Paths to resilience: the walleye pollock fleet uses multiple fishing strategies to buffer against environmental change in the Bering Sea

Abstract

Fishers seek to maximize profits, so when choosing where to fish, they must consider interactions among the environment, costs, and fish prices. We examined catcher vessels in the US Bering Sea fishery for walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) (2003–2015) to characterize fisher responses to environmental change (e.g., abundance and water temperature). When pollock were abundant and the water warm, the fleet fished in similar locations. When temperatures were cooler or pollock abundance declined, two fishing strategies emerged, depending on the processor where a vessel delivered. One vessel group, whose catches were more likely to become fillets, often made shorter trips, requiring less fuel and time at sea. A second vessel group, whose catches were more likely to become surimi, traveled farther from port to regions with higher catch rates but generally smaller fish. By fishing in different locations to satisfy different markets, the fleet sustained revenues and buffered against environmental change. We identify a suite of socioeconomic indicators of the impacts of ecosystem change and illustrate that a one-vessel-fits-all approach may be insufficient for assessing the resilience of fleets.