This report documents data used in the 2020 CRA 5 stock assessment of red rock lobsters. The data sets described include catch estimates from commercial, recreational, customary, and illegal components of the fishery, standardised CPUE, size data from voluntary commercial fishery logbooks, and tag-recapture data. The data sets were split to represent two sub-stocks, one consisting of rock lobster statistical areas 917, 918, and 919 and the other sub-stock consisting of areas 916, 933, and 932.

This report documents data used in the 2020 stock assessment of red rock lobsters in CRA 4 (Wairarapa/Wellington). The data sets described include catch estimates (with relevant sources) from the commercial, recreational, customary, and illegal components of the fishery; standardised CPUE; size data (LFs) from observer catch sampling and voluntary commercial fishery logbooks; tag-recapture data; and puerulus settlement indices from Napier and Castlepoint used in an assessment sensitivity run.

This paper summarises a range of catch and effort statistics for rock lobsters by 1 April–31 March fishing year for the 9 CRA QMAs, ending in 31 March 2020. These summaries include number of vessels, catch and effort (potlifts) by QMA and statistical area, landings by month, and a range of QMA-specific CPUE series that are used in stock assessments. Standardised CPUE has not been updated for 2019–20 because of comparability issues with the introduction of the new electronic reporting system.

Vector Autoregressive Spatio-Temporal (VAST) models were applied to research trawl survey and environmental data to provide updated information on stock status for seven deepwater sharks. Deepwater sharks were found to be ubiquitous around New Zealand, with each species shown to have a unique distributional pattern. Deepwater shark “hotspots” in New Zealand waters were identified (e.g., Puysegur). There was little evidence to suggest any temporal or spatial changes in distribution or abundance.