The Best Guess Project began in 2007 to help evaluate the potential accuracy of recreational fishermen’s guesses on large ahi weights. In the state of Hawaii, the HMRFS samples recreational catch through dockside interviews of fishermen when they return from a fishing trip. In recent years, it has become difficult for surveyors to weigh or measure the length of larger ahi and other fish. In some cases, the fish were simply too large to be weighed or measured by the surveyor’s scale and measuring tape; in others, the fish were already in their ice slurry and fishermen did not want them handled. Measuring only the smaller ahi creates a potential bias in the survey that is difficult to quantify.

One possible solution is obtaining weight estimates of larger ahi and other fish from the fishermen. To test this method of obtaining weight data, NOAA Fisheries teamed with organizers of the popular Waianae Boat Fishing Club’s Ahi Fever Tournament, hosted every Father’s Day weekend on the island of Oahu. The Best Guess Project is now in its second year and will soon expand to other tournaments throughout the state.

2007 Best Guess Project Results (June 2008, pdf 146kB)

If you have questions about this project, or suggestions for other areas of cooperative research, contact Nicole Bartlett, Recreational Fisheries Coordinator.