Implementation and Results of a Reporting Program for Recreationally Harvested Red Snapper Landed in Alabama

Red snapper Lutjanus campechanus is a popular reef fish among recreational fishers of the Northern Gulf of Mexico.  A federal survey has been used to estimate landings since the early 1980’s.  In 2013, changes to the catch portion of the survey resulted in landings estimates for Alabama to be nearly three times larger than the prior year yet the season length was nearly identical.  Estimates from the survey are not available for in-season monitoring of catches which increases the chance that quotas are exceeded.   In order to compare estimates from the federal survey and investigate more timely methods of generating estimates of landings a reporting program was developed by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources/Marine Resources Division and initiated during the 2014 red snapper season.  This program required a representative from a vessel with red snapper to report basic trip level information including number of anglers, number of red snapper harvested and discarded dead prior to vessel landing.  Trip under-reporting was estimated through sampling vessels with red snapper at-sea and at public access sites.