Trophia has been contracted by the New Zealand Ministry of Fisheries (MFish) to characterise the red gurnard (Chelidonichthys kumu) fishery in GUR 1 and undertake a CPUE analysis in GUR 1 . The specific objectives for this project include:

1. To characterise the GUR 1 fishery

2. To analyse existing commercial catch and effort data to the end of 2008/09 fishing year and undertake a CPUE standardisation .

Currently MFish does not have reliable means to monitor the abundance of the GUR 1 Fishstock. The purpose of this project is to characterise the GUR 1 fishery and to develop the best possible index of abundance based on standardized commercial CPUE. If successful the index will be updated every three years and used in conjunction with the age structure of the catch (2-3 years in every 5), to monitor the fishery.

Results of the characterisation will be used to determine the data grooming procedures for the CPUE analysis and which fisheries need to be assessed and the spatio-temporal analyses required in order to ensure the CPUE analysis is reflective of the fishery. The characterisation will also provide valuable input for the fisheries plan that is presently being developed

This work is funded by MFish project GUR2009/01