DescriptionThis project will refine the reporting methods and field validation protocols that were developed in 2014 for a mandatory reporting system for reporting recreational red snapper landings by Alabama private recreational vessels. The project will also determine the relative rates of recreational red snapper anglers using public or private access sites and generate estimates of overall effort for these two groups, investigate the use of remote monitoring technology at major public access sites to determine how much influence weather has on daily participation rates, and evaluate the potential of the entire reporting system to be used as an in-season quota monitoring tool and compare results from the first year of the program.
Objective: The objectives are to 1) Refine the reporting app, the online reporting system, and the IVR telephone hotline for private recreational angler reporting, 2) Refine field validation protocols and procedures to determine appropriate under- and over-reporting adjustment factors, 3) Improve computing and data processing methods which minimize time needed to generate timely adjusted landings totals, 4) Evaluate the potential of the entire reporting system to be used as an in-season quota monitoring tool, and 5) Calculate estimates of angler trips with red snapper by access type using alternative methods which can be used to compare to results of the mandatory reporting program data and the MRIP estimate.