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Tuna and tuna like fishes are one of the components of pelagic resources. In Pakistan, mainly neritic and oceanic species are caught in the tuna fishery. Tuna fishing fleet comprises of about 709 gillnet boats. The total production of tunas and tuna-like fishes, including neritic and oceanic tunas, billfishes and seerfishes during the year 2019 was 48,320 m. tonnes.
There are no reported instances of sea bird interaction in any of the tuna fishing boat. sea turtles, marine mammals and whale sharks are protected in Pakistan under various national and provincial fisheries and wildlife legislations. Data on tuna production is collected by provincial fisheries departments of maritime provinces of Sindh and Balochistan and compiled by Marine Fisheries Department, Government of Pakistan, Ministry Maritime Affairs.
Tuna and allied resources called as large pelagic resources. The large pelagic resources contributed 48,320 ton. Major share of the landing was by tunas (51.53%) followed by seerfishes (9.17%), dolphinfish (9.17%) and billfish (25.77%). Among the tunas, yellowfin was dominating with 24.61%, followed by tuna-nei (28.17%), frigate (27.90%), longtail (11.87 %), kawakawa (4.52%) and skipjack (2.88%). There were some landings of bullet tuna and striped bonito as well. It may be noted that there is a major decrease in the landings of tuna and tuna like species in the gillnet fisheries of Pakistan. As compared to 2018 the landings of these species have decreased by a factor of 31.53 % in 2019. The landings of tuna and tuna like species was 70,569 m.tons during 2018 which has dropped to a level of 48,320 m. tons in 2019. This major decrease in the landings of tuna and tuna like species is attributed to many factors which include early closure of fishing season in early April 2019 (as compared to June) because of extremely low catches in March and April 2019 as well as extreme low prices of tuna in the market. Usually a voluntary two-month close season is observed between June and July, however, the new fishing season was started only in late August 2019. The close season, therefore, remained effective for about four and half months (mid April to end August). In addition, there was extremely high sea surface temperature during August to October (possibly oceanic heat wave) in major part of the Arabian sea resulted in poor catches of tuna, therefore, only a few tuna boats remained operated during this period. Unprecedented jellyfish bloom of Crambionella orsini during September and December (and even onward in 2020) forced fishermen to stop fishing operations during this period because of excessive entanglement and choking of fishing net.
Significant progress has been made during the years from 2016-2018, for the conservation of bycatch species which include promulgation of fisheries legislations by both provinces of Sindh and Balochistan. These legislations prohibited the catching of turtle, cetacean (whales & dolphins), whale shark, silky shark, oceanic whitetip shark, thresher shark, hammerhead sharks, all species of sawfishes of Family Pristidae, all species of guitarfishes and wedgefishes of family Rhinidae, Rhinobatidae or Rhynchobatodae. To monitor the activities of local tuna boat, it is made mandatory to have VMS on all fishing vessel larger than 15 meters (in length overall). The contravention of these regulation is punishable with fine and imprisonment.
