Bumper catches of prawns, pomfrets, little tunnies, black sharks and other fishes at Karwar

Abstract

In 1982, at Karwar, the purse seine boats commenced fishing from 1st of September. A new pattern of fishing was evident from the beginning of the season. bumper catches of prawns Metapenaeus dobsoni amounting to about 39 t were hauled up. The catch of Thrissa amounted to 75.4 t whereas barred longtom was about 8 t. Bumper catches of little tunny in mature condition mostly caught in northwest region of Karwar as high as 42.6 t of this species was landed on 8th October alone. The estimated catch of Scomberomorous commersoni and S. guttatus amounted to 21.8 t of which 20 t alone were landed. Unprecedented catches of black pomfret (Parastromateus niger) were from the region between Karwar and Belekeri in the south, the catch of this fish amounted to as high as 109.5 t an all time record in the annals of Karwar.