The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Southwest Fisheries Science Center will charter a commercial fishing vessel to conduct pelagic longline and set line sampling for 17 days beginning July 2004 in California Coast. The project is being carried out to define the core nursery areas of young-of –the-year common thresher shark pups and obtain fishery-independent estimate of recruitment abundance. All fishing days will be observed by a NMFS field biologist or a fishery liaison. The vessel must be of sufficient size and draft, equipped to efficiently conduct the described work and capable of accommodating at least one observer. The chartered vessel must have a toilet facility and electronics capable of detecting bottom depth and presence of bait schools. The vessel skippers must have sufficient experience in conducting this type of fishing. Experience in fishing for thresher sharks in the study area is desirable. A request for quote will be issued on or about June 10, 2004. Qualified contractors may request a bid package by fax at (206) 526-6025. This is a simplified acquisition with an estimated value of less than $50,000.00.

Bid Protests Not Available