In this project, the research team will develop a decision-support tool based on a management strategy evaluation (MSE) framework for the Gulf of Mexico red snapper fishery. The tool will help quantify the risks and trade-offs among the various alternative long-term management strategies and potential short-term regulations that might be used for the rebuilding and sustainable management of the Gulf of Mexico red snapper resource. See Background details.

    Two versions have been developed for this Red Snapper MSE tool. The Standard Version is oriented to users with limited MSE background, while the Professional Version faces to stock assessment stock scientists and managers who want to dig deeper into the technical details. The output formats for both the Standard and the Professional Versions are the same, so that they can be compared horizontally.

    Both, the Standard and Professional Versions, can test and compare alternative management strategies under:

• Three levels of natural mortality.
• Three types of recruitment settings.
• Various constant fishing mortality harvest control rules.
• Numerous allocations among and within sectors.
• A range of probability of overfishing.
• Multiple levels of ACT buffer.
• A number of legal size and bag limit regulations.
• Diverse release mortality.
• Reasonable federal for-hire and state angling catch rates.
• Several penalty and carryover plans.
• A variety of allocations among five Gulf States.
• Extensive observation, process and implementation errors.