MSFC to begin project on tuna resources

The Marine Sciences and Fisheries Centre (MSFC) will take up a new project from next month to understand the status of tuna resources in Omani waters. An amount of RO231,500 has been approved by the Agriculture and Fisheries Development Fund for the project, which will run till August 2014.

Dr Lubna al Kharusi, director, MSFC, said, "Strategies for the management of tuna fisheries will be formulated on the basis of data obtained from the project. Regional cooperation is needed for the management of longtail tuna (T. tonggol) which is a migratory species shared with neighbouring countries. The findings from the project will help in fine-tuning policies between countries."

Kharusi said the main objectives of the project are to identify and assess stocks, study biological characteristics of species of tuna and their population dynamics, and evaluate environmental parameters (water quality). The study also aims at establishing a socio-economic data of tuna fishermen. Coastal tuna like the longtail, kawakawa (Euthynnus affinis), striped bonito (Sarda orientalis) and frigate tuna (Auxis thazard) are substantial to fisheries in Oman; the scale of catch directly influences the socio-economic well-being of fishermen.

The project will focus on a detailed study on these species as there is inadequate information on longtail tuna and almost no study is available on the other three. The predator-prey relationship largely influences tuna resources and hence over-exploitation of prey species limits the abundance of tuna. "A study on the food and feeding habits of the tuna will address this. In view of national priorities and global needs, the project will help generate important information needed for the sustainable development of fisheries," said Kharusi.

The average annual catch of tuna fluctuated between 37,097 tonnes in 1995 and 14,833tonnes in 1999. The contribution of tuna to the total fish haul of the country ranged from 26.5 per cent in 1995 to 11.23 per cent in 2002.

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