Abstract
The interspecific preferences of fishes for different depths and habitats suggest fishers could avoid unwanted catches of some species while still effectively targeting other species. In pelagic longline fisheries, albacore ( Thunnus alalunga ) are often caught in relatively cooler, deeper water (>100 m) than many species of conservation concern (e.g., sea turtles, billfishes, and some sharks) that are caught in shallower water ( Chelonia mydas ), 59.5% (n = 626) of shortbill spearfish ( Tetrapturus angustirostris ), 37.3% (n = 435) of silky shark ( Carcharhinus falciformis ), and 42.6% (n = 150) of oceanic whitetip shark ( C. longimanus ) were caught on the 3 shallowest hooks. Eleven percent (n = 20,435) of all tuna and 8.5% (n = 10,374) of albacore were caught on the 3 shallowest hooks. Hook elimination reduced landed value by 1.6–9.2%, and redistribution of hooks increased average annual landed value relative to the status quo by 5–11.7%. Based on these scenarios, redistribution of hooks to deeper depths may provide an economically feasible modification to longline gear that could substantially reduce bycatch for a suite of vulnerable species. Our results suggest that this method may be applicable to deep‐set pelagic longline fisheries worldwide. Compensaciones entre Captura, Captura Accesoria y Valores Asentados en la Pesquera de Línea Larga de Samoa Americana