Maximum sustainable yield estimates of barramundi <i>Lates calcarifer</i> fishery from Pakistani waters

Abstract

Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) of Barramundi <i>Lates calcarifer</i> (Bloch, 1790) fishery of Pakistan are estimated based on catch and effort data from 1995-2009. Two computer software packages CEDA (catch effort data analysis) and ASPIC (a surplus production model incorporating covariates) were applied. In CEDA initial proportion (IP) was used ranging from 0.1-09. The obtained MSY results using IP 0.8 (because the initial catch was roughly 80% of the maximum catch) in normal, log-normal and gamma error assumptions for Fox, Schaefer and Pella-Tomlinson models were about 107t-117t and estimated R² for three models with three error assumptions were about 0.61-0.67. Estimated MSY results of Fox and Schaefer models using ASPIC computer software package were 118t and 109t and estimated R² for Fox and Schaefer models were 0.803 and 0.794 respectively. Estimated values of MSY are smaller than the recent catch which indicates that the fishery of <i>L. calcarifer</i> in Pakistani waters is over-exploited.