UC San Diego Library – Scripps Digital Collection

The California albacore fishery is highly seasonal, being pursued only in the summer and fall. Catches are extremely variable from year to year. The more that is learned about this species, the better are chances for stabilization and expansion. When the albacore investigation was expanded in 1951, the gathering of data on commercial catch localities was intensified. Also under study are migrations, racial relationships, size at maturity, exploratory fishing methods, environment, and all the factors that bear upon a continued harvest at a high level.

This report describes the results of one of the lines of investigation into the life history of the albacore, a study being made with the objective of improving the fishery. Basic to any survey of this sort is an understanding of the location of the most productive fishing areas in both time and space. Summarized herein are the available data which delineate the fishing areas exploited by the California fleet.