FISHING IN THE GULF.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19892, 10 March 1928, Page 12

FISHING IN THE GULF.

DANISH SEINE METHOD.

EFFECT ON THE SUPPLIES.

DEPARTMENTAL INVESTIGATION.

Whether certain fishing methods employed in the Hauraki Gulf, particularly Danish seining, are detrimental in unduly diminishing the supply is a question at present engaging the attention of Mr. A. E. Hefford, chief inspector of fisheries, under whose directions, investigations, not yet completed, have been carried out for several weeks.

"The chief drawback to the Danish seine as a fishing method is not, as is commonly supposed, that it destroys the immature fish or the fish ova, but that, because the fishing grounds are somewhat limited, the method is too efficient —the fish are caught too easily," said Mr. Hefford yesterday. "The Danish seine was introduced here in 1923. In the first and second years of its operation the catches were enormous, hut in the third year the catches had somewhat diminished. I am not prepared to ascribe that diminution wholly to the introduction of the Danish seine. The productivity of fisheries is apt to vary greatly owing to purely natural causes. But the fact that this method was being employed by a fair number of boats had to be considered, and critics of the system were not slow in placing the blame for the diminution. "To settle the question we needed to know more about the actual biological conditions under which the fish live, and we are at present doing something on a small scale so that we can understand more about the question," added Mr. Hefford. He pointed out that the time and money at the disposal of the departmental officers made an exhaustive study, such as he would like, impassible. The method employed was to fish with a Danish seine and analyse the catches biologically. .Particular attention was being paid to the schnapper. The investigations would be concluded next week. It was perhaps too early to talk about the results as all the data had not yet been collated, but he was inclined to the opinion that the Danish seine mothod was too efficient for use in waters of limited extent.

Some restrictions on Danish seining had already been imposed, Ml*. Hefford said. Fishing was restricted on certain grounds where the fish congregated in the spawning season. But a factor which had been more beneficial was the prescription that nets should have a mesh which would enable undersized fish to escape, and the number of small schnapper, for instance, now caught by that method was negligible. Criticism had been levelled at him for recently expressing a preference for the Danish seine over the ordinary trawl, Mr. Hefford said. There was a tendency with the trawl to injure the fish, but he recognised its merit for securing supplies in lean seasons and in rough weather, when Danish seining was not practicable. The whole -question of supplying the market was a difficult one. Often there was a glut and many of the fish caught were wasted, freezing was not a satisfactory solution, and, in any case, the freezing accommodation required to meet gluts would be wasted in lean periods, and would thus be economically unsound. In view of the expense of providing the accommodation, too, it was only reasonable to expect an increase in the price of fish. "There are too many factors to consider to enable us yet to make an authoritative pronouncement on the question of whether Danish seining is harmful in depleting the supplies for future requirements," concluded Mr, Hefford. When all the data had been collated, however, he thought some reliable indication could be given.