July 24, 2024 — Tuna researcher Molly Lutcavage has been working with fishermen for over two decades. “We were criticized for working with commercial fishermen. But how could you not work with commercial fishermen? They’re the experts,” she says. A veteran tuna researcher, Lutcavage is helping a team of fishermen and scientists in Hawaii to employ new tagging technology for ahi (yellowfin) tuna.
Nathan Abe, who fishes for ahi and other tuna species in the waters west of the Hawaii’s Big Island has been tagging the ahi tuna with a new HI tag, a small strip of plastic bearing an RFID chip. Developed by Tim Lam and Lutcavage, the HI tag in combination with a smartphone app will help fishermen and scientists learn more about the travels of the ahi tuna.