Atlantic Highly Migratory Species; Bluefin Tuna Bycatch Reduction in the Gulf of Mexico Pelagic Longline Fishery

Under this final rule, NMFS requires the use of "weak hooks" in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM) pelagic longline (PLL) fishery. A weak hook is a circle hook that meets NMFS' current size and offset restrictions for the GOM PLL fishery, but is constructed of round wire stock that is thinner-gauge than the circle hooks currently used and is no larger than 3.65 mm in diameter. Weak hooks can allow incidentally hooked bluefin tuna (BFT) to escape capture because the hooks are more likely to straighten when a large fish is hooked. Requiring weak hooks in the GOM will reduce bycatch of BFT; allow the long-term beneficial socio- economic benefits of normal operation of directed fisheries in the GOM with minimal short-term negative socio-economic impacts; and have both short- and long-term beneficial impacts on the stock status of Atlantic BFT, an overfished species. This action affects commercial fishermen using PLL gear to fish for Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) in the GOM.