COLTO would like to congratulate Mr N.MacLeod of Sanford, representing the New Zealand vessel, San Aspiring, for winning first prize in the COLTO-sponsored CCAMLR tag-return lottery. The tag number was drawn at random from all reports of recaptured toothfish in CCAMLR exploratory fisheries in 2013/14.
The lottery had cash prizes for crew that had returned the three randomly drawn tags ($400 for first prize, $350 for second prize, and $250 for the third prize).
The winning tagged Antarctic toothfish was recaptured on 10th March 2014 around the South Sandwich Islands (Subarea 48.4) having been tagged 2 years prior on 8th April 2012. The toothfish had only moved 2km in this time.
Details of where the fish were first tagged, and then recovered, are held by the CCAMLR Secretariat.
To date, over 160,000 toothfish have been tagged and released as part of a broad program of fisheries research in CCAMLR waters, helping to improve scientific knowledge of the stocks, and biological characteristics of the fish.
Tagging and Recapture details of second and third prized fish:
Second Prize – Recaptured Johannes Visagie onboard the Seljevaer (Norway) on 13/12/13 in Subarea 88.1. It was tagged on 2/12/11 in Subarea 88.1 and had moved 10km.
Third prize – Recaptured by Duane on the San Aspiring (NZ) on Christmas Day, 25/12/13 in Subarea 88.1. It was tagged 4 years earlier on 26/01/2008 in Subarea 88.1. The fish had moved 49km.
Once again congratulations to all winners and it is great to see such great contributions by crew and observers in these CCAMLR toothfish fisheries.