Global monthly catch of tuna, tuna-like and shark species (1950-2021) by 1° or 5° squares (IRD level 2)

This dataset lists global catches of tuna, tuna-like, and shark species from 1950 to 2021. Catches are stratified by month, species, gear type, fishing fleet, fishing mode (i.e., type of school used), area (1° or 5° squares), and unit of catch (weight or number). This dataset was computed using public domain catch datasets released by FIRMS.

IRD Level 2 refers to the processes applied by the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD) to primary datasets, generating this refined dataset.

This work aims not only to provide a biomass dataset for scientific purposes but also to identify and address data inconsistencies, improving the overall process. All code, materials, and packages used are available on the GitHub repository, firms-gta/geoflow-tunaatlas, along with detailed documentation on the impact of each specific treatment.

Warning: This dataset is designed to enhance the understanding of fish counts at level 0. It is not suitable for accurately georeferencing data by country or fishing fleet and should not be used for studies on fishing zone legality or quota management. While it offers a georeferenced footprint of captures to reflect reported biomass more closely, significant uncertainty remains regarding the precise locations of the catches.

Global level 2 processing includes the conversion and raising of georeferenced catch data to match nominal dataset values.

Appendix work:

The github repository (DOI:10.5281/zenodo.14039665 Allowing to reproduce this dataset)

A Shiny app has been created to easily visualize catch data in CWP format: ghcr.io/firms-gta/tunaatlas_pie_map_shiny_cwp_database:latest. The docker image is based on this DOI dataset and allows to explore it.

Data paper incoming.

If you are interested in creating a customized version of this Global Tuna Atlas with specific filters or adjustments based on particular issues, please feel free to reach out to us.