The environmental niche of the squid-jigging fleet in the North Pacific Ocean based on automatic identification system data

The vast number of fishing fleets and limited regulatory capacity pose challenges to the effective monitoring and management of marine fishery resources. To understand the fishing characteristics of spatial distribution for squid-jigging fleets in the North Pacific Ocean (NPO), satellite-based automatic identification system (AIS) data during 2016 ti 2020 and marine environmental data were applied to explore the drivers of fishing activities based on the boosted regression tree (BRT) and generalized additive model (GAM). The results showed that the BRT model has better performance than the GAM. The spatial distribution of squid-jigging fleets has a significant seasonality. Specifically, the spatial distribution of Fishing effort (FE) gradually shifted to the northwest from May to September, while gradually shifted to the southwest from October to November. The favourable area for focusing FE was the 150 degrees E ti 165 degrees E, 40 degrees N ti 44 degrees N. The latitudinal distribution of FE was not wide and the longitudinal distribution was long. Variations in the marine environment constantly influenced the FE of the squid-jigging fleets. Overall, the influence of sea surface temperature (T0) on FE was most significant. The favourable range of T0 for FE was 12 ti 20 degrees C. Water temperature at the 300 m depth (T300) was also an important factor through the fishing season. The favourable range of T300 for FE was 3 ti 6 degrees C. There were obvious differences in the influence of other environmental factors on FE in different months. Different environmental variables drive the spatial distribution of fishing effort in different months. This study may help to scientifically and effectively guide fishery management and sustainable development by evaluating the spatial variations in fishing activity.

Automated summary

This study investigates the spatial distribution of squid-jigging fleets in the North Pacific Ocean and identifies the drivers of fishing activities. The results show that fishing effort has significant seasonality and is influenced by marine environmental factors, with sea surface temperature being the most significant factor. The findings of this study can provide guidance for fishery management and sustainable development.