FORM 8
CONTENT AND FORMAT OF THE
WORKING GROUP REPORT
The Working Group Report must include, in order, the following:
Fishery Summary
The fishery summary should contain information on all sources of removals from the stocks where available, including
commercial, recreational, and Maori customary catch, illegal catch, and all other sources of mortality.
Commercial Fisheries
This should cover the general situation in the fishery, including current TACCs and any management measures that
may have impacted on the fishery. Catch and Effort data available since the last review should be described and
summarised.
A brief description of the main fishing methods by QMA should be included. The sources of data in all Tables of
reported landings should be given. A Table of reported landings and TACCs by fishstock from 1983/84 to the most
recent fishing year should be included. The TACC for 1986/87 should be the original Gazetted TAC, while the TACCs for
the other years should be the Actual TACCs as of 30 September of the given fishing year as published in previous
Plenary Reports.
Recreational Fisheries
This section should contain a brief description of the important recreational fisheries, including an estimate of
recreational catch where available.
Maori Customary Fisheries
This section should contain a brief description of the important Maori customary fisheries, including an estimate of
Maori customary take where available.
Illegal Catch
This section should contain a brief description of any known illegal fishing activity, including an estimate of illegal
catch where available.
Other Sources of Mortality
This section should contain a brief description of other known sources of mortality on the stock, including an estimate
of the level of this mortality where available.
Biology
This section should include information on aspects of the biology of the species which are relevant to its stock
assessment. This includes information on age, growth, natural mortality, movements, reproduction, recruitment,
etc. This section should be brief and concise. Estimates of M. von Bertalanffy growth parameters, age at maturity
and recruitment, etc. should be presented in a Table by Fishstock where possible. The source(s) of these estimates
needs to be specified in the Table.
Stocks and Areas
This section should contain a brief description of the available information on stock structure and the relationships
between stocks.
Stock Assessment
A description of the method used to carry out the stock assessment should be provided. The description should be
brief, unless a more detailed explanation is appropriate.
Estimates of Fishery Parameters and Abundance
Estimates of fishery parameters, e.g. fish mortality (F), total mortality (Z), parameters of any assumed stockrecruitment relationship, etc. and abundance estimates from trawl, egg, and acoustic surveys, and the results of CPUE
analyses should be included where appropriate. These estimates should be presented in a Table by Fishstock where
possible, and the source(s) of the estimates specified.
Biomass Estimates
The following biomass estimates should be provided where available:
 Virgin biomass (B0)
 Biomass that will support the maximum sustainable yield (Bmsy)
 Current biomass (Bcurrent)
Estimation of Maximum Constant Yield (MCY)
The method used to estimate MCY should be described. Estimates of MCY should be given for each fishstock and,
where appropriate, placed in a table. Where MCY cannot be estimated, the statement "Cannot be determined" should
be made. The level of risk to the stock of harvesting the population at the estimated yield values should be specified. If
the risk level cannot be assessed, then this should be explicitly stated.
Estimation of Current Annual Yield (CAY)
The method used to estimate CAY should be described. Estimates of CAY should be given for each fishstock and,
where appropriate, placed in a table. Where CAY cannot be estimated, the statement "Cannot be determined" should
be made. The level of risk to the stock of harvesting the population at the estimated yield values should be specified. If
the risk level cannot be assessed, then this should be explicitly stated.
Other Yield Estimates and Stock Assessment Results
Other yield estimates and stock assessment results should be included as appropriate. These could include:
 Estimates of Current Surplus Production (CSP)
 Estimates of Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY)
 Results of Yield Per Recruit modelling
 Results of Spawning Stock Biomass Per Recruit modelling
 Forward projections of biomass and yield
 Performance indicators
 Results of decision analysis
 Results of risk assessment.
These estimates should be made by fishstock and presented in a Table where appropriate.
Other Factors
Other factors that impact on the stock assessment and that have not been previously described should be presented.
Status of the Stocks
This section should contain the following information where appropriate:
The effects of recent catch levels and the current TACC on stock size in the short term (next 1-3 years) should be
discussed, i.e. whether or not recent catch levels or the current TACCs are at levels which will allow the stock to move
towards a size that will support the MSY. If this is not known, it needs to be explicitly stated as such.
When estimates of current and reference biomass and associated yields are available, this statement needs to be made
explicit. For example:
"Current biomass is greater than Bmsy, and the fishery is still in the fishing down phase. Recent catches have been at
about the level of the current TACC, and both are less than the long-term sustainable yield at Bmsy. The stock can
probably support a higher TACC and catch levels for the next few years as the fishing down phase continues."
When estimates of current and reference biomass and associated yields are not available, the best available
information should be used to assess the effects of recent catches and the current TACC on stock size and the reasons
clearly stated. For example:
"No estimates of current and reference biomass are available. Landings and effort from this fishery have been stable
for the last 10 years and are considered to be at levels which will result in a stock size that will support the MSY. The
current TACC is similar to recent landings and is also considered to be at a level which will result in a stock size that will
support the MSY."
Any other management considerations (e.g. area boundaries, species designations, bycatch issues, etc.) should also be
discussed only if appropriate. However, this section should not contain specific recommendations concerning TACs and
TACCs and other management measures.
If new information that may affect yield estimates is likely to become available from work already in progress during
the short-term (the next one to three years), then this should be specified.
A table should be included having the following format:
Fishstock
QMA
MCY
CAY
yyyy-yyyy
Actual TACC
For Further Information
A brief and concise list of references relevant to the assessment of this species.
yyyy-yyyy
Reported landings