An analysis of catch, effort, catch per unit of effort and relative abundance of catch of the major fishing gears operating in Tayabas Bay was made based on six years of observation, from 1983 to 1988.
Five gears with high average production were selected for analysis. They were: commercial bag net, gill net, beach seine, set longline, and fish corral.
Results of observations showed that the estimated average landings of the five most used gears in Tayabas Bay fluctuated as follows: bag net landings from 266.7 – 1,151 mt, gill net from 105.5 – 212.6 mt; beach seine from 21.6 – 76.5 mt, set longline from 6.4 mt – 29.4 mt, and fish corral 2.0 – 54.4 mt.
Likewise, observation on CPUE showed that bag net had the highest CPUE in January and March to July which ranged from 274 – 2,054 kg, gill net ranged from 16 – 38kg/boat; beach seine had a steady level of catch for each boat; set longline had also a steady catch at 9 – 15kg/boat; and fish corral ranged from 17 – 442 kg/boat.