managed through multinational efforts. The majority of these efforts have been made through the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC). Fisheries for most other species groups are assessed and managed nationally. There have also been several regional and multinational initiatives to investigate, assess and manage some of the main shared, transboundary and high seas fisheries in the region.
The IATTC was established in 1950 and is responsible for the conservation and management of fisheries for tunas and other species taken by tuna-fishing vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The IATTC is based in La Jolla, the United States of America. It has a long-standing tradition and experience in the resource assessment, monitoring and management of fisheries for the main tuna and other associated highly migratory species in Area 77. All main coastal States in Area 77 and most of the other States fishing for tunas in Area 77 are members of this regional organization. Of particular relevance in the fisheries research context is the California Cooperative Ocean Fisheries Investigation Program (CalCOFI) established in 1949. The programme is a partnership of the US Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the Coastal Fisheries Resources Division of the Southwest Fisheries Science Centre of NOAA/NMFS, and the California Department of Fish and Game. It aims at establishing and analysing long time-series of land-based and sea-going observations to monitor the physics, chemistry, biology and meteorology of the California Current ecosystem. It does so in cooperation with several Mexican institutions (including Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Instituto Nacional de la Pesca, Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste, and Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México). These institutions are grouped under an interinstitutional project on Mexican Research of the California Current (Investigaciones Mexicanas de la Corriente de California). The project complements and extends the CalCOFI type of investigations to the southern part of the California current system.
There have also been a series of regional research activities covering fish stocks and fisheries further south, off Central America and Panama. Several of these activities were conducted with the technical or financial assistance of one or more international, regional or subregional organizations, such as the European Commission, FAO, Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation, Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, OLDEPESCA, Programa Regional de Apoyo al Desarrollo de la Pesca en el Istmo Centroamericano, and the United Nations Development Programme. Although more research needs to be done, particularly in terms of fisheries management, important progress has been made through these regional fisheries research and assessment programmes. Of particular relevance for the development of fisheries in Area 77 was the establishment of the Central American Organisation for the Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector (OSPESCA) in December 1995 by all the Central American States and Panama. This regional organization has the development and management of fisheries in Central America as one of its main objectives. It joined the General Secretariat of the Central American Integration System (Secretaría General del Sistema de la Integración Centroamericana [SICA]) in November 1999. It has been playing an instrumental role in promoting regional agreements for the adoption of harmonized approaches and coordinated fisheries research programmes and management measures by its members, particularly with respect to shared fish stocks. Its work is guided by a regional council of ministers composed of the ministers responsible for fisheries and aquaculture matters in the seven member countries of SICA-OSPESCA (SICA-OSPESCA, 2005). One of its main achievements has been the establishment of a common fisheries and aquaculture integration policy for the Central American isthmus, which has been implemented since 2005. Important progress is also being made towards the establishment of an integrated fishery and aquaculture central registry, the harmonization of fisheries management measures and other aspects of relevance for fisheries and aquaculture in the region. The knowledge and available information on the status of the main fish stocks in Area 77 varies widely. This status is summarized in Table D15. The state of knowledge is related to some extent to the importance of the fisheries involved and the research facilities available. Most fisheries are subject to some kind of fisheries management regulation, which may include one or more of the traditional management measures, such as limited access, catch limits or TAC, area or seasonal closures, or minimum size limits of fish. The implementation of these regulations has contributed to the healthy maintenance and, in some cases, to the rebuilding of several key stocks in Area 77. In others, poor management and loose enforcement have contributed to the overexploitation and depletion of some important local shrimp stocks. Some of the most recent fisheries management regulations adopted to recover depressed shrimp fisheries in Central America have apparently been hampered by adverse environmental conditions. These conditions have caused a decline in rainfall and coastal runoff, which are important for enrichment of coastal waters (FIINPESCA, 2010).
More detailed and comprehensive information on the state of the main tuna and tunalike highly migratory fish stocks and fisheries in Area 77 can be found in the IATTC assessment reports (IATTC, 2010, 2011) and in Chapter C1 of this review. Further information on the state of fish stocks and fisheries for these and other more coastal species can also be found in the California Department of Fish and Game, Living Marine Resources status reports (Leet et al., 2001; Ryan and Patyten, 2004; Barsky, 2008; Larinto, 2010), the Mexican stock assessment fisheries management reports (SEMARNAP-INP, 2000, 2003; SAGARPE-INP, 2006, 2010) and some working group reports presented in the context of regional meetings in the OSPESCA area. A brief status summary for the main stocks or species groups found in Area 77 based on these published reports and other information available is included in this section and in Table D15.

I would like to thank Renato Guevara, Instituto del Mar del Peru (IMARPE), Callao, Peru, Sergio Martínez, Programa Manejo de Recursos Pesqueros y Alternativas Económicas (Programa MAREA), San Salvador, El Salvador, and Traci Larinto, Department of Fish and Game, Los Alamitos, California, U.S.A. for their critical review and constructive comments that improved upon an earlier version of the manuscript.