REGULATION OF THE FISHING EFFORT IN THE KAMCHATKA CRAB FISHERY ON THE SHELF OF WESTERN KAMCHATKA
The study results are presented the main indicators of red king crab fishery in the Kamchatka-Kuril subarea based on fishery statistics data for the period from 2013 to 2020. By 2020, the number of vessels in the fishery increased by 2,4 times compared to 2013, or 3,0 times compared to 2014. Accordingly, there was an increase in the total fishing effort (vessel-fishing days) per year. Since 2019, with the continued growth of the total fishing effort, a decline in the indicators of fishing efficiency (catches per effort) began. The decrease in catches per effort is observed on the crab fishing season in 2020, both according to the primary data of fishery statistics, and according to standardized independent indices of abundance, which show a decrease in catches per effort in 2020 by about 2 times compared to the best fishing year (2016). There was the decrease in catches per vessel day below the minimum daily catches per vessel, which indicates an excess of the optimal total fishing effort in the Kamchatka-Kuril subarea.