Commercial catch for shark and ray species in New Zealand
By species, year ended September 2014, number of commercially caught animals
| Species | Number of commercially caught animals |
|---|---|
| Spiny dogfish | 5,945 |
| School shark | 3,144 |
| Dark ghost shark | 1,760 |
| Rough skate | 2,147 |
| Rig | 1,394 |
| Elephantfish | 1,401 |
| Blue shark | 302 |
| Pale ghost shark | 719 |
| Smooth skate | 708 |
| Unspecified sharks | 275 |
| Seal shark | 283 |
| Carpet shark | 396 |
| Shovelnose dogfish | 367 |
| Unspecified dogfish | 63 |
| Longnose spookfish | 126 |
| Mako shark | 56 |
| Northern spiny dogfish | 110 |
| Eagle ray | 130 |
| Porbeagle shark | 100 |
| Baxter's dogfish | 303 |
| Thresher shark | 44 |
| Electric ray | 48 |
| Leafscale gulper shark | 96 |
| Lucifer's dogfish | 21 |
| Bronze whaler shark | 13 |
| Long-tailed stingray | 20 |
| Short-tailed stingray | 29 |
| Broadnose sevengill shark | 21 |
| Slender smoothhound | 10 |
| Unspecified stingray | 8 |
| Deepwater spiny skate | 1 |
| Giant chimaera | 3 |
| Prickly dogfish | 4 |
| Longnose velvet dogfish | 38 |
| Longnose deepsea skate | 1 |
| Unspecified rays | 1 |
| Unspecified skates | 7 |
| Owston's dogfish | 3 |
| Unspecified chimaeras | 2 |
| Numbfish | 1 |
| Softnose skate | 1 |
| Plunket's shark | 7 |
| Unspecified catshark | None |
| Sixgill shark | 3 |
| Largespine velvet dogfish | None |
Definitions
The commercial fishing year goes from 1 October to 30 September.
Limitations of the data
The accuracy of the data source is of medium quality.
Under-reporting of protected species bycatch by commercial fishers introduces a major bias in the estimates. This can be compensated to a degree in fisheries that have sufficient observer coverage (enough observers for the number of vessels). Observer coverage varies across commercial fisheries (MPI, 2014).
Inclusions
Total reported catch includes landings (both intentional and as bycatch), discards, and live release of chondrichthyan species (mainly sharks and rays) over the 2005–13 fishing years. Because discarded fish are unlikely to be alive and the survival rate of animals released alive is not known, this information has been aggregated with landings. This data covers NZ's Exclusive Economic Zone.
Data provided by
Dataset name
Environmental Reporting: Commercial catch for shark and ray species 2005–2014
Webpage:
https://data.mfe.govt.nz/table/53508-commercial-catch-for-sharks-and-rays/
How to find the data
At URL provided, select 'Export' from the top right of the screen, and then 'Create Export'. You will have to register to download this dataset.
Import & extraction details
File as imported: Environmental Reporting: Commercial catch for shark and ray species 2005–2014
From the dataset Environmental Reporting: Commercial catch for shark and ray species 2005–2014, this data was extracted:
- Rows: 2-454
- Column: 5
- Provided: 450 data points
This data forms the table Wildlife - Commercial catch for shark and ray species 2005–2014.
Dataset originally released on:
October 25, 2016
Purpose of collection
New Zealand waters have at least 113 species of chondrichthyans (sharks, rays, and other cartilaginous fish species). They are particularly vulnerable to overfishing because they are long-lived, mature slowly, and have a low reproductive rate. Chondrichthyans are important for healthy ocean ecosystems, and reporting their commercial catch and bycatch helps us understand the sustainability of our fisheries.