Pelagic Fisheries
Tunas, billfish, and sharks are among the world's most sought-after fish — yet large parts of their life histories remain unknown.
For some of these highly migratory species, even simple attributes such as longevity, reproduction, and stock structure remain elusive — due in part to their size and ability to cross entire oceans and political boundaries. The Pelagic Fisheries Lab, led by University of Maine professor Dr. Walt Golet, provides the biological information needed to improve stock status estimates, set appropriate quotas, ensure long-term sustainability, and preserve commercial and recreational fishing opportunities for these species.
We aim to:
- Fill in life history knowledge gaps for highly migratory species such as tunas and billfish (including swordfish).
- Collaborate with fishermen and researchers, domestically and internationally, to improve biological understanding and management practices, and to reduce stock assessment uncertainties.
- Use innovative, rigorous, hands-on scientific methods to develop more accurate stock assessments and put fishery managers in a position to succeed.
Pelagic Fisheries Lab Team
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Walt Golet
Assistant Professor, UMaine School of Marine Sciences; Research Scientist, GMRI
[email protected] -
![Staff photo for Brenda Rudnicky]()
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Our Methods
Our international collaborations and advanced analysis techniques improve the management of valuable and elusive species.
Our work includes biological sampling and tissue dissections; analytical and statistical techniques to determine age and stock structure, reproductive state, and age of maturity; and genetic and stable isotope work that reveals foraging ecology, energetic condition, and stock structure. We use electronic and conventional tags to track migration pathways and stock mixing. We focus on commercial tunas (albacore, yellowfin, bigeye, skipjack, bluefin), billfishes (blue, white, and round-scale spearfish, broadbill swordfish), and several species of sharks. Long-standing partnerships with fishermen (recreational and commercial) and commercial dealers who provide us with the biological material needed to understand the life histories of these fishes makes our research possible. Dr. Golet works closely with research partners across the Atlantic basin like the Southeast Fisheries Science Center, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (Canada), AZTI, and the Spanish Institute of Oceanography. He also serves as an academic member of NOAA's Highly Migratory Species Advisory Panel and as the vice-chair on the ICCAT Advisory Committee where he advises on domestic and international research, assessment, and management.
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Field sampling
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Migration tracking
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Genetic analyses
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Trans-boundary research collaboration
Our international collaborations and advanced analysis techniques improve the management of valuable and elusive species.
Our work includes biological sampling and tissue dissections; analytical and statistical techniques to determine age and stock structure, reproductive state, and age of maturity; and genetic and stable isotope work that reveals foraging ecology, energetic condition, and stock structure. We use electronic and conventional tags to track migration pathways and stock mixing. We focus on commercial tunas (albacore, yellowfin, bigeye, skipjack, bluefin), billfishes (blue, white, and round-scale spearfish, broadbill swordfish), and several species of sharks. Long-standing partnerships with fishermen (recreational and commercial) and commercial dealers who provide us with the biological material needed to understand the life histories of these fishes makes our research possible. Dr. Golet works closely with research partners across the Atlantic basin like the Southeast Fisheries Science Center, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (Canada), AZTI, and the Spanish Institute of Oceanography. He also serves as an academic member of NOAA's Highly Migratory Species Advisory Panel and as the vice-chair on the ICCAT Advisory Committee where he advises on domestic and international research, assessment, and management.
- Field sampling
- Migration tracking
- Genetic analyses
- Trans-boundary research collaboration
Research Lab Projects
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![Improving Science and Management of Highly Migratory Species in the Atlantic]()
Improving Science and Management of Highly Migratory Species in the Atlantic
The Pelagic Ecosystem Research Consortium's (PERC) core mission directly responds to the National Marine Fisheries Service’s calls to advance science-based management of highly migratory species …
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![Atlantic Ocean Tropical Tuna Tagging Program]()
Atlantic Ocean Tropical Tuna Tagging Program
Non-conventional techniques used to identify stock structure in other tunas (e.g., otolith chemistry, genetic analyses), unfortunately, don’t work well for tropical tunas, so determining if …
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![Foraging Ecology of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna in the Northwest Atlantic]()
Foraging Ecology of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna in the Northwest Atlantic
The ocean is changing. In the Gulf of Maine, annual temperatures are increasing and higher temperatures mean that entire ocean ecosystems may change or shift. …
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![Evaluating Age Structure, Aging Bias and Mixed Stock Composition of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna in the Northwest Atlantic]()
Evaluating Age Structure, Aging Bias and Mixed Stock Composition of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna in the Northwest Atlantic
Our project sets up long-term biological sample collections to fill in life history gaps, including age structure and stock mixing. We do this by using …
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![Evaluating the Importance of Chub Mackerel in the Diet of Highly Migratory Species]()
Evaluating the Importance of Chub Mackerel in the Diet of Highly Migratory Species
Our project seeks to investigate the foraging ecology of marlins (blue, white, round-scale spearfish) and tunas (bigeye, yellowfin) along the East Coast to identify the …
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![Integrating Climate Impacts into Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Stock Assessment]()
Integrating Climate Impacts into Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Stock Assessment
Our project is examining atmospheric and oceanographic changes that may have impacted the distribution of giant bluefin tuna in the Gulf of Maine. This information …
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![Evaluating Age Structure and Foraging Ecology of Yellowfin and Bigeye Tuna in the Northwest Atlantic]()
Evaluating Age Structure and Foraging Ecology of Yellowfin and Bigeye Tuna in the Northwest Atlantic
While yellowfin and bigeye tuna comprise some of the world's largest fisheries, there is surprisingly little known about their life history. Our project seeks to …
Strategic Partnership with the University of Maine
As part of our ongoing partnership, the University of Maine has two School of Marine Sciences faculty based at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute. This partnership allows Associate professor Dr. Walt Golet, along with his lab’s staff and students, to take advantage of our fisheries research facility and Portland’s importance as a fishing port.
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