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Depredation by marine mammals in the Mediterranean, Black Sea and contiguous Atlantic area

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    Book (series)
    Dolphin depredation in Mediterranean and Black Sea fisheries
    Methodology for data collection
    2022
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    When marine mammals come into physical contact with fishing gear, there can be harmful effects to both the animals and fishers. The animals may be incidentally caught in fishing gear, or in the case of depredation, marine mammals – usually dolphins – may remove and/or damage fish captured in nets or hooks, resulting in damage to fishing gear, loss of capture and consequently lower catch values and fisher revenues. Depredation can also lead to entanglement, which can in turn produce incidental catch. The competitive overlap between dolphins and humans at sea represents a worldwide issue, as it affects both the survival of wild dolphin populations and the livelihoods of fishers, and it is receiving growing attention from fisheries management organizations around the globe. Many gaps still remain, however, in the knowledge of the actual extent of the problem, including in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. In order to understand and mitigate dolphin depredation in the region through effective management measures, adequate regional/subregional and national monitoring programmes are required to obtain representative data on dolphin depredation events during sampled fishing operations. The purpose of this protocol, which allows for replicability and comparisons among fisheries across the region, is to facilitate and improve data collection in a harmonized and standardized way. Its aim is to improve understanding of the dolphin populations involved in depredation events, assess the regional magnitude of depredation to determine the economic losses suffered by fishers, identify the typologies of fishing practices that lead to depredation, as well as potential mitigation measures, and collect information for the conservation of marine mammals.
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    Book (series)
    Depredation by marine mammals in fishing gear
    A review of the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea and contiguous Atlantic area
    2023
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    Marine mammal depredation refers to the phenomenon of marine mammals partially or completely removing catch from fishing gear. Its results, which can affect the survival of wild dolphin populations, as well as damage gear or target fish, disturb fishing activities and generate economic losses for fishers, are a growing cause for concern in several Mediterranean and Black Sea fisheries. Depredation events often leave dolphins injured or snared in fishing nets and fishers with damaged nets and lower catch values. As a result, these interactions can create conflicts between dolphins and fishers, undermining efforts to improve the sustainability of fisheries and the conservation of vulnerable species. This review offers an overview of historical and current trends of depredation by marine mammals in the region, including information on the contiguous Atlantic area west of Gibraltar. The publication aims to assess and synthesize depredation records and describe ongoing projects on depredation in order to improve knowledge on key aspects of depredation, such as the fishing practices associated with depredation events, the economic fallout caused by marine mammal–fisheries interactions and the species and populations most involved in depredation. In the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, coastal fisheries often come into contact with cetaceans, especially bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), common dolphins (Delphinus delphis) and harbour porpoises (Phocoena phocoena relicta). These species feature most prominently in the depredation records assessed and are the main research focuses of ongoing monitoring projects in the region. However, Mediterranean monk seals (Monachus monachus) are also responsible for depredation, especially in the eastern Mediterranean, and are the subject of their own short chapter in this review.
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    Monitoring incidental catch of vulnerable species in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea: Methodology for data collection 2019
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    Bycatch – a term widely used to refer to the part of catch unintentionally captured during a fishing operation, in addition to target species, and consisting of discards and incidental catches of vulnerable species – is considered one of the most important threats to the profitability and sustainability of fisheries, as well as to the conservation of the marine environment and ecosystems. In the Mediterranean, studies on the incidental catch of vulnerable species cover only a small portion of the total fishing activity. In addition, there are several important knowledge gaps for many types of fishing gear, and several countries and/or subregions, as well as on temporal scales, and only a few measures are in place that address the protection of vulnerable species. Monitoring programmes and surveys on incidental catches, which follow a harmonized methodology allowing for results to be compared across subregions, are necessary to improve knowledge on the issue and to subsequently support the identification of potential mitigation methods and tools, and relevant management measures. This publication and the methodology contained herein aim to provide a framework for the development and implementation of an efficient, standardized data collection and monitoring system for all vulnerable species encountered in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, namely elasmobranchs, marine mammals, seabirds, sea turtles, and macrobenthic invertebrates.

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