Chubut Province, Argentina, evaluates postponement of Argentine red shrimp exploratory survey due to bad weather; new survey may be delayed to November 15

The Chubut Province Fisheries Secretariat in Argentina will determine on November 10 (Tuesday) the departure date for a new exploratory survey of Argentine red shrimp (scientific name Pleoticus muelleri). The survey will take place in waters under Chubut Province jurisdiction, with the aim of providing a basis for commercial fishing in the next season. A previous survey round, launched on October 26, failed to obtain parameters sufficient to open commercial fishing.

In the previous survey round, no Argentine red shrimp were found in the southern area between 44°S and 44°56′S, and a small number of hauls caught almost entirely Argentine hake, so the area was closed immediately. The fleet participating in the survey was then sent to the northern area between 43°S and 44°S for monitoring over three effective fishing days. The fleet composition was: 8 yellow-fleet vessels and 2 artisanal vessels entered Zone 1 (43°S to 43°30′S), while another 8 yellow-fleet vessels and 2 artisanal vessels entered Zone 2 (43°30′S to 44°S).

Zone 1, from the mouth of Nuevo Gulf to Puerto Rawson, was the area with the best results, where Argentine red shrimp reached good commercial sizes and associated Argentine hake was relatively scarce, but catches varied unevenly among vessels. In Zone 2, from Puerto Rawson to Isla Escondida, only a small concentration of Argentine red shrimp was found, with a very high proportion of Argentine hake bycatch, and the survey in that area was therefore ended early.

Based on these results, the authorities decided to wait about ten days and conduct only one more survey operation in the northern area. The new survey was initially planned to start on November 10 (Tuesday), and was later rescheduled for November 12 (Thursday). However, the weather forecast for the 12th shows severe weather, with moderate-strength winds and sea waves of up to 2 meters, which would increase the difficulty of survey operations and could force a suspension the following day.

Under these circumstances, the Fisheries Secretariat is evaluating a postponement, with a final decision to be made on November 10 (Tuesday). The alternative departure date is November 15 (Sunday), or November 16 (Monday) depending on conditions.

All parties hope to find a good concentration of Argentine red shrimp in Zone 1 (43°S to 43°30′S) and complete an effective survey, while also conducting an appropriate survey of Zone 2 (43°30′S to 44°S) to determine whether the area meets the conditions for opening commercial fishing. If only Zone 1, just half a degree of latitude, is opened and 95 vessels concentrate their operations in this limited body of water, there is a risk that the resource will be rapidly depleted. In fact, the first exploratory survey in this area produced good hauls and yields, but the entry of the entire fleet would place great pressure on the resource before it has recovered from fishing in national waters.