Boosting the Management of Economically Important Fishery Resources in the Southeast Asian Region: the Seer Fishes in Focus

Abstract

Neritic tunas, such as kawakawa, longtail tuna, frigate tuna, bullet tuna, and seer fishes, are commercially important species in the Southeast Asian region. Among these species, two seer fishes, i.e. the narrow-barred Spanish mackerel and Indo-Pacific king mackerel, command higher prices in the markets. In 2017, for example, these two seer fishes were the most expensive products among all marine capture species (SEAFDEC, 2020). Thus, it is deemed essential that stock assessments of these two seer fishes should be carried out to ensure their sustainable utilization and fisheries, and to provide scientific advice to policy makers for the sustainable management of the resources. This article therefore introduced the most recent stock status and management advice on narrowbarred Spanish mackerel and Indo-Pacific king mackerel in the Southeast Asian region (SEAFDEC, 2019).