at an endangered species conference in Florida.

Mr. Kevin Monkman, assistant director for agriculture, is part of the British delegation to the conference of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, which began in Fort Lauderdale on Monday.

Mr. Monkman will keep an ear open for any talk of adding blue fin tuna to the list of endangered species. Signatories to the convention have pushed for such a move in the past.

"There is a tremendous lobby against that,'' said Agriculture and Fisheries director Mr. John Barnes.

If blue fin tuna was made an endangered species, countries like Bermuda could no longer export to Japan, where there is a huge market for the fish.

The annual meeting of the International Convention for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna in Madrid was put back a week to allow completion of the ninth CITES conference. The conference is held every two years and brings 2,500 participants from 126 member states.

Mr. Barnes, who will attend the ICCAT conference as an observer on November 19, said by next year it is possible ICCAT quotas will apply to any United Nations member fishing in the Atlantic. Countries without quotas who wanted to start fishing would be seen as undermining conservation efforts, he said.

That is why "it's much better to be in on the ground floor as one of the players and get your piece of the action'', Mr. Barnes said.

Bermuda wants to join ICCAT and has asked the United Kingdom to intervene on its behalf. But Mr. Barnes said it is now doubtful that Bermuda's membership will be approved this year.

The UK, which recently had conflicts with the Spanish and French as a result of its own boats fishing in the Bay of Biscay, is considering joining ICCAT itself.

If it did so, dependent territories like Bermuda would automatically become members. But a tricky problem of how to divvy up the UK's quota would ensue.

St. Helena, for example, catches a lot of fish, Mr. Barnes said.

At ICCAT this year, it is likely a swordfish quota will be added to the quota on blue fin tuna, Mr. Barnes said.

Before attending ICCAT, Mr. Barnes will travel to Baltimore for a meeting of the advisory committee to the US section of ICCAT.

This will give Bermuda a preview of what issues are likely to be tackled at Madrid and what approach the Americans will take, he said.

Bermuda has yet to decide on applications from foreign fishing vessels wishing to work in Bermuda waters next year.

Mr. John Barnes