european commission studies in the field of the common ... · species with a low value or absent...

Common Fisheries Policy Impact Assessment | EU Discards Annex

European Commission

Studies in the Field of the Common Fisheries Policy and Maritime Affairs

Lot 4: Impact Assessment Studies related to the CFP

March 2011

Impact Assessment of Discard Reducing Policies

EU Discard Annex


This report does not necessarily reflect the view of the European Commission and in no way anticipates the Commission’s future policy in this area.


Project no: ZF0926_S10 Issue ref:

Date of issue: March 2011 Prepared by: CH, DA, SM, RC, TP Checked/Approved by:

DA

Common Fisheries Policy Impact Assessment | EU Discards Annex i

Contents 1 Categorisation of the discard problem ............................................................................. 1

1.1 High discard fisheries (>40%)................................................................................... 1 1.1.1 Beam trawls....................................................................................................... 1 1.1.2 Mediterranean Longline..................................................................................... 2 1.1.3 Hydraulic dredges ............................................................................................. 3 1.1.4 Bottom trawls..................................................................................................... 3

1.2 Medium discard fisheries (15-39%) .......................................................................... 5 1.2.1 Bottom Trawls ................................................................................................... 5 1.2.2 Trammel nets and seines in ICES regions ........................................................ 6 1.2.3 Mediterranean pelagic trawls and seines .......................................................... 6

1.3 Low discard (<15%).................................................................................................. 6 1.3.1 Pelagic trawls (ICES regions)............................................................................ 6 1.3.2 Nets (trammel, gillnets and lampara) ................................................................ 7 1.3.3 Artisanal fisheries .............................................................................................. 7

1.4 Summary .................................................................................................................. 8 ANNEXES............................................................................................................................. 23 1 Greece ........................................................................................................................... 23

1.1 Geographical area .................................................................................................. 23 1.2 Fishery types (eg longline, demersal trawl, pelagic trawl/seine, gillnet) ................. 23 1.3 Regulations on discards relevant to the area ......................................................... 24 1.4 Discard rates by fishery (species discarded, proportion of catch discarded).......... 24 1.5 Reasons for discarding (under-sized, highgrading) (i.e. no over-quota discarding in effort managed fisheries)................................................................................................... 27

2 Spanish Mediterranean.................................................................................................. 29 2.1 Geographical area .................................................................................................. 29 2.2 Discard rates by fishery .......................................................................................... 30 2.3 Reasons for discarding........................................................................................... 31 2.4 Regulations on discards relevant to the area ......................................................... 31 2.5 Basic socioeconomic data ...................................................................................... 32

3 The Adriatic.................................................................................................................... 34 3.1 Geographical area .................................................................................................. 34 3.2 Fishery types (eg longline, demersal trawl, pelagic trawl/seine, gillnet) ................. 35 3.3 Regulations on discards relevant to the area ......................................................... 36 3.4 Discard rates by fishery (species discarded, proportion of catch discarded).......... 38

3.4.1 Artisanal fisheries ............................................................................................ 39 3.4.2 Trawl nets........................................................................................................ 40 3.4.3 Bottom otter trawl ............................................................................................ 40 3.4.4 “Rapido” beam trawl ........................................................................................ 42 3.4.5 Hydraulic dredges ........................................................................................... 42

3.5 Reasons for discarding........................................................................................... 42 4 The strait of Sicily .......................................................................................................... 43

4.1 Geographical area .................................................................................................. 43 4.2 Fishery types (eg longline, demersal trawl, pelagic trawl/seine, gillnet) ................. 43 4.3 Regulations on discards relevant to the area ......................................................... 50 4.4 Discard rates by fishery (species discarded, proportion of catch discarded).......... 51

4.4.1 Midwater Pelagic trawl .................................................................................... 52 4.4.2 Bottom otter trawls .......................................................................................... 52

4.5 Discard of main commercial species of the Strait of Sicily (demersal shared stocks) 55

Common Fisheries Policy Impact Assessment | EU Discards Annex ii

4.5.1 Hake ................................................................................................................ 55 4.5.2 Deep water rose shrimp .................................................................................. 56 4.5.3 Giant red shrimp.............................................................................................. 57

4.6 Reasons for discarding (under-sized, highgrading) (i.e. no over-quota discarding in effort managed fisheries)................................................................................................... 57 4.7 References: ............................................................................................................ 58

Tables Table 1. Trends in discarding in EU waters .......................................................................... 10 Table 2 Detailed summary of discards in the EU regions ..................................................... 11 Table 2 Discarded fish biomass by year and fishing gear in Kg (2003- 2008)...................... 24 Table 3 Ratio of discarded fish biomass to total landings (Kg) ............................................. 25 Table 4 Discarded biomass by fishing area, gear and length class (Kg) .............................. 26 Table 5 Discard rate by weight ............................................................................................. 30 Table 6 Discard rate by number............................................................................................ 31 Table 7 Fishing pattern In GSA 17 and 18 (data source Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 (1st Draft) of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean - GFCM). .............. 35 Table 8 Catch and vessels of Albanian, Croatian, Italian, Montenegrin and Slovenian fleets in the Adriatic. (Data source for Italy the Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean - GFCM for Albania, Croatia, M....................... 35 Table 9 Minimum landing sizes of main stocks shared among Albanian, Croatian, Italian, Montenegrin and Slovenian fleets in the Adriatic according to European or National regulations. Length as total length (TL), Carapace length (CL) and mantel length (ML). Data.............................................................................................................................................. 37 Table 10 Main artisanal fisheries in the middle Adriatic Sea (GSA 17 –Italian Coast)......... 39 Table 11 Retained and discarded fraction of total catch of commercial catch of trawlers in the Adriatic Sea (GSA 17). Values were distinguished by high (from Sanchez et al., 2007).41 Table 12 Fishing pattern of Maltase, Italian and Libyan fisheries in the Strait of Sicily (data source Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 (1st Draft) of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean - GFCM)............................................................................................. 44 Table 13 Catch and vessels of Italian, Libyan, Maltese and Tunisian fleets in the Strait of Sicily. (data source for Italy the Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean - GFCM for Libya, Malta and Tunisia the..................... 44 Table 14 Main information on shared stocks in the Strait of Sicily, including the discards. .. 45 Table 15 Minimum landing sizes of main shared stocks in the Strait of Sicily according to European or National regulations (na= not available)........................................................... 51 Table 16 Main fishing-grounds, fishery features of distant trawlers in the Strait of Sicily. .... 54 Table 17 Yearly modal length (LC in mm) of discarded fraction and landings of P. longirostris in typical inshore (Porto Palo- South eastern Sicily) and distant (Mazara del Vallo - South western Sicily) Sicilian trawling fisheries (from Anon., 2000)................................................ 56

Common Fisheries Policy Impact Assessment | EU Discards Annex iii

Figures Figure 1 Aegean and Ionian Seas ........................................................................................ 23 Figure 2 The Geographical Sub Areas of the Mediterranean according to the General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM). The Adriatic Sea is divided into two GSAs: the GSA 17 (northern Adriatic Sea) and the GSA 18 (southern Adriatic Sea)........... 34 Figure 3 The Geographical Sub Areas in the Strait of Sicily and adjacent seas according to the General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM). ....................................... 43 Figure 4 Time series of mean discard rate (% of total discarded biomass on total catch biomass) of Sicilian trawlers operating in the Strait of Sicily. Data from Arena 1978 and 1985, Andaloro 1996, Milazzo 1988, Anon., 1997, Anon. 1998, Anon. 2000, Anonymous 200 ..... 53 Figure 5 Main fishing areas of the distant trawlers In the Strait of Sicily (from Fiorentino et al., 2003, modified from Andaloro, 1996).................................................................................... 54 Figure 6 Retention probability by size of hake according to Fiorentino et al. (1998) and Bethke (2004) for the diamond mesh size in the cod end ranging form 30 to 60 mm (from Bethke, 2004)........................................................................................................................ 56

Common Fisheries Policy Impact Assessment | EU Discards Annex 1

1 Categorisation of the discard problem

This section consists of a compilation and review of information of on the level of discarding in different fisheries within the EU with particular emphasis on exploring reasons for the discarding taking place. Information was obtained covering two main areas: ICES regions and Mediterranean waters.

ICES regions:

• Iberian peninsula IXa, VIIc

• North Sea IV, IIa, VIId

• West of Scotland VI,

• Channel, Western approaches, Irish and Celtic Seas VII

• NE Atlantic VI, XII, XIV, VIII, IX, X

• Baltic III

Mediterranean regions:

• Strait of Sicily

• Adriatic

• Aegean

• Spanish Mediterranean

As a general approach, fisheries were separated into broad categories depending on their discard rates and therefore the likely impact that a discard ban would have on the different fishery types. The objective of categorising fisheries in this way was to be able to search for general trends among groups in factors such as level of discarding among gear types, target species and vessel sizes. Three main groups were distinguished between, based on level of discarding. These were high discard fisheries (>40% of total catch), medium discard fisheries (15-39%) and low discard fisheries (<15%). While some fisheries clearly fell within one of these categories, others were more varied and therefore spanned a couple of categories.

1.1 High discard fisheries (>40%)

1.1.1 Beam trawls

1.1.1.1 ICES regions

Beam trawls typically had the highest discard rates of all fishing gear types. These often produced discards in the region of 60% of total catch (STECF, 2006; MRAG, 2007; EU, 2008) reaching levels as high as 90% in some areas (e.g., in the Adriatic and the North Seas). Beam trawls are one of the gears with high discard rates in a wide range of species.


It is a non-selective gear but also a very targeted fishery and consequently beam trawl fisheries catch several species but only retain a few species (STECF, 2006). The main fleet nations fishing with beam trawlers are Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, and to a lesser extent Belgium, Italy and Denmark (AER, 2009).

Catchpole (2005) recorded estimates of 71-95% discarding in flatfish beam trawl fisheries in the southern North Sea, while estimates of 56-72% discarding have been observed in German flatfish and other beam trawlers in the North Sea and the NE Atlantic (Ullewiet et al., 2009; EU, 2008; Borges et al., 2005). These discards are mostly composed of dab, whiting, plaice, grey gurnard and undersize shrimp (Crangon crangon) (Ullewiet et al., 2009).

The UK North Sea beam trawl fleet targeting primarily sole, plaice and dab have lower rates, discarding 50% of catch on average. This consists of mainly undersize dab and plaice and species with a low value or absent market such as whiting and dab (MRAG, 2007). The higher discarding of plaice in particular, by France and Germany compared to Denmark and UK sampled vessels is likely to be due to the larger mesh size used by latter (MRAG, 2007). Lower estimates still have been reported by STECF (2006), who recorded discard rates of 40-60% in undersize target species (plaice, whiting and sole) and non-target species in the North Sea.

Beam trawls in the English Channel, Irish sea, Celtic sea and Western approaches targeting flatfish such as sole and plaice discard 42%-67% of total catches. The dominant species discarded are dogfish, whiting, gurnards, common cuttlefish, plaice and dab, as well as undersize haddock and the majority of these are less than 30cm length (Enever et al., 2007; Borges et al., 2005).

In the central Northeast Atlantic beam trawlers discard 60% of catch including undersize anglerfish, herring, hake, horse mackerel and whiting (STECF, 2006).

1.1.1.2 Mediterranean

In the Adriatic, ‘Rapido’ beam trawling for flatfish, cephalopods and scallops also has high discard rates, mostly made up of invertebrates. Scallops are targeted on sandy bottoms offshore where discard rates are in the order of 90%, mostly consisting of echinoderms, crustaceans, molluscs and porifera (Pranovi et al.,2001; Tudela, 2004). Rapido beam trawling in muddy coastal area for flatfish results in discard rates of ~70%, mostly composed of molluscs and crustaceans (60% and 30% respectively) (Pranovi et al.,2001; Tudela, 2004).

The exception to the high discarding found in beam trawl fisheries in the literature was a survey conducted by Enever et al. (2009) which concluded that only 31% of total catch was discarded, consisting of the same species as reported in other fisheries.

1.1.2 Mediterranean Longline

Although it was previously been reported that discards in the longline fleets fishing in the Mediterranean targeting albacore and swordfish were rare (EC, 2006), other reports from the Adriatic and the Strait of Sicily suggests 50% of swordfish caught are below the minimum landing size and bycatch includes endangered species (Marano et al., 2005). Some of the notable species discarded are bluefin tuna (Thunnus Thynnus) which forms 20% of bycatch,


the tope shark (Galerhinus galeus), the blue shark (Prionace glauca) which forms 7% of bycatch, the pelagic stingray (Pteroplatytrygon violacea) and sea turtles (Caretta caretta).

However this high discarding in longline fisheries appears to be a trend only in the Mediterranean. Longlines in the English Channel, Irish sea, Celtic sea and Western approaches have low discard rates (around 10%) indicating the presence of regional differentiation, suggesting a discard reduction policy is likely to affect fishers using the same gears differently in different regions.

1.1.3 Hydraulic dredges

Hydraulic dredges in the Adriatic targeting the clams Chamelea gallina also have very high discard rates estimated at between 50% (Morello et al., 2005) and 88% of total catch (Raicevich, 2008). Discards are composed of undersize target species (60%) and other benthic invertebrates (40%) with low or no commercial value and very few finfish (Morello et al., 2005).

1.1.4 Bottom trawls

There are a wide range of bottom trawlers, so the levels of discarding also vary widely. Bottom trawls included Nephrops trawls, finfish bottom trawls and bottom otter trawls. Some of these had discard rates comparable with beam trawlers, but the range in levels of discarding was generally much greater than that for beam trawls. Ullewiet et al., (2009) reported discard rates of 46-64% for bottom trawlers in the North Sea and NE Atlantic.

1.1.4.1 Nephrops trawlers

Trawls targeting Nephrops are constructed with smaller meshes (80–90 mm) than trawls used to target whitefish and so consequently, the bycatch of juvenile fish can be substantial (Catchpole et al., 2007). Enever et al., (2009) reported discard rates of 36% in English and Welsh Nephrops trawl fisheries in the North Sea. Discards were mostly dab, whiting, plaice, Nephrops, gurnards, cod, long rough dab, haddock, lemon sole and Dover sole, the majority of which were discarded due to being undersize.

Total discard rates in the English Channel, Western approaches, Celtic and Irish seas were estimated as 50% (EU, 2008). Graham and Beare (2008) reported species discarded in Nephrops bottom trawls here as Nephrops, whiting, haddock, anglerfish, cod and megrims. Nephrops trawlers off the Firth of Clyde (West of Scotland) discard 70% of total catch, mostly consisting of undersize demersal fish, in particular young whiting (Stratoudakis et al., 2001). Irish otter trawl fisheries targeting Nephrops, cod, haddock, whiting, megrim, anglerfish had discard rates of 17-60%, where whiting, megrim, dog-fish and undersize haddock are discarded (Borges et al., 2005).

1.1.4.2 Single and pair bottom trawlers

Discards in pair bottom trawlers in the northern Northeast Atlantic make up 40% of catch. Cod discards are almost all below MLS, whereas only half of whiting and haddock discards are undersize and no saithe discards are undersize (possibly discarded due to overquota) (STEFC, 2006). Single bottom trawls in the same area have lower discard rates (20-40%), primarily of herring, haddock, mackerel, plaice, saithe and whiting (STEFC, 2006). Pair bottom trawlers in the southern NE Atlantic have higher discard rates of approximately 60%


of catch. Almost all anglerfish discards are below the minimum sale size, but much of the landings are also below the minimum sale size due to the uncertainty of this size. Hake discards are almost all below MLS, but mackerel and horse mackerel are discarded at a range of sizes, suggesting a mixture of economic and MLS factors are at play (STECF, 2006).

Single bottom trawlers in the central Northeast Atlantic have similar discard rates, discarding 40% of the majority of species, mostly herring, haddock and mackerel. Most hake discards are below the MLS whereas roughly half of the cod, haddock, whiting and megrim discards are above MLS (STEFC, 2006). This suggests in addition to size restrictions other factors such as low market value and reaching quota limits have an effect on discarding in this fishery.

Finfish bottom trawls targeting hake, horse mackerel, monkfish and megrim in the Iberian Peninsula are reported to have discards rates of 30-60%, primarily of target species which are undersize with some non-commercial bycatch. In the hake fishery, high-grading is particularly high at the beginning of the fishing season due to individual vessel quota allocation and can reach 90% of catch (MRAG, 2007).


Due to the high diversity of species in the Mediterranean, there is a high diversity of discards in the bottom trawl fisheries. Of the 300 species caught in the eastern Mediterranean, only ~10% are consistently marketed and 30% are occasionally retained, depending on the sizes caught and market demands, whereas >60% are always discarded (Machias et al., 2001).

Bottom otter trawls in the Adriatic targeting Nephrops discard 40-50% of total catch (Sanchez et al., 2007). Only 31% of commercially harvested fish species discarded, as 30 species are partially retained. Another 49 species were totally discarded, including poor cod, red bandfish, anchovy, mackerel, pilchard, swimming crabs, various shrimp species, bivalves, gastropods, cnidarians and echinoderms. On average, small-sized individuals of commercially harvested invertebrate species (other than Nephrops) accounted for 39.4 % and 80.5 % of the total discards in the Ancona and Senigallia areas of the Adriatic respectively. The discarding of non-commercial fish species accounted for up to 29.4 % of the total discarded material in the Pomo pit area but was less frequent in the other two sample areas.

Discards in the eastern-central Mediterranean Sea (Ionian Sea) red shrimp trawl fisheries have been estimated to be between 20 and 50% of total catches, with increasing discards with increasing depth (D’Onghia et al., 2003). The majority of discards were accounted for by 6 species of unwanted fish species, though over 160 bycatch species were recorded in the trial trawls. Discards in bottom trawl fisheries in the Aegean and western Ionian Seas were estimated to be between 39 and 49% of total catch biomass, with fish species discard rates at 34-44% (Machias et al., 2001). 114 fish species were both landed and discarded, with another 82 fish species were discarded only. These estimates are similar to those presented by Tsagarakis et al. (2008) for the otter trawl fishery in the Ionian Sea targeting hake and goatfish, with discards estimated at 38% of catch biomass (range 6.5 to 55%).

In the Strait of Sicily, bottom otter trawls targeting red shrimp, Nephrops and hake have high discards rates in nearshore areas and lower rates in deeper water (on average 20%). The main discarded species are macroinvertebrates (Echinoderms, Porifera, Ascidians, Cnidarians, Bryozoans and Gastropods) and algae (Andaloro, 1996). Small-spotted cat


sharks, mackerel, seabream and conger eels are also caught, with more fish being caught in deeper areas.

1.2 Medium discard fisheries (15-39%)

1.2.1 Bottom Trawls

Bottom trawls also spanned the ‘medium’ discarding category as some bottom trawls had particularly low discard rates. Species targeted in general included hake, Nephrops, sardines, red mullet, red shrimp, octopus and horse mackerel, and discards consisted of largely the same species, under MLS, damaged or in poor condition. These lower impact bottom trawls took place in all regions.

1.2.1.1 ICES regions

North Sea otter trawlers discard similar species to Nephrops trawlers, but discards only form 18% of total catch (Enever et al., 2009). Otter trawlers in the English Channel, Irish sea, Celtic sea and Western approaches discard 36% of total catch. Discarded species are mostly below 30cm in length and made up of dab, gurnards, plaice, lesser-spotted dogfish, whiting, boar fish, poor cod, great silver smelt, horse-mackerel and dragonets (Enever et al., 2007). Single and twin bottom trawls in the southern NE Atlantic discard ~30% of catch. This is made up of hake, Nephrops and sardines (STECF, 2006).


Sanchez et al. (2004) estimated discards in bottom trawl fisheries in the north western Mediterranean to be in the order of a third of catch biomass, with depth the most important factor determining the composition of discards. Bottom trawlers in the Spanish Mediterranean targeting red mullets, octopus horse mackerel, hake, monkfish, anglerfish, white shrimp, Norway lobster and red shrimp were reported to discard <10% of catch in 2006 (STECF-SGRN, 2006), however more recent estimates suggest the discarding rate is in the region of 20-40% (Calvo pers comm). Discard rates in the region of 20% are typical of the largest trawlers operating on the upper slope or in deeper fishing grounds, while discards forming 40% of catch are more common in the smaller vessels operating in shallow waters close to corallaginous or seagrass habitats.

Discarded species include seabream, sardines (>80%), horse mackerel (>40%), anglerfish, monk and hake. Discards of target species such as red shrimp, white shrimp, mullets and octopus are very low, typically less than 10% for fish species, and lower for the shrimp species (<2%) due to their high market value. Of these high value species, almost all sizes are retained and marketed, whereas other commercial species of lower value such as monkfish, anglerfish and hake have relatively higher discard rates due to high-grading (in terms of size and quality of catch). The highest proportion of discards are of species with very low (sardines) or no market value (some invertebrates). Most of the discarding is market induced within these fisheries due to: (i) high grading of low value fish (preferences for larger or better quality fish) and (ii) discarding of species with no or very low commercial value. However there is still some discard outside these categories such as the discarding of juvenile hake due to regulatory constraints.

Certain bottom trawl fisheries reported even lower rates of discarding. Iberian Peninsula crustacean bottom trawls fisheries targeting Norway lobster and rose shrimp discarded only 5-10% of total catch. Discards were composed primarily of low-value or non-commercial species including blue whiting, blackmouth, small-spotted catshark, red gurnard, bluefish and black scabbardfish, with some high-grading of Nephrops also occurring (MRAG, 2007).


1.2.2 Trammel nets and seines in ICES regions

Trammel net discarding can reach between 20-40% of total catch in the North Sea and Northeast Atlantic. They are generally used to target pelagic species such as herring, horse mackerel, mullets and whiting. Discards consist mainly of target species, of which whiting are often below MLS and herring often overquota or high-graded. STECF (2006) reported discard rates of ~40% for trammel nets in the North Sea. In the central and southern Northeast Atlantic trammel net fisheries discard <20% of a small number of species including undersize cod, haddock, megrim, anglerfish and black bellied anglerfish and whiting, roughly half of which are undersize (STECF, 2006).

Discard rates associated with netting in general in the North Sea range from 22-25% with discards over a wide range of lengths (Enever, 2007). Scottish seiners targeting whiting, Norway pout, haddock and grey gurnard discard 25% of total catch, consisting of undersize haddock (Borges et al., 2005). Seining in the English Channel, Irish sea, Celtic sea and Western approaches produces even lower discard rates of~15% (Enever et al., 2007).

1.2.3 Mediterranean pelagic trawls and seines

Pelagic trawls and seines in the Mediterranean target predominantly anchovies, followed by sardines, and sometimes, Trachurus spp. and silver scabbards. These fisheries generally have mid-category discard rates of ~30%. Discard species include high-grading of target species and low value species such as a diverse array of shark species.

Mid-water pelagic trawls targeting small pelagic in the Adriatic discard 33% of the commercial catch. Of sardine catches, Santojanni et al. (2005) reported discards ranging from 1 to 20 % of the total catch in the Chioggia fleet, between 4 and 26 % (mean 15%) in the Porto Garibaldi trawlers and between 11 and 90% in the Ancona trawlers, where the mean discarded proportion was 53% of the total catch.

In the Strait of Sicily, paired mid-water pelagic trawls targeting anchovies have variable discard rates with are high in winter, reaching >50% of total catch, but lower in summer, ranging from 10-15%. This difference is mainly due to the targeting of juvenile areas in winter, so discarded species are mainly undersize anchovies and sardines and other pelagics such as mackerel, discarded due to minimum landing sizes and low market value. Silver scabbardfish are similarly targeted by pelagic trawls and although no minimum size are in place, so small fish are discarded due to low market value.

1.3 Low discard (<15%)

1.3.1 Pelagic trawls (ICES regions)

Pelagic trawls and seine nets generally had lower discard rates in European waters outside the Mediterranean. Although some species are discarded due to being below MLS, pelagic discards are generally found across a wide size range.

Dutch pelagic freezer trawlers in the North Sea and Western approaches targeting herring, mackerel, horse mackerel and blue whiting discard 10% of catch. Discards are mainly juvenile mackerel due to high-grading resulting from the low quota allocated for mackerel (9% of EU quota) (Borges et al., 2008). Similar discard rates have been documented for factory pelagic trawlers. In the English Channel, Irish Sea, Celtic Sea and Western


approaches, 12% of catches are discarded, and fish are both retained and discarded across a wide length range (Enever et al., 2007). STECF (2006) reported low discard rates for pelagic trawlers in the North Sea, consisting of target pelagic species such as herring, above the MLS, suggesting quota restrictions may be giving rise to high grading incentives in these fisheries.

1.3.2 Nets (trammel, gillnets and lampara)

Trammel nets in the Greek Mediterranean have a lower discard rate than those in ICES regions, making up 14.7% of total catch. This is a fishery targeting striped red mullet, black scorpion fish and sea bream. The main commercial species which are discarded are the annular sea bream, the red porgy and common two-banded seabream and the non-commercial species include the Atlantic lizardfish, Mediterranean Chromis and streaked gurnard are all completely discarded (Goncalves et al., 2007). However the species composition of discards is highly seasonal. The main reasons for discarding are: (1) species of no or low commercial value, (2) individuals of commercial species with low value, and (3) species of commercial value but not caught in sufficient quantities to warrant sale.

Lampara are a type of surrounding net (using lights) in the Mediterranean which have very low discard rates, generally below 15% of catch in the Adriatic. In the Strait of Sicily, lampara targeting anchovies discard 5-10% of catches, formed of small-sized mackerel and sardines. Gill and entangling nets in the Strait of Sicily also have very low levels of discarding, although no precise estimates are available. These discard benthic macroinvertebrates such as Echinoderms, Porifera, Ascidians, Cnidarians and Bryozoans and catches may also contain elasmobranch species.

These low discard rates for trammel nets fisheries are not only associated with the Mediterranean as lower discard rates are also reported in some ICES regions. In the central Northeast Atlantic, trammel nets discard <20% of a small number of species. These consist of undersize cod, hake, haddock, anglerfish and blackbellied anglerfish as well as megrim and whiting which are discarded over a range of sizes (STECF, 2006). In the southern Northeast Atlantic trammel net and gill net catches are also similarly low (STECF, 2006).

1.3.3 Artisanal fisheries

Discarding in artisanal fisheries is not particularly well documented, though gear types such as including traps, pots and other small-scale gear are generally thought to have low discards rates (<15%). Traps are highly selective targeting common octopus, spiny lobster and some bony fishes. Undersize or non-commercial catches can usually be released alive so catches such as berried lobsters can be returned to the sea. Discards in the small scale fishing fleet of the Patraikos Gulf in Greece were generally due to low commercial value, with discard volumes highest for longline and small mesh sized trammel nets (Tzanatos et al., 2007). Species specific discard rates displayed strong seasonal dependency.

Artisanal fisheries in the Adriatic include a range of gears such as gillnets, trammel nets, pots and fyke nets and basket traps. These target a range of species such as common sole, Sand steenbras, seabass, cuttlefish molluscs mantis shrimp, horse mackerel. These fisheries have a mean discard rate of 7%, dominated by shads and crabs (Fabi & Grati, 2005). The main reasons for discarding are due to catches of species in abundances which are too low to market, damaged specimens and undersize individuals.


1.4 Summary

In summary, beam trawlers have the highest levels of discards in all locations, regardless of whether they are targeting invertebrates or flatfish (Table 1). Other types of bottom trawlers also have high rates of discarding but are more variable in general. Mediterranean longlines and hydraulic dredges have similarly high discard rates including endangered species and non-commercial benthic invertebrates. Bottom trawlers in general target mixed fisheries and have a wide range of discard rates, ranging from 18-70% discards. No gear or regional differentiation was apparent, so differences may be due to the specific characteristics of each gear such as mesh size and selectivity modifications which affect the level of bycatch as described by Catchpole and Revill (2007).

Pelagic trawls are generally more targeted fisheries with lower levels of discards. In the Mediterranean these target predominantly anchovies and sardines, discarding target species due to high grading and MLS restrictions as well as discarding some non-commercial shark species. Pelagic trawl discard rates are even lower outside the Mediterranean where herring, mackerel, horse mackerel and blue whiting are targeted and the same species are discarded through high grading and minimum size restrictions.

Trammel nets in ICES regions generally have medium levels of discarding. These fisheries discard target species such as herring, horse mackerel, mullets and whiting which are below MLS and overquota. In the Mediterranean trammel nets have lower levels of discarding. Here, anchovies, striped red mullet and black scorpionfish are among species caught. A mixture of undersize target species and other low value species such as Trachurus spp., sardines and macroinvertebrates are discarded, mainly due to high grading. Artisanal fisheries also have low levels of discarding.

Overall, the majority of species in ICES regions are either discarded due to MLS restrictions (such as highly valuable species like cod, hake and plaice), and to a lesser extent or to market forces at play resulting in discards of fish with low commercial value in general (whiting) or for small sizes (megrim and horse mackerel) (STECF, 2006; Catchpole et al., 2005). In the North Sea in particular, discarding of all species is generally related to MLS restrictions.

In the Mediterranean fleet characteristics are very varied with multiple gear types and a wide range of vessel sizes fishing a variety of habitats such as seagrass beds and coral reefs. Discards are characterised by extremely high species diversity (there may be ~100 species in a bottom otter trawl and of these ~40 retained) with a high percentage of non-commercial catch (commercial portion of catch may range from 30-80%) and high variability in total discard rate due to seasonality. Endangered species are frequently caught and benthic flora is often hauled up with catch, some of which is from sensitive benthic. Due to the effort based management regime in force in the Mediterranean, with exception of blue fin tuna, no over-quota discarding occurs. Catches are discarded primarily because of low commercial value of the species concerned. High-grading of small fish is a recent occurrence as traditionally smaller fish were eaten, but larger sized fish now fetch a higher market price, resulting in a high grading incentive (Fabio and Grati, 2005). In the Mediterranean discards include both species with no commercial value and marketable species. The latter are represented both by undersized specimens, considered unmarketable for their minimum landing sizes, and species discarded for their low market value, despite their legal size.


In conclusion, despite the differences in discarding among fisheries, discard rates are similar in particular metiers (gear, target species, region). Therefore the impact analysis will be based around the three levels of discard rates identified above.


Table 1. Trends in discarding in EU waters

ICES regions High Discards (>40%) Medium Discards (15-39%) Low Discards (<15%) Beam Trawls Bottom trawls Bottom trawls Trammel nets Pelagic trawls Target species

Flatfish (sole, plaice)

Nephrops Horse mackerel, monkfish, megrim, hake Cod, haddock, Cephalopods mullet

Hake, Nephrops, sardines Herring, horse mackerel, mullets, whiting

Herring, mackerel, horse mackerel, blue whiting

Discard species

Plaice, sole, cod, haddock, whiting, dab

Target species Target species and dab, gurnards, plaice, lesser-spotted dogfish, whiting, boar fish, poor cod, gt silver smelt horse-mackerel and dragonets

Target species Target species

Discard characteristics

Undersize target species Undersize target species Low commercial value

Overquota and high-graded herring Below MLS whiting

High-grading of low value individuals, below MLS

Mediterranean High Discards (>40%) Medium Discards (15-39%) Low Discards (<15%) Beam trawls Longline Hydraulic dredges Bottom trawls Bottom trawls Pelagic trawls Trammel

nets/gillnets/lampara Target species

Cephalopods and scallops (Adriatic)

Albacore, swordfish Clams (Adriatic) Mullet Red mullet, red shrimp, octopus, horse mackerel

Anchovies, sardines, red mullet, Trachurus spp., silver scabbards

Anchovies, striped red mullet, black scorpionfish

Discard species

Invertebrates, Nephrops

Swordfish, bluefin tuna, tope shark, turtles

Clams and other benthic invertebrates

Small commercial and non commercial invertebrates

Target species Target species, sharks

Target species, Trachurus spp., sardines, macroinvertebrates

Discard characteristics

Undersize target species

Undersize target species Overquota (bluefin) Endangered species

Undersize target species, species with low or no commercial value

Undersize target species Low commercial value High diversity (~135 spp. discarded in the Ionian and Agean seas)

Under MLS, damaged or small

Below MLS, high grading of low values species and small individuals

High grading (small/damaged individuals) Below MLS


Table 2 Detailed summary of discards in the EU regions

Region covered Target species

Gear Discard rate (proportion of total catch by weight)

Main discarded species Reason for discarding How are discards recorded and/or estimated?

References

IXa, VIIIc (Iberian Peninsula)

Norway lobster rose shrimp

Crustacean bottom trawl (large-scale)

5-10%

Blue whiting Blackmouth Small-spotted catshark Red gurnard Bluefish Black scabbardfish

Low discard volume of low-value or non-commercial species Highgrading of Nephrops

EU programme for monitoring national discards (in PT) through observer and on board sampling

MRAG 2007 report Annex 3

IXa, VIIIc (Iberian Peninsula)

Hake, horse mackerel, monkfish, megrim

Finfish bottom trawl (large-scale)

30-60% Up to 90% for hake fishery

Target species Under-sized fish and low-value / non-commercial by-catch. Hake high-grading at the beginning of the season due to individual vessel quota allocation

EU programme for monitoring national discards (in PT) through observer and on board sampling


IV (North Sea) ( UK, Netherlands, Denmark and Belgium fleets)

Sole, Plaice, Dab (also lemon sole, megrims and turbot)

Beam trawl For the UK fleet the average discard rate is 50% consisting of mainly dab and plaice

Plaice Sole Dab Gurnards and others Mean discard rates (by number): plaice = 13-81% whiting = 98% dab = 65-98% sole = 11-27% (STECF, 2007)

Under-size plaice Under-size sole Below MLS Marketable size (takes precedent over MLS where relevant) Selectivity of gear Absence of a market for the species in question e.g. for whiting and dab. Some high-grading for sole By-catch such as dab, dragonets, dogfish and gurnards have low market value

According to STECF, 2007; discards are estimated through sampling and/or observer programmes.


North Sea IV (English and Welsh fleets)

Nephrops? Beam trawl (large-scale)

31%

Dab 89% ,Whiting 52% European plaice 36%Norway lobster 15% Gurnards 74%, Cod 40% Long rough dab 98%, Haddock 35% Lemon sole 39%, Dover sol2 20%

Undersize Enever et al., 2009 Data (2003-2006)

North Sea IV, IIa, VIId

Beam trawl 40-60% target and non-target species Plaice, whiting and sole discards almost all below MLS

STECF, 2006. Commission staff working paper

Southern North sea Flatfish plaice and sole

beam trawl 71–95% mostly dab and plaice (50%) Catchpole, 2005





References

Northern North sea Nephrops norvegicus

Nephrops otter trawl

45%- 59% Whiting constitutes 74% of discards while non-landed species, mostly dabs, make up 11% of the discards by weight

Catchpole, 2005

Northern North sea cod, haddo ck

and whiting

roundfish otter

trawl

20–48% for cod, 30–41% haddock 51–65% for whiting

Catchpole, 2005

North sea and NE Atlantic

Flatfish Beam trawl 56-72% Flatfish 50% plaice, 90% dab, 90% whiting and grey gurnard are discarded.

under-size shrimp Ullewiet et al., 2009

IV and VIId Flatfish Beam-trawl ( It is not possible to present data on the discard rates relative to the overall catch due to the differences in sampling strategy)

Discard rate (% by number and weight) European plaice 75.9, 38.1 Common sole 26.7, 12.2 Common dab 97.6 ,83.8 Haddock 3.4, 3.5 Atlantic cod 74.3, 50.8 Whiting 94.9, 72.5 Turbot 3.5, 0.5 Norway lobster 70.2, 15.9 European flounder 69.7, 44.8 Angler (Monk) 11.1, 2.1 Brill 19.1, 1.2 Grey gurnard 99.6, 97.6 Red gurnard 81.2, 63.2 Lemon sole 99.4 ,16.4

Graham and Beare, 2008.

IV and VIId flatfish Beam trawls 70%

Plaice 50% Consultation_250408-en. Commission non-paper


Nephrops Nephrops trawl (large-scale)

36%

Dab 89%, Whiting 52% European plaice 36%, Norway lobster 15%, Gurnards 74% Cod 40%, Long rough dab 98% Haddock 35%,Lemon sole 39% Dover sol2 20%

Undersized Enever et al., 2009

North Sea IV (English and

Nephrops? Otter trawl (large-scale)

18%

Dab 89%, Whiting 52% European plaice 36%,

Undersized Enever et al., 2009





References

Welsh fleets) Norway lobster 15%, Gurnards 74%, Cod 40% Long rough dab 98%, Haddock 35% Lemon sole 39%, Dover sol2 20%


Nephrops? Netting (large-scale)

25% o Enever et al., 2009


Demersal trawl and seine

20% Haddock, herring, plaice and hake discards almost all below MLS Approx half of sole discards are below MLS

STECF, 2006


Trammel nets 40%

Herring horse mackerel, mackerel, mullets, whiting

- STECF, 2006.


Pelagic trawl Low discard rates

only pelagic species Herring discards not below MLS, but same length as landings. Possibly overquota?

STECF, 2006. Commission staff working paper

North Sea Iv Western waters VII (Dutch vessels)

Herring, mackerel, horse mackerel, blue whiting

Pelagic freezer trawler

10%

Mackerel Herring Horse mackerel

Juvenile mackerel discarded and highgrading of mackerel Small quota for mackerel (9% of EU) gives rise to incentives for high grading. Most mackerel caught are under the minimum landing size

Borges et al., 1998.

Ireland VI , VII Prawns (Nephrops norvegicus), cod, haddock, whiting, megrim, anglerfish

Otter trawl (large-scale)

17-60%

Haddock, whiting, megrim, blue-mouth, dog-fish

Undersized haddock discarded

Irish discard sampling programme has placed scientific observers’ on board Irish commercial vessels.

Borges et al 2005.

Ireland VI, VII

whitefish “Scottish” seiners (large-scale)

25%

Whiting Norway pout Haddock Grey gurnard


Irish discard sampling programme has placed scientific observers’ on board Irish commercial vessels

Borges et al 2005.

Ireland VI, VII

Sole and plaice

Beam trawlers (large-scale)

67%

Dogfish Whiting Plaice dab


Irish discard sampling programme has placed scientific observers’ on board Irish commercial

Borges et al 2005.





References

vessels VII (France, Spain, UK and Ireland.)

Nephrops Bottom trawl Discard rates by weight (% by species and by total fish)

Nephrops 29 % Whiting 72% Haddock 81 % Angler(=Monk) 13% Atlantic cod 11% Megrim 27% European plaice 76% European hake 54% Angler (Monk) 1 %

Graham and Beare, 2008.

VII Nephrops Bottom trawl 50%

Consultation_250408-en. Commission non-paper

VII (English Channel, Irish sea, Celtic sea and Western approaches)

Beam trawling 42%

Gurnards 82%, common cuttlefish58%, European plaice 43%, dab 97%, lesser-spotted dogfish 99%, poor cod 100%, dragonets 100%, whiting 83%, whiting pout 75%, megrim 30%

The majority of discarded fish arising from beam and otter trawling are less than 30 cm in length.

CEFAS catch and discard data collection programme

Enever et al., 2007.


Otter trawling 36%

Dab 96%, gurnards 73%, European plaice 60%, lesser-spotted dogfish 75%, whiting 68%, boar fish 100%, Great silver smelt 100%, poor cod 100%, horse mackerel 81%, dragonets 100%

The majority of discarded fish arising from beam and otter trawling are less than 30 cm in length.




Netting 22% fish are both retained and discarded across a wide length range




Factory pelagic

12% fish are both retained and discarded across a wide length range




Local pelagic fish are both retained and discarded across a wide length range



VII (English Channel,

Seining 15% fish are both retained and discarded across a wide length

CEFAS catch and discard data collection






References

Irish sea, Celtic sea and Western approaches)

range programme


Long-lining 10% fish are both retained and discarded across a wide length range



North east Atlantic –North (V, VI, XII, XIV)

Pair bottom trawl and Scottish seine

40% Cod, haddock, saithe, whiting Cod discards mostly below MLS Haddock – approximately 2/3of discards below MLS Saithe – none of discards below MLS. Other influences eg over-quota? Whiting – approx half discards below MLS

STECF, 2006.

North east Atlantic – North (V, VI, XII, XIV)

Single bottom trawl

20-40%

Haddock, herring, mackerel, plaice, saithe, whiting

Saithe – none of discards below MLS. Other influences eg over-quota?

STECF, 2006.

North east Atlantic – central (VII, except VIId)

Trammel nets, pelagic trawl, Scottish seine, twin bottom trawl

<20% small number of species Cod, hake and haddock discards mostly below MLS Anglerfish and blackbellied anglerfish discards below MLS Megrim not generally discarded above MLS ~1/2 whiting discards below MLS

STECF, 2006.


Beam trawl 60%

Anglerfish, herring, hake, horse mackerel, mackerel, whiting

Anglerfish discards below MLS STECF, 2006.


single bottom trawl

40% Mainly herring haddock and mackerel

Only ~1/3 of cod discards below MLS Majority of hake discards below MLS ~1.2 of haddock, whiting and megrim discards below MLS

STECF, 2006.

North East Atlantic – south (VIII, IX, X, CECAF)

Trammel nets and gillnets

<20% few species STECF, 2006.

North East Atlantic – south (VIII, IX, X,

Pair bottom trawl

60% mackerel , horse mackerel Anglerfish MSS (minimum sale size of 32 cm) has no effect on the decision to discard, which is

STECF, 2006.





References

CECAF) probably related to the species high commercial value but also to the uncertainty around the sale size. Almost all hake discards below MLS MLS has no effect on Horse mackerel - discards almost all above MLS Mackerel discarded above and below MLS – mixture of economic and MLs factors


Twin trawl bottom

30% hake, Nephrops and sardine STECF, 2006.


Single bottom trawl

30%

majority of species, particularly sardine

Anglerfish MSS (minimum sale size of 32 cm) has no effect on the decision to discard, which is probably related to the species high commercial value but also to the uncertainty around the sale size. Almost all hake discards are below MLS MLS has no effect on Horse mackerel - discards almost all above MLS Mackerel discarded above and below MLS – mixture of economic and MLs factors

STECF, 2006.

Baltic Sea (IIIb-d) Demersal trawl High 100% of herring <20% of cod

Almost all discarded cod is below MLS

STECF, 2006.

Cyclades, Greece Trammel nets

14.7%

Commercial species: Mullus surmuletus (0.2%) Scorpaena porcus ( 0.7%) Pagellus erythrinus (8.5% ) Below minimum legal size: Diplodus annularis (97.5%) Pagrus pagrus ( 81.5%)

Damage or poor condition, below minimum legal size, non-commercial, below MLS

Survey Goncalves et al., 2007).





References

Diplodus vulgaris (-40%) Damaged/poor condition: Merluccius merluccius (16.4%) Non – commercial: Synodus saurus (100%) Chelidonichthys lastoviza (100%) Chromis chromis (100%)

Adriatic

Predominantly anchovy, also sardine

Surrounding nets with light (lampara)

Very low in general. Uo to 15% when the catch is very high

Sardine Low commercial value Santojanni et al., 2005

Adriatic Solea vulgaris Lithognathus mormyrus, Dicentrarchus labrax, Sciaena umbra, Umbrina cirrosa mugilids Sepia officinalis Lithognathus mormyrus Nassarius mutabilis

Sole gillnets, gillnet, trammel net, pots and fyke nets, basket traps (Artisanal)

7%

Aporrhais pespelecani, S. mantis, Trachurus mediterraneus and T. Lucerna Alosa fallax, Liocarcinus vernalis, Goneplax rhomboides and Corystes cassivelaunus dominated discards

Too low abundance to market, damaged specimens and undersized,

Fabi & Grati, 2005





References

Adriatic Swordfish and albacore

longline 50%

swordfish (50%) Thunnus thynnus (Atlantic bluefin tuna) (5-7% of catch by weight and number) ; Bullet tuna, Little tunny, Atlantic bonito, Blue shark (10-20% of catch), Oilfish, Thresher, Atlantic pomfret, Common dolphin,Porbeagle, Leerfish.

Undersized swordfish discarded Marano et al., 2005

Adriatic Hake longline Blackmouth catshark European conger, Blackbelly rosefish, Bluntnose sixgill shark, Silver scabbardfish, smooth-hound, Blackspot(=red) seabream, Greater forkbeard,Wreckfish, Rays and skates, Slender rockfish, Picked dogfish, Piper gurnard

Low commercial value Ungaro et al., (2005)

Adriatic Anchovies/ sardines

Midwater pelagic trawl

38% 1-20% Chioggia 4 to 26 % Porto Garibaldi 11 - 90% Ancona .

Sardines Low commercial value Santojanni et al. (2005)

Adriatic Nephrops But other speciestotally retained and 30

Bottom otter trawl

40-50% (31.0 % commercial species)

Osteichthyes, poor cod, red bandfish, European anchovy, mackerel and European pilchard, swimming crabs,various shrimp species. Bivalves, gastropods,

On average, small-sized individuals of commercially harvested invertebrate species (other than Nephrops) accounted for 39.4 % and 80.5 % of the total

Sanchez et al. (2007)





References

species partially retained

cnidarians and echinoderms totally discarded

discards in the Ancona and Senigallia areas respectively. The discarding of non-commercial fish species accounted for up to 29.4 % of the total discarded material in the Pomo pit area (e.g. Fries’ goby, Lesueurigobius friesii), but was less frequent in the other two sample areas.

Adriatic pectinid fishing on sandy bottoms offshore

Rapido beam trawl

90% (Pranovi et al.,2001). 50% (Italian rapidos targeted to scallops).

echinoderms (32%), crustaceans (26%), molluscs (23%) and porifers (15%),

No commercial value Tudela (2004)

Adriatic flatfish fishing -muddy coastal areas,

Rapido beam trawl

66% (Pranovi et al.,2001). North Adriatic, 86% (Raicevich, 2008)

molluscs and crustaceans account for the bulk of discards (60% and 30%, respectively)

No commercial value Tudela (2004) Raicevich (2008)

Central Adriatic clam, Chamelea gallina

Hydraulic dredges

~50% of total catch 87% (Raicevich, 2008)

Undersized target species, other benthic invertebrates, fish poorly represented

60% of discards undersized target species (<25 mm) 40% of discards other benthic invertebrates with no market value

Morello et al. (2005)

Strait of Siciliy anchovy lampara 5-10% of catches

Trachurus spp. and Sardinella aurita

Small-sized with no commercial value

Strait of Siciliy Gill and entangling nets

“Very low” no estimates available

Few benthic macro-invertebrate such as Echinoderms, Porifera, Ascidians, Cnidarians and Bryozoans. Possibilty of elasmobranch catches

No commercial value and damaged specimens.

Common octopus, spiny lobsters and also bony

Traps Very low Traps have the great vantage that specimens of species with no commercial value or undersized specimens can be released after the trap is recuperated. Traps





References

fishes (mainly Sparidae).

allow also returning at sea or using for direct restocking berried females crawfish (Palinurus spp.) and berried female lobster (Homarus gammarus

Strait of Siciliy albacore (Thunnus alalunga) The blue shark Prionace glauca is retained

longlines High Swordfish, elasmobranchs – notably: tope shark (Galerhinus galeus). The pelagic stingray Pteroplatytrygon violacea sea turtles, mainly Caretta caretta.

Undersized swordfish and species with no commercial value

Anchovies Paired mid-water pelagic trawl

>50% in winter 10-15% in summer

Undersized anchovies and sardines, and other pelagics species, such as Trachurus spp. and Sardinella aurita.

Undersized, low market value

Strait of Siciliy Lepidopus caudatus.

Pelagic trawl Small individuals of target species Individuals below market size (no MLS in place)

Strait of Siciliy Parapenaeus longirostris, Aristaeomorpha foliacea, N. norvegicus, M. merluccius

Bottom otter trawl

High in near shore areas, lower in deeper water. Mean 20% (decline since 1980)

Macro-invertebrate (Echinoderms, Porifera, Ascidians, Cnidarians, Bryozoans and Gastropods) and algae, included coralline red algae (Corallinaceae). Fish: Scyliorhinus canicula, Raja spp., Trachurus spp., Spicara spp., Boops boops, Conger conger, etc. sea turtles Caretta caretta are reported during the winter in the Gulf of Gabes. Deep areas: (mostly fish) Gadiculus argenteus, Hymenocephalus italicus, Nezumia schlerorhynchus, Coelorhyncus coelorhyncus, Hoplostethus mediterraneus, Galeus melastomus, Etmopterus spinax, Raja spp., Chimaera monstrosa

Discards include both species with no market value and undersized specimens of commercial species.

(Andaloro,1996)





References

Some crustaceans: small shrimp Plesionika heterocarpus and the deep water crab Macropipus tuberculatus and brachiopods

Spanish Mediterranean

Red mullets Octopus Horse mackerels European hake Monkfish Anglerfish White shrimp Norway lobster, red shrimp

Bottom trawl <10% More recent estimates 20-40% The discard rate in the region of 20% is typical of the biggest trawlers operating in the upper slope or in deeper fishing grounds, while the 40% discard rate is more common in the smaller vessels operating in shallow waters close to corallaginous or seagrass habitats

Pandora (bream), sardine (80% discarded) and horse mackerel (>40% discarded) Anglerfish, monk and hake. Discards for target species such as Red shrimp, White shrimp, mullets and Octopus are very low, typically less than 10% for fish species and lower for the two shrimp species (<2%). One species of the group of octopuses (Eledone moschata) have been one high sporadic discard. Discards of mullet and red mullet in Spain Mediterranean quite inexistent due to the high market value.

Anglerfish, monk and hake are discarded due to small sizes and damaged fish. The market causes play an important role in the occurrence of discards. 1) Market induced high grading (preferences for larger size or better quality of anglerfish, monk and hake, also it includes discards of damaged fish especially in anglerfish), discarding of low or no market value animals (pandora, sardine and invertebrates). 2) The incidence of discards concentrates in species which has low commercial interest, although part of the commercial catch may also be discarded to comply with local fishing regulations (especially juveniles of hake)

STECF (2006)

Agean and Western Ionian

114 fish species

Bottom trawl 39-49% 82 fish species low commercial value

(Machias et al., 2001).

Ionian Sea Merluccius merluccius and Mullus barbatus

the otter trawl fishery

6.5-55% low commercial value

Tsagarakis et al. (2008)

Greece Bottom trawlers

45% low commercial value

Papaconstantinou et al.,





References

2007 Patraikos Gulf in Greece

Small-scale longlines and trammel nets

low commercial value

Tzanatos et al., 2007


ANNEXES

1 Greece

1.1 Geographical area

This case study provides data covering the whole Greek region, focussing specifically on the Aegean and Ionian Seas.

Figure 1 Aegean and Ionian Seas

Information on discarding in Greek fisheries is based on several ad hoc studies of the problem focusing either on specific gear types or fishing areas. Most work has focussed on trawl fisheries because of the suspected high values of discarded biomass. In all studies conducted so far the method of on board sampling has been applied. If we focus on the commercial species three reasons have been identified as incentives to discard:

• Low commercial value, mainly due to low demand or undersize species

• Damaged fish body due to the consumption by other marine organisms

• Damaged fish body due to the human intervention (handling of gears)

1.2 Fishery types (eg longline, demersal trawl, pelagic trawl/seine, gillnet)

In Greece fishermen use a variety of fishing gears. Gears in descending order of discard rates are: trawls, purse seines, nets, bottom longlines, beach seine, drifting longlines, the pots and traps.

Trawl fisheries in Greek areas (eastern Ionian Sea and Cyclades Islands) are typical multispecies fisheries that do not target any particular species. Eastern Ionian Sea trawlers mainly operate in deep-water covering a wide range of depths, while the Cyclades Islands trawlers mainly operated on the continental shelf (Machias et al., 2003).

Of all gears used in the region, trawls are responsible for the majority of discards (Stergiou et al., 1998; Hall, 1999). In the Mediterranean, the discarded fraction of otter-trawl catches ranges from 20 to 70% by


weight, mainly depending on the area and the depth of trawling (Carbonell et al., 1998; Stergiou et al., 1998; Machias et al., 2001; D’Onghia et al., 2003; Kelleher, 2004). Of the 300 species caught in the eastern Mediterranean, only ~10% are consistently marketed and 30% are occasionally retained, depending on the sizes caught and market demands, whereas >60% are always discarded (Machias et al., 2001).

Discards in bottom trawl fisheries in the Aegean and western Ionian Seas were estimated to be between 39 and 49% of total catch biomass, with fish species discard rates at 34-44% (Machias et al., 2001). 114 fish species were both landed and discarded, with another 82 fish species only discarded. These estimates are similar to those presented by Tsagarakis et al. (2008) for the otter trawl fishery in the Ionian Sea targeting Merluccius merluccius and Mullus barbatus, with discards estimated at 38% of catch biomass (ranging from 6.5 to 55%).

Discards in bottom trawl Hellenic fisheries have been estimated to be in the region of 45% of total catches by weight (Papaconstantinou et al., 2007), with lower discards (in the region of 10%) produced by small-scale fisheries (Tzanatos et al., 2007). Discarding in the small scale fishing fleet of the Patraikos Gulf in Greece was generally due to low commercial value, with discard volumes highest for longline and small mesh sized trammel nets (Tzanatos et al., 2007). Species specific discard rates displayed strong seasonal dependency. In general, the mean size of discarded fish by Hellenic fisheries increases with decreasing landings value for the species.

1.3 Regulations on discards relevant to the area

In Greece there is no National legislation concerning discarding. The legislation that is implemented is that from the EC. Specifically, Council Regulation 1967/2006 has been adopted and applied in the Greek fisheries. This regulation determines the minimum mesh size for the trawl net and gill net in order to reduce the discarded biomass.

1.4 Discard rates by fishery (species discarded, proportion of catch discarded)

In the framework of the national fishery data collection system in Greece there is systematic collection of sampling information concerning the total discarded fish biomass based on the declaration of the fishermen during the sampling of the landings. The fishermen declare the estimated quantity of discarded fish per fishing day and not the total discarded biomass. Although this information has lower credibility compared to the information gained by an onboard sampling program it provides an indication of the trends in discarding biomass. Table 3shows the estimated total discarded biomass in the years 2003-2008.

Table 3 Discarded fish biomass by year and fishing gear in Kg (2003- 2008)

Gear 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Trawl 842.836 1.684.355 2.201.787 2.496.987 937.792 2.647.847

Purse seine 605.255 637.295 910.194 1.105.173 572.916 1.030.548

Beach seine 269.749 573.452 502.209 430.808 137.151 468.784

Drifting longlines 139.276 281.644 241.245 385.448 385.825 269.489


Gear 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Pots & Traps 11.142 36.238 19.348 75.895 68.211 38.461

Nets 1.055.445 716.009 620.612 880.631 703.580 688.114

Bottom longlines 280.214 687.578 1.045.170 886.413 456.332 529.720

Other gears 78.468 17.958 2.957 8.201 2.199

Total 3.282.387 4.634.529 5.543.522 6.269.555 3.261.806 5.675.163

The conclusion derived from Table 3 is that the greatest quantities are discarded by trawlers and they also display an increasing trend. The high value of discards of nets is reduced due to the application of technical measures on the gears (increased minimum mesh size). Table 4 shows the percentage of the discards of total landings.

Table 4 Ratio of discarded fish biomass to total landings (Kg)

Gear 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Trawls 3,6% 6,5% 7,8% 9,6% 3,8% 11,0%

Purse seines 1,6% 1,5% 1,8% 2,1% 1,4% 2,3%

Nets 2,1% 1,5% 1,5% 2,3% 2,1% 2,0%

Bottom longlines 2,0% 4,1% 6,2% 7,5% 3,8% 4,1%

Beach seines 4,5% 8,3% 10,3% 8,1% 4,6% 10,3%

Drifting longlines 4,2% 5,7% 7,0% 4,7% 4,6% 4,2%

Pots & Traps 4,2% 0,1% 0,1% 0,4% 0,4% 0,2%

A closer look at the estimated discards data (Table 5) indicates that larger trawlers are responsible for the highest rates of discarding.


Table 5 Discarded biomass by fishing area, gear and length class (Kg)

Area Gear

Length

Class (m)

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

12-24 255.786 763.476 924.095 868.947 410.757 853.028 Trawls

24-40 392.965 732.706 1.271.314 1.620.175 466.960 1.704.313

12-24 537.706 581.760 803.313 951.318 385.463 791.040 Purse seines

24-40 67.549 55.535 99.089 153.357 187.454 239.508

<12 1.008.377 561.934 493.131 768.247 641.100 591.411 Nets

12-24 36.525 15.439 9.424 43.727 41.375 39.032

<12 273.577 665.035 965.382 813.652 438.379 472.596 Bottom longlines

12-24 6.637 22.543 31.848 65.678 17.811 56.904

<12 177.685 518.739 494.273 407.310 112.152 358.788 Beach seines

12-24 9.291 16.501 6.451 20.692 15.430 96.037

<12 41.335 202.390 142.919 140.099 153.023 110.477 Drifting longlines

12-24 92.308 79.254 97.845 240.141 232.801 159.012

<12 30.322 18.766 68.022 67.207 38.461

Aegean Sea

Pots & Traps

12-24 11.142 5.915 583 7.873 1.004

12-24 117.462 156.510 6.379 7.866 54.075 63.922 Trawls

24-40 76.623 31.663 6.000 26.584

Ionian Sea

Purse 12-24 7.792 497


Area Gear

Length

Class (m)

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

seines

<12 10.544 138.636 117.867 68.248 21.105 45.690 Nets

12-24 189 409 11.980

<12 47.940 7.076 142 220 Bottom longlines

12-24 6

<12 82.773 37.490 1.485 2.806 9.569 13.959 Beach seines

12-24 721

Drifting longlines

<12 5.633 0 480 5.208

Total 3.282.387 4.634.529 5.543.522 6.269.555 3.261.806 5.675.163

The data indicate that the fishing gear responsible for the producing the highest rates of discarding are the trawlers followed by the purse seines, the nets, the bottom long lines and the beach seines (although since June 2010 beach seines have not been activate).

1.5 Reasons for discarding (under-sized, highgrading) (i.e. no over-quota discarding in effort managed fisheries)

Discards include species which have no commercial value (even rare/ endangered/ protected species) as well as commercial species. The latter are represented by specimens smaller than the legal landing size and species/ sizes discarded for their low market value (Tsagarakis et al., 2008).

Low commercial value appears to be the main reason for the discarding of commercial species in small scale fisheries (Tzanatos et al., 2007) as well as in trawl fisheries (Machias A. et al., 2001). There are a number of reasons affecting discard rates including: the fishing area, the fishing depth, the fishing period the size of the species and the current commercial value of the species. All studies confirm the magnitude of the problem as well as the variability of the discarded biomass in terms of total discards to total landings ratio as well as in terms of discarded commercial species to discarded non commercial species ratio (Tzanatos, 2006; Lambrakis, 2004).

The species composition of discards in experimental trammel net fisheries in Cyclades islands (Greece) displayed strong seasonal dependency (Goncalves et al., 2007). The main reasons for discarding were: (1)


species of no or low commercial value, (2) individuals of commercial species with low value, and (3) species of commercial value but not caught in sufficient quantities to warrant sale. Overall discard rates, by catch numbers, carried round 15% for the Cyclades. The species composition of discards in the trammel net fisheries examined was greater than for other static gear types, e.g. longlines and gillnets.


2 Spanish Mediterranean


The Spanish Mediterranean fishery is widespread along the 2600 km coastline, with a shelf extension, between 0 and 180 m depth, estimated to be approximately 44,100 km2. Five geographical Subareas have been established: GSA 1 Northern Alborán Sea; GSA 2: Alborán Island; GSA 5 Balearic Islands; GSA 6 Northern Spain and GSA 7 Lyon Gulf.

The fleet can be split in two main subsectors: demersal fisheries, which target multiple species and monospecific pelagic fisheries directed at the small pelagic species. In this review, we will focus on the demersal trawling fleet as it has the highest discard rate and biggest contribution to the landings in the Mediterranean Spanish fishery, with a value of landings of 195 millions in 2009 and around 3500 employees.

On December 2009, the trawling fleet was composed of 824 vessels covering 27 units in the length category 6-12 meters,197 units in the length category 12-18, 425 units in the category 18-24 m, and 175 in the category 24-40m. The trawl fleet is only allowed to use one fishing system. The gear is a bottom trawl with vertical opening from 1 to 2 meters, with a diamond mesh size of 40 mm. This general model is modified with some technical adaptations depending on the area and geomorphologic bottom features.

Fleet segmentation consists of three metiers:

1. Mixed Demersal species (typically vessels 6-18 meters), with a value of landings in 2009 of €33 million, with a net profit per vessel around €25.000. The employment on board was 642 FTE.

2. Mixed Demersal and red shrimps species, both taking place on the shelf and shelf break (typically vessels 18-24 meters and operating in the upper slope of continental shelf), the value of landings in 2009 was €97 million, with a net profit per vessel around €15.000. The employment on board was 1975 FTE in 2009.

3. Red shrimp fisheries operated on the slope up to 400 m depth (length category 24-40m). The value of landings in 2009 was €65 million, yielding significant losses. The employment on board was 987 FTE in 2009.

The Principal target species for the “Mixed Demersal” and “Mixed Demersal and red shrimps” fleet segments are Red mullets (Mullus surmuletus, M. barbatus); Octopus (Octopus vulgaris) Horse mackerels (Trachurus trachurus, T. mediterraneus); European hake (Merluccius merluccius); Monkfish (Lophius piscatorius) Anglerfish (L. budegassa); White shrimp (Parapenaeus longirostris) and Norway lobster, (Nephrops norvegicus). While for the “red shrimps” fleet segment the target species is the red shrimp (Aristeus antennatus).

Economically, the red shrimp is the most important species in the trawl fishery, contributing between 30 and 50% of the total incomes for the trawl fleet. However the contribution in weight lower, between 5 and 20% depending on the area.

The trawl fleet previously undertook daily trips, although some vessels are able to undertake trips lasting between two and four days. The number of hauls in a single daily trip is between 1 and 5. In average the number of sea days by boat is between 100 and 190 days, but typically around 140-160 days.


2.2 Discard rates by fishery

The STECF-SGRN report (2006) estimated a discard rate below 10% in weight and below 20% in number for all target species, however more recent results indicate that in the Spanish Mediterranean bottom-trawling fishery has a mean discard rate ranging between 20%1 to 40% by weight including target species and by-catch and includes fish, invertebrates and flora.

The main discard species are pandora (bream), sardine and horse mackerel. Both the pandora and sardine have discard rates in excess of 80%, while over 40% of horse mackerel catch is discarded. Anglerfish, monk and hake are discarded due to small sizes and damaged fish. Discard rates in the region of 20% are typical of the biggest trawlers operating in the upper slope or in deeper fishing grounds, while the 40% discard rate is more common in the smaller vessels operating in shallow waters close to corallaginous or seagrass habitats.

Following the mentioned report of the Spanish fishing industry, it has been estimated that each demersal trawler (larger sized trawlers) discards on average 8.2 tonnes per fishing trip, representing a 22.5% discard rate.

Discard rates for target species such as Red shrimp, White shrimp, mullets and Octopus are very low, typically less than 10% for fish species and lower for the two shrimp species (<2%). One species of the group of octopuses (Eledone moshata) have been one high sporadic discard. Discards of mullet and red mullet in Spanish Mediterranean waters are quite inexistent due to their high market value.

Table 6 Discard rate by weight

Source evaluation of the STECF/SGMOS 07-04 working group on discards

1 Project “asistencia técnica para la realización de una medida innovadora para la recuperación, gestión y valorización de los descartes generados por la flota española” elaborated by Spanish Fishing industry in collaboration with the Spanish Institute of Oceanography


Table 7 Discard rate by number

Source: evaluation of the STECF/SGMOS 07-04 working group on discards

From these observations, it can be concluded that the market plays an important role in the occurrence of discarding. Species with high value and demand in the Spanish market such as Red shrimp, White shrimp and mullets have very low discards. Almost the full spectrum of sizes are retained and marketed. Other species which are valuable, (though not as high as those already mentioned) such as monk, anglerfish and hake have relative higher discard rates due to high-grading for larger sized or better quality (damaged catches caused by trawling). Most of the discards are made up of species of very low market value (sardine) or those with no market value (invertebrates and algae).

2.3 Reasons for discarding

In this fishery, most of the discards are market induced, which can be subset into two aspects:

1. Market induced high grading (preference for larger sizes or better quality of anglerfish, monk and hake or discarding of damaged fish, especially of anglerfish), discarding of low value or non-marketable animals (pandora, sardines and invertebrates).

2. Discarding is centred on species which have low commercial interest, although part of the commercial catch may also be discarded to comply with local fishing regulations (especially juveniles of hake).


EC Legislation (EC No 1967/2006) prohibits fishing in habitats such as: corallieanous, maërl beds. Fishing activity is also prohibited in areas where there are known seagrass beds. The Mixed Demersal Species fleet operates in the proximity of these sea-bottoms. Such habitats produce the highest discards quantities (~70%), mainly due to the discarding of invertebrates and algae. Larger trawlers operating in the upper slope have lower discard rates of around 20%.

There is additional local legislation to regulate the activity of the demersal trawlers, e.g. management plans for demersal trawl fisheries in the deep waters of Ibiza and Formentera islands. Furthermore, some regions such as Cataluña and Valencia have established minimum depths to allow demersal trawling.


2.5 Basic socioeconomic data

The most recent available economic data published by the Spanish Fisheries Minister (data referring to 2009) show the following situation for each bottom trawl métier in the Mediterranean Sea:

1. Mixed Demersal species fisheries (typically vessels 6-18 meters), had landings worth €33 million in 2009, with a net profit per vessel around €25.000l. The employment on board was 642 FTE.

2. Mixed Demersal and red shrimps fisheries, operating both on the shelf and shelf break (typically vessels 18-24 meters). The value of landings in 2009 was €97 million, with a net profit per vessel around €15.000. The employment on board was 1975 FTE in 2009.

3. Red shrimps performed in the slope up to 400 m depth (length category 24-40m) the value of landings in 2009 was €65 million, with significant losses. The employment on board was 987 FTE in 2009.

The table below shows the relative importance in terms of VA and employment to Mediterranean trawlers in relation to other Mediterranean fleets. The high value added per employee in the small scale coastal fleet could be so high due to accounting issues such as unpaid labour from family members which are not paid as regular employees. If these were accounted for, this ratio would be much lower – however, no reliable data exists on this.


SPANISH FLEET IN MEDITERRANEAN SEA

METIER-FISHING FLEET SEGMENT Valued added Employment (harmonized units)

Value added per employee (FTE)

Average fishing days per vessel

Total employment

Total employment(FTE)

Bottom Trawlers in Mediterranean €78.323.560,03 3232 €24.233,77 208,98 2902 3232

Small scale coastal fleet in Mediterranean. €43.533.036,43 749 €58.121,54 151,78 874 749

Coastal Purse Seiners in Mediterranean €43.528.500,64 1638 €26.574,18 156,53 2135 1638

Bottom longliner in Mediterranean €13.035.491,33 568 €22.949,81 168,09 530 568

Source Spanish Fisheries Minister.


3 The Adriatic


The Adriatic Sea may be considered as a semi-enclosed basin within the Mediterranean Sea. It is characterised by an extended continental shelf in the Northern and Central areas while the continental slope is mostly found in the Southern part, which reaches a maximum depth of 1223 m (Figure 2).

A wide variety of bottom sediments are found in the Adriatic Sea, but muddy bottoms dominate below 100 m depth, while in the Central and Northern Adriatic the shallower sea bed is characterised by relict sand. The hydrography of the region is characterised by an inflow of water from the Eastern Mediterranean (entering from the Otranto channel along the Eastern Adriatic coast) and fresh water runoff from Italian rivers, resulting in an anti-clock wise current. These features produce both seasonal latitudinal and longitudinal gradients along the basin. All of these factors contribute to influencing the distribution and occurrence of biological communities. Where fishery resources are concerned, most pelagic and demersal species are differentially distributed based on their varied bio-ecological features. These resources are shared by the fishing fleets of coastal states.

Figure 2 The Geographical Sub Areas of the Mediterranean according to the General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM). The Adriatic Sea is divided into two GSAs: the GSA 17 (northern Adriatic Sea) and the GSA 18 (southern Adriatic Sea).


3.2 Fishery types (eg longline, demersal trawl, pelagic trawl/seine, gillnet)

On the basis of information from the Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 (1st Draft) of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), reporting 2008 data, the gears used in the Adriatic can be categorised into six main typologies (Table 8).

Surrounding nets are at about 1% in both GSAs.

The trawlers are at about 30% in GSA 17 and more than 40% in GSA 18.

Dredges are more important in GSA 17 (more than 10%) than GSA 18 (less than 5%).

The gill and entangling nets have different percentages in GSA 17 (more than 25%) and in GSA 18 (more than 35%). The use of traps is high in GSA 17 (about 17%) while their use in GSA 18 is very limited (less than 2%).

Hooks and lines, including long-lines, are important in the Southern Adriatic (more than 10%) but almost absent in the northern sector (less than 1%).

A high number of polivalent boats using several gears are present in the GSA 17 (more than 10%), but this kind of boat is very limited in the GSA 18 (about 2%).

Table 8 Fishing pattern In GSA 17 and 18 (data source Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 (1st Draft) of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean - GFCM).

GSA 17

GSA 18

Surrounding nets 1.3 0.7 Trawl 28.9 43.9 Dredges 12.2 4.2 Gill & entangling 26.6 35.8 Traps 17.0 1.7 Hook & Lines 0.4 11.5 Other 13.6 2.3 total 100.0 100.0

The most recent data on catch and total number of vessel by country is reported in Table 9.

Table 9 Catch and vessels of Albanian, Croatian, Italian, Montenegrin and Slovenian fleets in the Adriatic. (Data source for Italy the Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean - GFCM for Albania, Croatia, M

Country Year Vessels Catch (tonnes) Catch per vessel (tonnes)Albania 2006 196* 5729* 29.2Croatia 2010 3996 55323 13.8Italy 2009 3883 125108 32.2Montenegro 2010 213 900* 4.2Slovenia 2010 117 866 7.4

On the whole, the artisanal fisheries and hydraulic dredges operating in the Adriatic target lamellibranchs and operate close to the coast in territorial waters. An important exception is the Italian long-liners in GSA 18 which operate both in national and international waters.


Italian trawlers which target demersals (otter trawl) and small pelagics (mid-water trawl) operate in both the territorial and international waters. Available information on the stock structure of the main commercial species in the Adriatic suggests that the main spawning areas lie in the eastern side and the main nurseries are off the western coast. In recent years the genetic population units of the main commercial species have been analysed by using DNA molecular markers within the framework of the “AdriaMed” FAO Regional Project. Sardina pilchardus, Engraulis encrasicolus, Merluccius merluccius, Mullus barbatus, Pagellus erythrinus, Sepia officinalis, Loligo vulgaris, Eledone cirrhosa, Eledone moschata, Parapenaeus longirostris and Nephrops norvegicus showed high levels of genetic homogeneity in the Adriatic clearly suggesting the occurrence of single population (Ungaro et al., 2008). Solea vulgaris appears to be slightly differentiated, mostly according to the Albanian samples, while the Adriatic stock of Lophius budegassa appeared to be genetically heterogeneous (Ungaro et al., 2008).

The distribution, morphological and biological features of demersal species seems to be unaffected by their location (latitudinal and longitudinal), by and by environmental factors. Although the abundance and distribution of small pelagics in the Adriatic can be affected by environmental features, no significant differences in the morphological and biological parameters of Sardina pilchardus and Engraulis encrasicolus have been found among Adriatic areas (Ungaro et al., 2008).


As there is no quota management system in place in the Mediterranean, (with the exception of blue fin tuna), no specific regulations on discards are currently in force in the area. Control of discarding in the Mediterranean is implemented through a combination of technical regulations including gear restrictions, seasonal or permanent closures of nurseries and the adoption of legal minimum sizes.

For countries within the European Union, the minimum mesh size of bottom trawlers is 40 mm square or 50 mm diamond (EC Regulation 1967/2006). Italy and Malta have used the derogation to maintain the old mesh size of 40 mm rhomboidal up to June 2010. After this date the new mesh size will be implemented. Pelagic trawl nets targeting sardine and anchovy, (where these species account for at least 80 % of the catch in live weight after sorting), have a minimum mesh size of 20 mm. For surrounding nets the minimum mesh size is 14 mm. Bottom-set gillnets shall not have a mesh size opening smaller than 16 mm. In addition trawling cannot take place within 3 miles of the coast or in area where the seabed is less than 50 m depth.

Certain habitats are also protected from towed gears. Fishing with trawl nets, dredges, purse seines, boat seines, shore seines or similar nets above seagrass beds of, in particular, Posidonia oceanica or other marine phanerogams is prohibited. Furthermore fishing with trawl nets, dredges, shore seines or similar nets above coralligenous habitats and mäerl beds is prohibited.

Minimum landing sizes have been established for the shared stocks in the Adriatic for the most important commercial species (Table 10).


Table 10 Minimum landing sizes of main stocks shared among Albanian, Croatian, Italian, Montenegrin and Slovenian fleets in the Adriatic according to European or National regulations. Length as total length (TL), Carapace length (CL) and mantel length (ML). Data

Common name

Scientific name

Albania Croatia Italy Montenegro Slovenia

Anchovy Engraulis encrasicolu

10 cm TL 9 cm TL 9 cm TL 11 cm TL 9 cm TL

Sardine Sardina pilchardus


Common sole

Solea vulgaris


Common pandora

Pagellus erythrinus


Hake Merluccius merluccius


Red mullet

Mullus barbatus

No legal minimum size

11 cm TL 11 cm TL 11 cm TL 11 cm TL

Norway lobster

Nephrops norvegicus

30 cm TL 70 mm TL 20 mm CL

70 mm TL

100 mm TL 20 mm CL

70 mm TL

Pink shrimp

Parapenaeus longirostris

10 cm TL No legal minimum size

20 mm CL No legal minimum size

20 mm CL

Horned lesser octopus

Eledone cirrhosa







Common name

Scientific name

Albania Croatia Italy Montenegro Slovenia

Eledone moschata






Common squid

Loligo vulgaris 25 cm TL No legal minimum size




Common cuttlefish

Sepia officinalis

20 cm TL No legal minimum size


12 cm ML No legal minimum size

Albania: Fisheries Regulations No.1 of 2005 Croatia: Order 101/02 on the Protection of Fish and Other Marine Organisms (as amended by Order 96/05 and 53/06) Italy and Slovenia: Reg. EC no. 1967/2006; Montenegro: Decree on prohibition of capture and trade in fish juveniles, undersized fish and other marine organisms no. 10/2004


Discarding procedures and discarding size of the species is a link connecting fishery procedure (catches) to other socio-economic aspects of fisheries. Discards include both species with no commercial value and marketable species. The latter are represented both by undersized specimens, considered unmarketable for their minimum landing sizes, and species discarded for their low market value, despite their legal size.

Examining the main fishing typologies operating in the Adriatic, some difference in species and amount of discards can be identified.

Santojanni et al. (2005) reported very low discarding both in terms of numbers of species and total amount with respect to the surrounding nets with light (“lampara”). The primary target species in the Adriatic is the anchovy, but sardines are also targeted in some areas, mainly south of Ancona. The main fleet is based in San Benedetto del Tronto and lampara nets operate from March to November. The abundance of the discards can be high, but only in cases of exceptional catch (up to 15% on 1900 boxes of anchovies, sardines and other fish).

http://www.faoadriamed.org/pdf/Legislation/Albania/AlbFishReg_N1_2005.pdf

http://www.faoadriamed.org/pdf/Legislation/Croatia/CRO_OrdFishMaritimeOrgProtection101-2002.html

http://www.faoadriamed.org/pdf/Legislation/CROATIA/CRO_OrdFishMaritimeOrgProtection96-2005.html

http://www.faoadriamed.org/pdf/Legislation/CROATIA/CRO_OrdFishMaritimeOrgProtection53-2006.html


3.4.1 Artisanal fisheries

According to Fabi & Grati (2005), discarding of commercial species in artisanal fisheries (Table 6) is very low in the middle of the Adriatic (GSA 17), representing 7% in weight of the total catches.

Table 11 Main artisanal fisheries in the middle Adriatic Sea (GSA 17 –Italian Coast).

The most relevant species are Aporrhais pespelecani, S. mantis, Trachurus mediterraneus and T. lucerna. The former is retained in other fisheries (i.e. small trawling), but it is commonly discarded in set nets as it is caught in such low numbers. S. mantis e T. mediterraneus are generally represented by damaged specimens, while discards of T. lucerna usually includes no valuable specimens smaller than the size of sexual maturity reported for the area (24.0 cm TL). The juveniles of this species concentrate in the coastal area from spring to fall and easily enmesh in set nets regardless of the mesh size because of their particular body shape. Discards of S. vulgaris are virtually absent, as the few damaged specimens in catches are sold, although at lower prices. Alosa fallax, Liocarcinus vernalis, Goneplax rhomboides and Corystes cassivelaunus dominated discards NC, although their percentage contribution to this fraction changed noticeably among seasons. Of the total catch obtained with gillnets (1999-2000) 81 % was formed of commercial species, 12 % was non-commercial discards and 7 % was formed of commercial discards.

In GSA 18 the longline drift fishery operates seasonally. The fishing season for swordfish takes place between July and December (in the ports of Mola, Monopoli and Savelletri), while the Albacore fishing season lasts from September to November (Marano et al., 2005). A large number of immature specimens are caught in the sword fish fishery, and about 50% of the sword fish caught is lower than 130-140 cm LJFL. Most albacore catches are of adult individuals above the size at sexual maturity of 60-65 cm FL, corresponding to two year old individuals. However high accidental catch of swordfish juveniles is reported in the albacore fishery

In addition to the target swordfish and albacore, other fish are also caught. Catches are mostly represented by the following species: Thunnus thynnus (Atlantic bluefin tuna); Auxis rochei (Bullet tuna); Euthynnus alletteratus (Little tunny); Sarda sarda (Atlantic bonito); Prionace glauca (Blue shark); Ruvettus pretiosus (Oilfish); Alopias vulpinus (Thresher); Brama brama (Atlantic pomfret); Coryphena hippurus (Common dolphinfish); Lamna nasus (Porbeagle) and Lichia amia (Leerfish).

Amongst the discards, the Blue stingray Pteroplatytrygon violacea is notable. The gear also obtains accidental catches of Loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta), which are immediately


released at sea. Incidence of the most important occasional catches, i.e. the blue shark and the Atlantic blue fin tuna, was 10- 20% (both in number and weight) for P. glauca and 5-7% for T. thynnus.

The offshore bottom longline fishery is carried out mostly on the continental slope off the southern Adriatic Sea (GSA 18). Both soft and rocky areas are exploited. The fishery targeting the large hake (more than 50-60 cm TL) occurs on muddy bottoms from 200 to 400 m depth as a rule, while scorpionfish, gurnards and blackspot seabream are mostly caught at 150-350 m depths on mixed bottoms. According to Ungaro et al. (2005), the number of boats involved in this fishery is quite low, and a rough estimate of 20-30 Italian vessels could be made for the basin. Most of the boats within the Italian fleet are located in the harbours of Mola and Monopoli.

Considering the hake targeted long-lines the main by catch is formed by : Conger conger (European conger); Helicolenus dactylopterus (Blackbelly rosefish); Hexanchus griseus (Bluntnose sixgill shark); Lepidopus caudatus (Silver scabbardfish); Mustelus mustelus (Smooth-hound); Pagellus bogaraveo (Blackspot(=red) seabream); Phycis blennoides (Greater forkbeard); Polyprion americanus (Wreckfish); Raja spp. (Rays and skates); Scorpaena elongata (Slender rockfish); Squalus acanthias (Picked dogfish); Trigla lyra (Piper gurnard)

The secondary species fished with noteworthy yields are C. conger (10-20%), H. dactylopterus (5-10%) and P. bogaraveo (2-4%). The main discarded species is Galeus melastomus (blackmouth catshark).

3.4.2 Trawl nets

Midwater Pelagic trawl – The pelagic trawl (paired pelagic trawl) operating in the area has as main target species anchovies, being sardines a secondary target. Raicevich (2008) reported very low value of discards of commercial species in pelagic trawl operating in the north Adriatic, with a ratio of discards to landings of 0.38:1.

Concerning sardine catch, Santojanni et al. (2005) reported discards ranging from 1 to 20 % of the total catch in the Chioggia fleet. These values ranged between 4 to 26 % (mean 15%) in the Porto Garibaldi trawlers. The highest valued discards were registered in Ancona trawlers, ranging the values between 11 and 90% with the mean discarded fraction being 53% of the total catch.

According to Bottaro et al. (2010) by catch of pelagic and midwater trawling fisheries in the Adriatic include so far a total of 17 species of cartilaginous fishes. The most abundant being the Squalus acanthias, Mustelus mustelus, Myliobatis aquila, Pteromylaeus bovinus, and Pteroplatytrygon violacea. Others recorded species, also worth noting, include the Alopias vulpinus, Carcharinus plumbeus and Prionace glauca. Additional indirect photographic reports allowed to record landings of others large chondrichthyans, like the Lamna nasus and Mobula mobular.

3.4.3 Bottom otter trawl

According to Wieczorek et al., (1999) for the Norway lobster trawl fishery in the Adriatic Sea (Ancona and Senigallia trawlers’ fishing-grounds), the whole catch Nephrops were generally


landed, except for low numbers of Nephrops that were discarded from samples in the Pomo pit area. The discarded fraction contained an average of 31.0 % of commercially harvested fish species, such as poor cod (Trisopterus minutus capelanus), red bandfish (Cepola rubescens), European anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus), mackerel (Scomber scombrus) and European pilchard (Sardina pilchardus), whereas there were lower discard rates in the Pomo pit area. However, the discards of small-sized individuals of commercially harvested invertebrate species other than Nephrops, on average, accounted for 39.4 % and 80.5 % of the total discards in the Ancona and Senigallia areas respectively. These comprised small-sized swimming crabs, Liocarcinus depurator, which accounted for a large proportion of this category, as well as various shrimp species. Discarding of non-commercial fish species accounted for up to 29.4 % of the total discarded material in the Pomo pit area (e.g. Fries’ goby, Lesueurigobius friesii), but was less frequent in the other two sample areas. Non-target crustacean species made up an important proportion of the discards of samples from the Pomo pit area (on average 58.8 %), with the squat lobster Munida intermedia being the dominant species here. Only single occurrences of molluscs in the discard samples were recorded, but low numbers of echinoderms, cephalopods and other rarer non-target invertebrate species were found in all three sample areas.

Sanchez et al. (2007) estimated that mean discard rate in bottom trawl fisheries in the Adriatic Sea ranged between 40 to 50% of total catches (Table 5), with a varying rate according to fishing intensity. Before the 45 day trawling ban which takes place in the summer, discards were at their lowest, while the highest level of discarding occurred after the trawling ban, reaching about a third of catch biomass. In the Adriatic fishing grounds the catch of 13 species was totally retained, while that of 30 species was partially retained and that of 49 species totally discarded. The most significant group in the catches was represented by Osteichthyes, which accounted for 40 species caught. More than 50% of these species were commercially important. Merluccius merluccius and Mullus barbatus represented the most important fraction of the landings (retained species), showing very low discard rates. Crustaceans were the second most important group, mainly represented by the mantis shrimp, Squilla mantis, that was largely retained, and the swimming crab Liocarcinus depurator, which was characterised by high discard rates. Cephalopods were mainly represented by Loligo vulgaris, Octopus vulgaris and Sepia officinalis, which showed low or null discard rates. Bivalves, gastropods, cnidarians and echinoderms were totally discarded in the GSA 17.

According to Raicevich (2008), ratio between discard and landing in otter trawl in the North Adriatic ranged between 4:1 (Italian fishing-ground) and 17:1 (Croatian fishing-grounds).

Table 12 Retained and discarded fraction of total catch of commercial catch of trawlers in the Adriatic Sea (GSA 17). Values were distinguished by high (from Sanchez et al., 2007).


3.4.4 “Rapido” beam trawl

The “rapido” beam trawl fleet is based in Chioggia in the North Adriatic Sea and produces qualitatively heterogeneous discards depending on the species targeted. Pectinid fishing involves the exploitation of sandy bottoms offshore and discards consist of echinoderms (32% in weight), crustaceans (26%), molluscs (23%) and porifers (15%). Flatfish fishing is carried out on muddy coastal areas, where molluscs and crustaceans account for the bulk of discards (60% and 30%, respectively) (Tudela, 2004). Rapido trawling for flatfish and scallops in the Adriatic Sea generated ratios of discards to landings of 2:1 and 9:1, respectively (Pranovi et al.,2001). High ratios of discarded to landed fractions are reported by Raicevich (2008) for the north Adriatic. These range from 6:1 (Italian rapidos targeting sole) and 1.1 (Italian rapidos targeting scallops). The mean value of discarded/landed for Croatian rapido, regardless of the target species, is about 4:1.

3.4.5 Hydraulic dredges

Morello et al. (2005) provided a qualitative and quantitative assessment of the discards produced by the commercial hydraulic dredging fleet targeting the clam, Chamelea gallina, in the central Adriatic Sea (Italy). Overall discards comprised just under 50% of total catch in both Maritime Districts, approximately 30% of which were undersized target species (<25 mm) and 20% other benthic invertebrates, whilst fish were poorly represented. According to Raicevich (2008) the ratio between discards and landing from hydraulic dredges in the north Adriatic is 7:1.

3.5 Reasons for discarding

As in other areas of the Mediterranean, the main reasons for the discarding commercial species in the Adriatic Sea are because of MLS and market demand. Due to the effort based management regime in force in the Mediterranean, (with exception of blue fin tuna), no over-quota discarding occurs. Up to now, the problem of undersize discarding was not particularly relevant in the Adriatic. This is because, as in other areas of the Mediterranean, people traditionally enjoy eating small fish. Nevertheless, due to changes in food and cooking preferences in recent years, the habit of consuming small fried fish is decreasing.


4 The strait of Sicily


The Strait of Sicily is a particularly important area for fishing, as witnessed by the important fleets operating there and the associated fish production. In particular, this is likely to be one of the most important fishing areas for demersal resources in the Mediterranean. The key resource in the area is the deep water rose shrimp, whose yield is about 50% of the total production of the Mediterranean. According to the rules of the General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), the Strait of Sicily is divided into six geographical subareas (GSA 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 21), in which marine fisheries are monitored and stocks assessed and managed.

10

16 19

15

21

14

13

12

1010

16 19

15

21

14

13

12

Figure 3 The Geographical Sub Areas in the Strait of Sicily and adjacent seas according to the General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM).

4.2 Fishery types (e.g. longline, demersal trawl, pelagic trawl/seine, gillnet)

A variety of fishing physiognomies characterise the fisheries in the Strait of Sicily and adjacent seas. On the basis of information contained on Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 (1st Draft) of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), reporting 2008 data, the great number of gears used in the area can be categorised into six main typologies (Table 13). Considering only the GSAs for which detailed national data are available, different fishing patterns are evident. The importance of gill and entangling nets are similar in all areas (about 30% of activities), whilst other gears are different among locations.

Hook and lines, including long-lines, are important both in the Maltese and Libyan fisheries, covering about 40-50 % of fisheries, while these gears reduce to about 20 % in the Italian fleet. The use of traps is prevalent in Maltese fisheries (more than 10%), while the importance of surrounding nets decreases from Libya (about 15%) to Malta (about 5%). It is worth noting that trawling is the main gear used by Italian fisheries with (> 35%). The main conclusion is that it is possible to find different fishing patterns in the area, of which Italian and Maltese fisheries could be considered as two paradigmatic cases: the former is representative of a fishery based mainly on towed gears targeting demersal species while


the latter is the typical multi-gear Mediterranean fishery, targeting a wide variety of resources, including both demersal and pelagics.

As no detailed information are available for Tunisian fleet operating in GSA 12, 13 and 14, it was not possible to describe the fishing pattern quantitatively. However it is known that 18 polyvalents, 92 longliners and 33 tuna seiners of France and Spain operate in the area, mainly targeting large pelagics and deep water crustaceans (traps) (Task 1 Statistical Bulletin of GFCM – release 2011). More than 95% of Tunisian fishing boats are artisanal, including a large number of small boats without engines, and trawlers are less than 5%. Gill-nets and trammel nets are most frequently used passive gears along the Tunisian coast, although octopus fisheries operate using pot traps in coastal waters.

Table 13 Fishing pattern of Maltase, Italian and Libyan fisheries in the Strait of Sicily (data source Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 (1st Draft) of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean - GFCM).

Malta -GSA 15

Italy- GSA 16

Libya- GSA 21

Surrounding and seine nets 4.5 9.3 16.5 Trawl nets 0.9 36.1 7.3 Gill and entangling nets 31.7 31.5 31.3 Traps 11.7 1.2 2.5 Hook & Lines 51.0 21.1 42.5 Other 0.2 0.9 0.0 Total 100.0 100.0 100.0

The most recent data on catch and total number of vessel is reported inTable 14.

Table 14 Catch and vessels of Italian, Libyan, Maltese and Tunisian fleets in the Strait of Sicily. (data source for Italy the Task 1 Statistical Bulletin - Release 2011 of General Fishery Commission for the Mediterranean - GFCM for Libya, Malta and Tunisia the

Country Year Catch (t) Vessels (no) Catch per vessel Italy 2008 29608 1367 21.66 Libya n.a. 52100 5160 10.10 Malta 2009 1294 2995 0.43 Tunisia 2009 100451 11298 8.89

In the region as a whole, artisanal fisheries operate close to the coast, exploiting demersal resources within territorial waters. Due to the patterns in the current (two separate veins of the Atlantic stream, the Atlantic Ionian stream off the Sicilian coasts and the Atlantic-Tunisian stream along the Tunisian coast) and the bathy-morphology of the Strait of Sicily (the European and the African continental shelfs are separated by a deep in the middle of the Strait) small pelagic species such as anchovy and sardine are considered not shared among the countries (Italy, Libya, Malta and Tunisia). Conversely, available information on the spatial patterns of bottom features, currents and the species distribution of the main commercial species considers demersal species inhabiting the international waters and the large pelagics species, such as the dolphin fish, to be shared stocks (COPEMED, 2010). Information on species which are shared among countries is provided in Table 15.


Table 15 Main information on shared stocks in the Strait of Sicily, including the discards.

Common name

Scientific name Areas and GSAs Fisheries and discards

Remarks on stock units


Sicily Channel (GSA 12,13,14,15,16,21)

Italy – More than the 95% of the catch is due to trawling (about 1600 in 2009)

Tunisia – More than the 90% of the catch is due to trawling (about 1400 t)

Libya – not available information

Malta – About 50% of catch from trawling.

Still high fraction of undersized in trawling catch, mainly in smaller trawlers (12-24 m LOA). Nurseries vulnerable to trawlers and minimum mesh size (40 mm squared or 50 mm diamondl) not compatible with minimum legal size

Both nurseries and spawning areas are in international waters. Likely a single stock in the areas. Protection of nurseries are recommended by SAC

Red mullet Mullus barbatus Sicily Channel (GSA 12,13,14,15,16,21)

Italy – More than the 95% of the catch is due to trawling (about

More than one shared stock can be likely identified inside the Sicilian


Common name



800 t in 2009)

Tunisia – More than the 90% of the catch is due to trawling


Malta – More than 90% of catch from trawling.

Interactions between Italian and Tunisian trawlers in spring.

Decreasing of undersized catch due to reduction of illegal trawling in coastal areas.

Channel: a

first one among GSAs 12, 13 and 16, a second between GSAs 15 and 16 and another stock in GSAs 14 and 21. Main nurseries in shallow/ coastal waters, where trawling is prohibited 50m depth/ 3 miles).

Striped red mullet

Mullus surmuletus


Italy – More than the 95% of the catch is due to trawling (about 800 t in 2009).

Tunisia – More than the 90% of the catch is due to trawling


Malta – More than 90% of

More than one shared stock can be likely identified inside the Sicilian Channel: a

first one among GSAs 12, 13 and 16, a second between GSAs 15 and 16 and another stock in GSAs 14 and 21. Main nurseries in shallow/ coastal waters, where trawling is


Common name



catch from trawling.

Strong interactions between Sicilian and Tunisian trawlers on the north African shelf (GSAs 13 and 14) in spring , summer and autumn. Decreasing of undersized catch due to reduction of illegal trawling in coastal areas.

prohibited 50m depth/ 3 miles).

Pink shrimp Parapenaeus longirostris


Fished exclusively by trawling in all countries. It is the main target species for Italy and Tunisia. A first joined assessment, combining data of Italy, Malta and Tunisian was presented at 2011 SAC meeting. Sicilian trawlers operating in all GSAs. Tunisian trawlers mainly in 12 and 13. Maltese trawlers mainly in GSA 15 and 16 (see fig.

Both nurseries and spawning areas are in international waters. Main fishing grounds in international waters. Protection of nurseries are recommended by SAC.


Common name



1).

Still high fraction of undersized in trawling catch, mainly in smaller trawlers (12-24m LOA). The enforcement of the new minimum mesh size (40 mm squared or 50 mm rhomboidal) should improve the exploitation pattern of small trawlers operating in more shallow waters.

Although the existence of minimum legal size, most of the catch are normally retained.

Red shrimp Aristaeomorpha foliacea

Sicily Channel (GSA 13, 14, 15, 16, 21)

Fished exclusively by trawling in Italy (about 1600 t in 2009) and Malta. Sicilian trawlers operating in all GSAs. Maltese trawlers mainly in GSA 15 and 16.

No discard

Main fishery grounds in off-shore international waters.


Common name



Common octopus

Octopus vulgaris Sicily Channel (GSA 13, 14, 15, 16, 21)

Italy – About 500 t in 2009 mainly from trawling

Libya - about 150 t (2007) mainly by pots (traps)

Malta about 5 t mainly by traps

Tunisia about 4000 t in 2006 mainly by pots (traps) in territorial waters and trawling in the international ones.

The reduced dispersal phase of the species suggest to associate population subunits to spawning and nursery areas close each other.

Tunisian trawlers operating south of Lampedusa ask to derogation from national minimum legal size and closed season. Identification of stock units in progress within the framework of MEDSUDMED program.

Common spiny lobster

Palinurus elephas Sicily Channel GSA12 , GSA13, GSA16

Tunisia – main fishing- grounds on GSA 12 and 13 where species is caught by trammel nets.

Italy - traditionally catch by traps in GSA 16 and along other Sicilian coasts. Stock collapsed along the Sicilian coast since early

Species with long larval phase and drift. A stock structure according to meta-population pattern is considered as most probable.


Common name



eighties after the introduction of trammel nets coupled with high fishing effort.

Although the existence of minimum legal size and closed season, all the catch are normally retained.

Dolphin fish Coryphaena hippurus

Southern western and central Mediterranean

Italy, Malta, Spain & Tunisia. Caught mainly when juvenile with FAD and surrounding nets. Most of catch between August and January. No discard

Highly migrant species. One single stock covering the southern waters of western and central Mediterranean is assumed.


There is no quota management in the Mediterranean so, with the exception of blue fin tuna, there are currently no regulations on discarding. Control of discarding in the Mediterranean takes place through a combination of technical measures including gear restrictions, seasonal or permanent closures of nurseries and adoption of legal minimum sizes.

The minimum mesh size of bottom trawlers is 40 mm square or 50 mm diamond in European Union countries (EC Regulation 1967/2006). Italy and Malta have used the derogation to maintain the old mesh size of 40 mm rhomboidal up to June 2010, however after this date the new mesh size should be in force. Pelagic trawl nets targeting sardine and anchovy, (where these species account for at least 80 % of the catch in live weight after sorting), have a minimum mesh size of 20 mm. For surrounding nets the minimum mesh size is 14 mm. Bottom-set gillnets shall not have a mesh size opening smaller than 16 mm. In addition trawling cannot take place within 3 miles of the coast or in area where the seabed is less than 50 m depth.


Certain habitats are also protected from towed gears. Fishing with trawl nets, dredges, purse seines, boat seines, shore seines or similar nets above seagrass beds of, in particular, Posidonia oceanica or other marine phanerogams is prohibited. Furthermore fishing with trawl nets, dredges, shore seines or similar nets above coralligenous habitats and mäerl beds is prohibited. The use of towed dredges and trawl nets fisheries is prohibited at depths beyond 1000 m. No information is available for Libya, while the technical measure in force in Tunisia is similar to those of EU, with the exception that the minimum mesh size in the cod-end of trawl net is 40mm square.

Minimum landing sizes have been established for shared stocks of the most important commercial species (Table 16).

Table 16 Minimum landing sizes of main shared stocks in the Strait of Sicily according to European or National regulations (na= not available).

Species Country Common name

Scientific name Italy Libya Malta Tunisia


20 cm TL na 20 cm TL 20 cm TL

Red mullet Mullus barbatus 11 cm TL na 11 cm TL 12 cm TL Striped red mullet

Mullus surmuletus 11 cm TL na 11 cm TL 12 cm TL

Pink shrimp

Parapenaeus longirostris

20 mm CL na 20 mm CL No legal minimum size

Red shrimp Aristeomorpha foliacea


na No legal minimum size


Common octopus

Octopus vulgaris No legal minimum size

1000 g from May to October


500 g

Common spiny lobster

Palinurus elephas 90 mm CL na 90 mm CL

Dolphin fish

Coryphaena hippurus


na No legal minimum size

30 cm TL


The discarding procedure and discarding size of the species is a link connecting fishery procedure (catches) to other socio-economic aspects of fisheries. Discards include both species with no commercial value and marketable species. The latter are represented both by undersized specimens, considered unmarketable for their minimum landing sizes, and species discarded for their low market value, despite their legal size.


Of the main fishing typologies operating in the Strait of Sicily, certain difference in species and level of discarding can be identified.

Available information suggests that surrounding nets with light (“lampara”) have a low discard rate both in terms of species and total amount, (ranging between 5 and 10% of catches). The main target species in GSA 16 is the anchovy. Lampara nets operate from March to November and the main species discarded are Trachurus spp. and Sardinella aurita (small sizes discarded). The level of discarding highly variable, dependent on weather and current conditions.

Very low volumes of discards were also produced by gill and entangling nets. Few benthic macro-invertebrate such as Echinoderms, Porifera, Ascidians, Cnidarians and Bryozoans are caught. It is possible that these nets catch endangered species, such as elasmobranchs, however no detailed information is available for the area.

Traps represent one of the most selective gears used in the area. They are used to fish common octopus, spiny lobsters and also bony fishes (mainly Sparidae). Traps have the advantage that specimens of species with no commercial value or undersized specimens can be released after the trap is hauled. Traps also allow fish to be returned at sea or to be used for direct restocking of berried females crawfish (Palinurus spp.) and berried female lobsters (Homarus gammarus), for which catch is prohibited by REG. EC 1967/2006.

Hooks and lines produce the highest volumes of discards, including bycatch of endangered species. Longlines targeting albacore (Thunnus alalunga) catch many undersized sword fish in autumn. Amongst the discarded elasmobranchs, the tope shark (Galerhinus galeus), the blue shark Prionace glauca (retained) and the pelagic stingray Pteroplatytrygon violacea (discarded) are among the most abundant bycatches. Pelagic long lines are also able to catch sea turtles, mainly Caretta caretta.

4.4.1 Midwater Pelagic trawl

Two types of pelagic trawl operate in the area. The paired pelagic trawl targeting anchovies has a mesh size of 20 mm diamond at the cod end, producing high levels of discards in terms of undersized anchovies and sardines, and other pelagics species, such as Trachurus spp. (minimum legal size 15 cm TL) and Sardinella aurita. The highest discarding of small anchiovies, the main target species of pelagic trawls in the GSA 16, takes place in winter, reaching >50% of catch, while the lowest level of discarding takes place in summer (around 10-15%). The other type of pelagic trawl used by Sicilian fishermen targets Lepidopus caudatus. These fisheries produce their highest discards in summer, consisting mostly of undersized juveniles of the same species. The species’ commercial size is 1.0-1.5 kg. No minimum legal size is in force.

4.4.2 Bottom otter trawls

The bottom otter trawling represents one of gears producing the highest fraction of discards in the entire Mediterranean in general and in the Strait of Sicily in particular. The quality and the quantity of discarding depends primarily on the depth and the type of fishing grounds exploited. Assuming these aspects are the main source of discard variability, bottom otter trawls can be separated into three main depth strata: the shelf bottom, with their biocenoses, very rich in benthic species and biomass up to 200 m depth; the upper slope grounds


ranging from 201 to 450/500 m and the bottom up to 800 m that represents the current limit for demersal trawling in the area.

Concerning the species composition, discards from shelf bottoms are mainly composed of macro-invertebrates (Echinoderms, Porifera, Ascidians, Cnidarians, Bryozoans and Gastropods) and algae, included coralline red algae (Corallinaceae). The remaining discards are mostly fish such as Scyliorhinus canicula, Raja spp., Trachurus spp., Spicara spp., Boops boops, Conger conger, etc. Catch of sea turtles Caretta caretta are reported during the winter in the Gulf of Gabes (GSA 14). In more deep fishing grounds discarding is lower, both in terms of number of species and total amount. Most of the species discarded are fish, such as Gadiculus argenteus, Hymenocephalus italicus, Nezumia schlerorhynchus, Coelorhynchus coelorhynchus, Hoplostethus mediterraneus, Galeus melastomus, Etmopterus spinax, Raja spp., Chimaera monstrosa, etc.; amongst the macro-invertebrates. Crustaceans include the small shrimp Plesionika heterocarpus and the deep water crab Macropipus tuberculatus and brachiopods (Andaloro,1996; Anon., 2000).

Some “historical” information was collected on trawl discards in the Strait of Sicily in the 1970s for industrial purposes. An attempt to synthesize all available information on mean discard rate by years, calculated as total discards out total catch in weight, of Sicilian trawlers since the late seventies is shown in Figure 4.

010203040

50607080

19741976197819801982198419861988199019921994199619982000200220042006200820102012

disc

ard

rate

(%)

Figure 4 Time series of mean discard rate (% of total discarded biomass on total catch biomass) of Sicilian trawlers operating in the Strait of Sicily. Data from Arena 1978 and 1985, Andaloro 1996, Milazzo 1988, Anon., 1997, Anon. 1998, Anon. 2000, Anonymous 200

Although there are differences in methodology and fishing techniques, a decreasing trend in mean discard rate can be seen. This pattern is likely due to the attempt to compensate the decreasing abundance of main target species with species of minor commercial value and to the reduction of benthic biomass of macro-invertebrate in the fishing grounds exploited by trawling for a long time (Figure 5 and Table 17).


Figure 5 Main fishing areas of the distant trawlers In the Strait of Sicily (from Fiorentino et al., 2003, modified from Andaloro, 1996).

Table 17 Main fishing-grounds, fishery features of distant trawlers in the Strait of Sicily.

Areas

/GSA

Target species Seasons gears Depth range

A +C (Ponente)

/GSA12,13

P. longirostris, A. foliacea, N. norvegicus,

M. merluccius

All around the year

“fondale “ trawl net

250-750 m

C+D+E (Kelibia)

/GSA 12,13,16

P. longirostris, M. merluccius, N. norvegicus

All around the year, with a peak in spring


200-500 m

D (Pantelleria)

/GSA 13,16

A. foliacea, N. norvegicus

Mainly in Winter-Spring


400-750 m

E+G (shelf) M. surmuletus; P. erythrinus

Mainly in Autumn

“banco” trawl net

< 100 m


Areas

/GSA

Target species Seasons gears Depth range

/GSA 13,14

F (Greco Linosa)

/GSA 13,16




400-750 m

G (Fondaletto-Curva)

/GSA 14

P. longirostris, M. merluccius, Mullus sp.

All around the year


200-500 m

G (Deserto)

/GSA 14




400-750 m

4.5 Discard of main commercial species of the Strait of Sicily (demersal shared stocks)

4.5.1 Hake

In the late nineties Sicilian trawlers fishing off-shore (15 – 25 days of trip) had higher discard rates of hake (86% in number and 31% in weight of the total catch) than the inshore trawlers (1-2 days trips) (32% in number and 9% in weight) (Anon., 2000). In distant fisheries the first modal group (10-12 cm) in the catches was totally discarded. This was primarily due to the limited amount of freezer space available on vessels, which fishermen preferentially use to store more highly priced crustaceans. Conversely trawlers operating in coastal waters tend to reduce the discarded fraction to only the smallest specimens of the first age group present in catches. According to Bono et al. (2001) hake is retained at about 15 cm TL.

More recent data, collected within the framework of DCR, showed that the discarded fraction of undersized hakes by Sicilian trawlers is decreasing. In 2006, 54 tons of discards were recorded, which represented 13% in number and 3% in weight of total catch. In 2008, 46 tons of discards were reported, which again represented only 3% in weight of total catch. (Cardinale et al., 2008)

The mean size of the discarded hakes varies according to the season. During 2006 the length at 50% discard of the Sicilian trawlers ranged between 12.9 (summer and autumn) and 15.0 (spring) cm TL, being 13.5 cm TL the yearly value (Gancitano V., pers. comm.). The enforcement of the new mesh size of 50 mm diamond will be increase the exploitation pattern of this species, although a large fraction of catch lower than the minimum legal size is expected (Bethke, 2004) (Figure 6).


Figure 6 Retention probability by size of hake according to Fiorentino et al. (1998) and Bethke (2004) for the diamond mesh size in the cod end ranging form 30 to 60 mm (from Bethke, 2004).

4.5.2 Deep water rose shrimp

According to Levi et al. (1995), the length at 50% capture of 32 mm mesh size trawling, as estimated by using a catch curve was 16.1 mm CL (Selection Factor=0.5). More recently experiments of selectivity for the same mesh size gave a L50%= 13.0±0.1 (mm) (Selection Range=5.2 and SF=0.42). Studies on the discarded fraction of trawlers in GSA 16 during 2006 however recorded a length at 50% discard ranging between 14.6 and 17.0 mm CL (Cardinale et al., 2008)).

The modal size of the catch and discarded fraction of P. longirostris of Sicilian trawlers is very variable, changing both with regards to the fishing season and fishing deep ranges (Table 18). The quantity of discards is also variable, with higher discards recorded in autumn-winter, as well as from catches harvested between 150 and 300 m (Anon., 2000).

Table 18 Yearly modal length (LC in mm) of discarded fraction and landings of P. longirostris in typical inshore (Porto Palo- South eastern Sicily) and distant (Mazara del Vallo - South western Sicily) Sicilian trawling fisheries (from Anon., 2000).

Modal length (mm)

discards landings

Inshore fisheries 12 16 and 19

Distant fisheries 19 25-26

According to Bono et al. (2001) Parapenaeus longirostris is retained from 18 mm CL.


However, it is important to note that in recent years the fraction of discarded fraction has been very low, ranging from 18 (2007-2008) to 25 (2006) tons (Cardinale et al., 2008).

4.5.3 Giant red shrimp

No catches of red shrimp were discarded by Italian trawlers. An assessment of the level of discarding by the Maltese fishing industry was carried out in 2005. Results showed that there was no discard practice amongst boats smaller than 10 m and that for larger boats the discard rate was negligible (average 4.7%) (Cardinale et al., 2009).

4.6 Reasons for discarding (under-sized, highgrading) (i.e. no over-quota discarding in effort managed fisheries)

AS in other areas of the Mediterranean, the main reasons for discarding in the Strait of Sicily are due to undersized fish and market demand. Due to the effort based management regime in force in the Mediterranean, with exception of blue fin tuna, no over-quota discarding occurs. Until now, undersized discarding was not a problem in the Strait of Sicily and likewise in other areas of the Mediterranean as people traditionally like to eat small fish. However, due to changes in food preferences and cooking traditions in recent years, the habit of consuming small fried fish is decreasing, with likely positive consequences on the exploitation pattern. Many attempts at using the discarded fraction of trawling in industry took place in the 1980s and 1990s in Sicily. Now the reduction of discard in fisheries in general and in trawling in particular is a main objective of management in the area.


4.7 Glossary

Common name Latin name

Albacore Thunnus alalunga Anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus Anglerfish Lophius spp Angular crab Goneplax rhomboides Annular seabream Diplodus annularis Arrow shrimp Plesionika heterocarpus Atlantic lizardfish Synodus saurus Atlantic bonito Sarda sarda Atlantic pomfret Brama brama Black bellied anglerfish Lophius budegassa Blackbelly rosefish Helicolenus dactylopterus Black scabbardfish Aphanopus carbo Black scorpion fish Scorpaena porcus Blackspot grenadier Coelorhynchus coelorhynchus Blackspot seabream Pagellus bogaraveo Blackmouth catshark Galeus melastomus Blue Shark Prionace glauca Blue stingray Pteroplatytrygon violacea Blue whiting Micromesistius poutassou Bluefin tuna Thunnus thynnus Bluefish Pomatomus saltatrix Bluntnose sixgill shark Hexanchus griseus

Boarfish Families Caproidae and Pentacerotidae

Brill Scophthalmus rhombus Brown meagre Sciaena umbra Bullet tuna Auxis rochei Bull ray Pteromylaeus bovinus Clams Chamelea gallina Cod Gadus morhua Common cuttlefish Sepia officinalis Common dolphin Delphinus spp. Common dolphinfish Coryphena hippurus Common eagle ray Myliobatis aquila Common two-banded seabream Diplodus vulgaris Conger eels Conger conger Crawfish Palinurus spp. Curled octopus Eledone cirrhosa


Dab Limanda limanda Damselfish/Mediterranean chromis Chromis chromis Deepwater rose shrimp Parapenaeus longirostris Dogfish Sharks within the family Squalidae Dragonets Fish within the family Callionymidae European squid Loligo vulgaris Fries' goby Lesueurigobius friesii Giant devil ray Mobula mobular Giant red shrimp Aristaeomorpha foliacea Glasshead grenadier Hymenocephalus italicus Greater forkbeard Phycis blennoides Greater silver smelt Argentina silus Grey gurnard Eutrigla gurnardus Grey mullets Mugil cephalus Grey swimming crab Liocarcinus vernalis Haddock Melanogrammus aeglefinus Helmet crab Corystes cassivelaunus Hake Merluccius merluccius Herring Clupea harengus Horse mackerel Trachurus trachurus Knobby swimcrab Macropipus tuberculatus Leerfish Luchia amia Lemon sole Microstomus kitt Lesser-spotted dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula Little tunny Euthynnus alletteratus Lobster Homarus gammarus Loggerhead turtles Caretta caretta Long rough dab Hippoglossoides platessoides Mackerel Scomber scombrus Mantis shrimp Squilla mantis Mediterranean slimehead Hoplostethus mediterraneus Megrim Lepidorhombus spp.

Monkfish Lophius piscatorius Mullets Family Mugilidae Musky octopus Eledone moschata Mutable Nassa Nassarius mutabilis Nephrops/Norway lobster Nephrops norvegicus Neptune Grass or Mediterranean tapeweed Posidonia oceanica Norway pout Trisopterus esmarkii Octopus Octopus vulgaris Oilfish Ruvettus pretiosus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_herring

http://www.fishbase.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?ID=1382&AT=lemon+sole


Pandora (Seabream) Pagellus erythrinus pelagic stingray Pteroplatytrygon violacea Pelican's foot Aporrhais pespelecani picked dogfish Squalus acanthias Pilchard Sardina pilchardus Piper gurnard Trigla lyra Plaice Pleuronectes platessa Poor cod Trisopterus minutus capelanus Porbeagle Lamna nasus Rat/rabbit fish Chimaera monstrosa Red bandfish Cepola rubescen Red gurnard Aspitrigla cuculus Red mullet Mullus barbatus Red porgy Pagrus pagrus Red shrimp Aristeus antennatus Roughtip grenadier Nezumia schlerorhynchus Round sardinella Sardinella aurita Saithe Pollachius virens Sand steenbras Lithognathus mormyrus Sandbar shark Carcharinus plumbeus sardine Sardina pilchardus Seabass Dicentrarchus labrax Shi drum Umbinra cirrosa Shrimp Crangon crangon Silver scabbardfish Lepidopus caudatus Silvery pout Gadiculus argenteus Skates and rays Raja spp. Slender rockfish Scorpaena elongata Small spotted cat shark Scyliorhinus canicula Smooth-hound shark Mustelus mustelus Sole Solea solea/Solea vulgaris Spiny lobster Palinurus elephas Squat lobster Munida intermedia Stingray Pteroplatytrygon violacea Streaked gurnard Chelidonichthys lastoviza Striped red mullet/Surmullet Mullus surmuletus Swimming crab Liocarcinus depurator Swordfish Xiphias gladius Thresher shark Alopias vulpinus Tope shark Galerhinus galeus Tub gurnard Trigla lucerna


Turbot Scophthalmus maximus Twaite shad Alosa fallax Two-banded seabream Diplodus vulgaris Velvet belly lantern shark Etmopterus spinax Whiting Merlangius merlangus Whiting pout/pouting Trisopterus luscus Wreckfish Polyprion americanus

4.8 References:

AER (2009). The 2009 Annual economic report on the European fishing fleet. Anderson, J. And Guillen, J., eds. Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF). 315pp.

Andaloro F. (1996) - Recupero dello scarto nella pesca a strascico e dei residui di lavorazione dell’industria di trasformazione dei prodotti ittici. Regione Sicilia, convenzione L.R. 26/87: 66 pp.

Anonymous, (1997) - Analysis of trawls’ discard operation in the central and eastern Mediterranean Sea. Final report to the E.C. (Contract n. 94/065).

Anonymous, (1998) - Analysis of trawls’ discard operation in the central and eastern Mediterranean Sea. Final report to the E.C. (Contract n. 95/061).

Anonymous, (2000) - Analysis of trawls’ discard operation in the central and eastern Mediterranean Sea. Final report to the E.C. (Contract No 97/0044).

Arena P. (1978) - Indagine qualitativa e quantitativa sui materiali di scarto della pesca in Sicilia e sulle possibilità di una loro conveniente utilizzazione. ESPI (Palermo): 46 pp.

Arena P. (1985) - Studio sulla possibilità di razionalizzare e rendere più produttiva la pesca a strascico nel Canale di Sicilia e nel Mediterraneo centro-meridionale. ESPI (Palermo): 214 pp.

Bethke E. (2004) - A simple general approach to codend selectivity of trawls and its application to the data of Fiorentino et al. (1998) for Hake (Merluccius merluccius). Fisheries Research, 70: 113–119.

Bono G., S. Vitale, A. Milazzo, G. Norrito, L. Cannizzaro (2001) - La pesca a strascico nello Stretto di Sicilia: risultati delle analisi sulla composizione della cattura scartata e commercializzata. Rapporto interno IRMA/CNR.

Borges, L. Rogan, E. Adn Officer, R., (2005). Discarding by the demersal fishery in the waters around Ireland. Fisheries Research 76:1-13.

Borges et al., (1998). Why do pelagic freezer-trawlers discard? ICES Journal of Marine Science 65: 605-611.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merlangius_merlangus


Bottaro M., Scacco U., Mazzola A., Giovanardi O., Ruffino M., Fortuna C. M. (2010) Monitoring pelagic and mid-water trawling fisheries in the northern Adriatic Sea: a focus on the elasmobranch bycatch. Presented at the first transversal expert meeting on the status of elasmobranchs in the Mediterranean and black sea. Sfax-Tunisia, 20-22 September 2010.

Carbonell, A., Martin, P., de Ranieri, S., (1998). Discards of the western Mediterranean trawl fleets. Rapp. Commun. Int. Mer. Medit. 35, 392–393.

Cardinale M., Rätz H-J, Cheilari A. (eds.) (2008) Report of the SGMED-08-04 Working Group on the Mediterranean Part IV. 6-10 October 2008, Ponza, Italy. Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF): 730 pp.

Cardinale M., Rätz H-J, Cheilari A. (eds.) (2009) Report of the SGMED-09-02 Report of the SGMED-09-02 Working Group on the Mediterranean Part I. 8-12 June 2009, Villasimius, Sardinia, Italy. Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF): 850 pp.

Catchpole, T. L., Tidd, A.N., Kell, L.T., Revill, A.S., Dunlin, G. (2007). The potential for new Nephrops trawl designs to positively affect North Sea stocks of cod, haddock and whiting. Fisheries Research (86)2-3: 262-267.

Catchpole, T.L. and Revill, A.S. (2007). Gear technology in Nephrops trawl fisheries. http://www.nwwrac.org/admin/publication/upload/Nephrops_Review_Paper_CEFAS_EN.pdf

Copemed (2010) Report of the CopeMed II meeting on the definition of priority topics related to shared resources (demersal and pelagic) in the Sub-region, held in Málaga, Spain, 29-30 April 2010: 39 p.

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 1967/2006 of 21 December 2006, concerning management measures for the sustainable exploitation of fishery resources in the Mediterranean Sea.

D’Onghia, G., Carlucci, R., Maiorano, P., Panza, M., (2003). Discards from deep-water bottom trawling in the eastern–central Mediterranean Sea and effects of mesh size changes. Journal of Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Science, 31: 245-261.

Enever, R., Revill, A.S. and Grant, A. (2009). Discarding in the North Sea and on the historical efficacy of gear-based technical measures in reducing discards. Fisheries Research (95) 40:46.

Enever, R., Reveill, A.S. and Grant, A., (2007). Discarding in the English Channel, Western approaches, Celtic and Irish seas (ICES subarea VII). Fisheries Research 86:143-152.

EU (2008). On the implementation of the policy to reduce unwanted by-catch and eliminate discards in European fisheries. Commission non-paper. 13 pp.

Fabi G., Grati F. (2005) Small-scale fisheries in the maritime department of Ancona (Central Northern Adriatic Sea). In: Adriatic Sea Small-scale Fisheries. Report of the AdriaMed Technical Consultation on Adriatic Sea Small-Scale Fisheries. Split, Croatia, 14th – 15th October 2003. GCP/RER/010/ITA/TD15. AdriaMed Technical Documents, 15: 64-84

Fiorentino F., G. Bono, G. Garofalo, M. Gristina, S. Ragonese, S. Gancitano, G.B. Giusto, P. Rizzo, G. Sinacori, 2003, A further contribution on stocks’ status and fisheries of main

http://www.nwwrac.org/admin/publication/upload/Nephrops_Review_Paper_CEFAS_EN.pdf


demersal resources in the Strait of Sicily. ED/TN/FF-GB-GG-MG-SR-SG-GBG-PR-GS/4/0303/DRAFT

Goncalves J.M.S., Stergiou K.I., Hernabo J.A., Puente E., Moutopoulos D.K., Arregi L. Soriguer M.C., Vilas C., Coelho R., Erzini K. (2007). Discards from experimental trammel nets in southern European small-scale fisheries. Fisheries Reasearch, 88: 5-14.

Graham and Beare, (2008). Report of the SGMOS-08-01 working group on the reduction of discarding practices. STECF.

Hall, S.J., (1999). The Effects of Fishing on Marine Ecosystems and Communities. Blackwell Science, London, 274 pp.

Kelleher, K. (2004). Discards in the World’s Marine Fisheries: An update. FAO Fisheries Technical Paper, 470. 131 pp.

Lambrakis M. Trawls' discards in the Thracian sea (2004). University of Thessaloniki, PhD Thesis.

Lambrakis M., Kallianiotis A., Moutopoulos D.K., Stergiou K.I. (2003). Weight-length relationships of fishes discarded by trawlers in the North Aegean Sea. Acta Icthyol Pisc, 33: 145-151.

Machias A, Vassilopoulou V, Vatsos D, Bekas P, Kallianiotis A, Papaconstantinou C, Tsimenides N (2001). Bottom trawl discards in the Northeastern Mediterranean Sea. Fisheries Research 53, 181-195.

Machias A., Maiorano P., Vassilopoulou V., Papaconstantinou C., Tursi A., Tsimenides N. (2003). Sizes of discarded commercial species in the eastern- central Mediterranean Sea. Fisheries Research 66 213-222.

Marano G., De Zio V., Pastorelli A. M., Ungaro N. (2005) Drifting longline fishery in the southern Adriatic Sea (GFCM Geographical Sub-Area 18) In: Adriatic Sea Small-scale Fisheries. Report of the AdriaMed Technical Consultation on Adriatic Sea Small-Scale Fisheries. Split, Croatia, 14th – 15th October 2003. GCP/RER/010/ITA/TD15. AdriaMed Technical Documents, 15:: 58-63.

Milazzo A., (1988) - Il pescato di scarto nella pesca del gambero. Riv. Merceol., 27(4): 295-314.

Morello E. B., Froglia C., Atkinson R. J. A., Moore P. G. (2005) Hydraulic dredge discards of the clam (Chamelea gallina) fishery in the western Adriatic Sea, Italy. Fish. Res. 76: 430–444.

MRAG (2007). Impact assessment of discard policy for specific fisheries: Final Report. European Commission Studies and Pilot Projects for Carrying Out the Common Fisheries Policy. No FISH/2006/17.

Papaconstantinou, C., A. Zenetos, V. Vassilopoulou & G. Tserpes Eds.(2007). State of Hellenic Fisheries. HCMR Publishing, 466 pp.

Pranovi, F., Raicevich, S., Franceschini, G.,Torricelli, P., Giovanardi, O., (2001). Discard analysis and damage to non-target species in the “rapido” trawl fishery. Mar. Biol. 139, 863–875


Raicevich S., (2008). Discard in the Northern Adriatic Sea multi-gear fishing activities: ecological consequences and implications for mitigation strategies. Presented at “Workshop on discards organized by DGMARE” held in Brussels, 27-28 May 2008.

Santojanni A., Cingolani N., Arneri E., Kirkwood G., Belardinelli A., Giannetti G., Colella S., Donato F., Barry C. (2005) Stock assessment of sardine (Sardina pilchardus, Walb.) in the Adriatic Sea, with an estimation of discards. Sci. Mar., 69 (4): 603-617.

STECF, (2006). Discard from community vessels. Report of the Subgroup on Research Needs (SGRN) of the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF), SGRN-06-06, 46 pp.Stergiou, K.I., Economou, A., Papaconstantinou, C., Tsimenides, N., Kavadas, S., (1998). Estimates of discards in the Hellenic commercial trawl fishery. Rapp. Commun. Int. Mer. Medit. 35, 490–491.

Tsagarakis K., Machias A., Giannoulaki M., Somarakis S., Karakassis I. (2008). Seasonal and temporal trends in metrixs of fish community for otter- trawl discards in a Mediteranean ecosystem. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 65: 539-550.

Tzanatos E. (2006). Composition, temporal dynamics and regional characteristics of small-scale fisheries in Greece. University of Patras PhD thesis.

Tzanatos, E., S. Somarakis, G. Tserpes & C. Koutsikopoulos (2007) Discarding practices in a Mediterranean small-scale fishing fleet (Patraikos Gulf, Greece). Fisheries Management and Ecology, 14, 277–285.

Ulleweit, J. Stransky, C. And Panten, K. (2009). Discards and discarding practices in German fisheries in the North Sea and Northeast Atlantic during 2002-2008. Journal of Applied Ichthyology. 26 (s1): 54-66.

Ungaro N., Marano G., De Zio V., Pastorelli A. M., Rositani L. (2005) Some information on offshore bottom longline fishery in the southern Adriatic Sea (GFCM Geographical Sub-Area 18) (by): In: Adriatic Sea Small-scale Fisheries. Report of the AdriaMed Technical Consultation on Adriatic Sea Small-Scale Fisheries. Split, Croatia, 14th – 15th October 2003. GCP/RER/010/ITA/TD15. AdriaMed Technical Documents, 15: 98-102

Ungaro, N., Joksimovic, A., Pesic, A., Djurovic, M., Kapidani, R., Milone, N., Ceriola, L. and Massa, F. (2008). Identification of the priority species and shared stocks in the Mediterranean Geographical sub-area 18 (Southern Adriatic Sea). Paper presented at the GFCM-SAC Sub Committee on Stock Assessment (Antalya, Turkey, 13-16 October 2008). GCP/RER/010/ITA/OP-29. AdriaMed Occasional Papers, 29: 13 pp.

Wieczorek, S.K., Campagnuolo, S., Moore, P.G., Froglia, C. Atkinson, R.J.A., Gramitto, E.M. & Bailey, N. (1999). The composition and fate of discards from Nephrops trawling in Scottish and Italian waters. Final Report to the European Commission. Reference 96/092, Study Project in support of the Common Fisheries Policy (XIV/96/C75), 323pp.

Yorgos Stratoudakis, Robert J. Fryer, Robin M. Cook, Graham J. Pierce and Ken A. Coull, (2001). Fish bycatch and discarding in Nephrops trawlers in the Firth of Clyde (west of Scotland) Aquatic. Living Resources (14) 5.