ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the management strategy evaluation (MSE) used for selecting the harvest strategy for the tiger prawn fishery. The harvest strategies are model-based and consist of combinations of assessment methods, harvest control rules to determine the total annual effort in fishing days targeted at tiger prawn stocks and the length of time during which the fishery is open, including the length of the midseason closure. The MSE includes multiple, single-species models and harvest strategies designed to allocate a total annual fishing effort and season length to the tiger prawn fishery that is consistent with both economic and ecosystem management objectives. The Northern Prawn Fishery (NPF) is a multispecies, multistock prawn fishery in tropical northern Australia managed using an input control system. The total annual fishing effort is adjusted by changing the total length of fishing net available to the fleet, and net length can be traded between fishing vessel operators.
