Title: Analysis of bycatch in Papua New Guinea purse seine fishery

Bycatch is an expected part of every tuna fishery, but an accurate understanding of the amount and species distribution of bycatch is an important aspect of fisheries management. In the Papua New Guinea purse seine tuna fishery, the percentage catch of billfish, mammals, turtles, sharks and rays is lower compared to WCPFC annual bycatch for the larger equatorial purse seine fishery. This discrepancy could be attributed to non-compliance of vessel operators to retain bycatch and report non-targeted species that are caught and landed. The purpose of this study is to estimate likely bycatch quantity in the PNG tuna fishery. The primary focus was to analyse total bycatch quantity of a purse seine fishery that is comparable to the WCPFC annual catch estimates. This study builds on the work carried out by WCPFC in 2017 that provided policy recommendations to commission members on managing bycatch in a way that is consistent with the CMMs and guidelines on mitigating strategies. The results have shown that the reported bycatch percentage of the PNG tuna fishery is lower than that from WCPFC from 2016 to 2020. This study seeks to address gaps within the management framework and suggest possible recommendations to improve PNG's compliance through data collection and verification of any discrepancies.