Abstract
Gordon (1953,J. Fish. Res. Bd Can.10, 442–457) used economic theory to predict how catch rates, price and fishing costs should balance in a multi-area, open-access fishery. We use the data from the Tasmanian rock lobster fishery to test this theory. We find that, as prediced by theory, areas with higher monetary and non-monetary costs have consistently higher catch rates than areas with lower costs. We show that this theory also predicts that an increase in price would result in an overall increase in catch rate, and suggest that in fisheries with spatial variation in costs, catch rates may be determined as much by economic factors as biological ones.
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Hilborn, R., Kennedy, R.B. Spatial pattern in catch rates: A test of economic theory. Bltn Mathcal Biology 54, 263–273 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02464833
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02464833