Baseline assessment of the South African sardine resource using data from 1984‐2019

A quantitative assessment of the South African sardine resource has been updated to include data from 1984 to 2019. This two

mixing‐component hypothesis assumes no stock recruitment relationship during conditioning. The west component abundance

remains at a very low level. The biomass is estimated to be about 20% of the historical (1984‐2019) average in November 2019,

with a biomass of about 90 thousand tons. The west component spawner biomass is estimated to be below 7 thousand tons (13% of the historical average) and the effective spawner biomass is estimated to be 21 and a half thousand tons (31% of the historical average). The south component abundance is estimated to be higher, at 70% (biomass) to 88% (spawner biomass and effective spawner biomass) of the historical average, with a biomass in November 2019 of about 385 thousand tons.