Aspects of the recreational ski-boat fishery off the Eastern Cape, South Africa

Abstract

The number of anglers and boats participating in the Eastern Cape ski-boat line fishery is high, and at the Port Elizabeth Deep-Sea Angling Club effort increased by a factor of 1,6 between 1975 and 1982. Ski-boat fishing is principally a weekend recreational activity, and estimated annual landings are only 37 per cent of commercial line-fish catches in the study area. It is, however, considered to be economically important in terms of equipment outlay (± R17 million) and running expenses (± Rl,65 million). Sampling of catches in 1979 and 1980 showed that of 79 recorded species only 17 were important. Ski-boaters compete with commercial line fishermen for target species, but there is little overlap with the trawl fishery. The paucity of historical line-fish catch records, the multispecies nature and the seasonality of the fishery make management problematical. © 1985 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.