Fisheries on highly migratory tuna and tuna-like species, are all under some form of management. However, the global nature of the fisheries for some highly migratory species, including the high global mobility and interlinks of the fishing fleets and markets, make it more difficult for regional organizations to manage fisheries on these species than it is to manage fisheries that are less global.
Unlike fisheries for tuna and tuna-like species, management of fisheries for oceanic sharks and other highly migratory species is spotty and incomplete. The International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks is a non-binding instrument that should guide management of fisheries on oceanic sharks, but it does not implement conservation measures. Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs) that have jurisdiction over fisheries that interact with oceanic sharks and other highly migratory species (particularly longline fisheries) are aware of bycatch issues, but for the most part, it is unregulated.
With the exception of a few species producing large catches (e.g. tunas and swordfish), knowledge of the biology and state of exploitation of highly migratory species (such as billfishes and sailfishes) remains scarce. Knowledge is even more limited for most highly migratory sharks.
Fisheries on pomfrets, sauries and dolphinfish are sometimes included in national fishery management plans, either as a component of the plans for other species or on their own, but generally speaking, a more systematic treatment of these species is necessary before it could be said that the fisheries exploiting them are properly managed.
Most fisheries on straddling fish stocks are either covered, or in the process of being covered, by existing regional fisheries management organizations, or organizations and arrangements that are in the process of being formed. The situation is more variable for fisheries for high seas fish stocks. For example, NEAFC has jurisdiction over deepwater fisheries (some of which are on high seas fish stocks) of the Northeast Atlantic, whereas there is no management authority with jurisdiction over fisheries for high seas fish stocks of the Indian Ocean.
