The fishery in a fluctuating environment: Coexistence of specialist and generalist fishing vessels in a multipurpose fleet (Q789303)

Traditionally, fishing boats have been designed to be ''specialists'' for the catch of a particular (aggregation of) species. More recently, generalist vessels turn up, fitted out to operate in a broad variety of species. This new development adapts fishing technology to the extremely high variability of biological and economic fishing conditions. The new vessels fish each particular species less efficiently than specialized vessels equipped for this very target. The generalist vessels, however, provide a much higher flexibility. The optimal size of a fleet and the optimal mix of vessel types is analyzed under both, short and long run conditions. The coexistence of the two sorts of vessels is shown to be optimal in a fluctuating environment. In a free access common property fishery the profit maximizing size and mix of the fleet turn out to be socially suboptimal. Licence limitations are mentioned as a means to correct this kind of market failure.