In the present study, a cluster analysis, in relation to the species composition of the catches, was used to classify 6,486 fishing sets by a longline fleet based in São Paulo State, Brazil, from 1998 to 2006. Based on the proportions of 12 species and three broader species groups, three clusters were identified: C1: other fishes; C2: blue shark; C3: swordfish. Results indicated that the fleet targeted mainly blue shark and swordfish and also showed that the blue shark importance in this fishery has been growing progressively trough the years. Offshore areas were exploited mainly in the first and fourth quarters (from 2001 mainly), while the fishing effort was more concentrated near the continental shelf break, during the second and third quarters (for the whole period). The longline fishery based in Sao Paulo State changed fishing strategy to target different species which produced important changes in catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) of the main species caught. Cluster analysis seems to have appropriately identified these changes over time, which is an important information, often missing in logbooks.
Fishing effort; Target species; Fishing strategy; Brazilian longline fleet