Report of the Workshop on elasmobranch conservation in the Mediterranean and Black Sea

Report of the Workshop on elasmobranch conservation in the Mediterranean and Black Sea

GFCM Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC). Subcommittee on Stock Assessment (SCSA). Sète, France, 10–12 December 2014

Year of publication 2014

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 26 p.

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Meeting

Edition 1

Full item page

Synopsis (short abstract) This workshop was the fourth of a series initiated in 2010 by the GFCM with the aim of improving knowledge on elasmobranchs and proposing technical management measures for their conservation. The workshop was attended by 19 participants from Croatia, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey. The 20 presentations by experts greatly contributed to updating regional knowledge on elasmobranchs after the 2012 GFCM publication on the status of elasmobranchs. The topics presented includ ed biology, fisheries, geographical distribution, data reporting and monitoring programmes and by-catch mitigation measures. Methodologies to estimate by-catch rates and to assess the stocks of these slow-growing, long-lived and data-limited species were proposed. A number of technical measures already tested in other parts of the world that were considered feasible by the experts in attendance were suggested for short-term implementation within the multiannual management plans currently under d evelopment in the Mediterranean and in the Black Sea.

Language English

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Elasmobranchs of the mediterranean and black sea: status, ecology and biology, biographic analysis 2012

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The authors have compiled published information on taxonomy, distribution, status, statistics, fisheries, bycatch, biologic and ecologic parameters on age and growth, food and feeding habits, reproductive biology and stock assessment of elasmobranchs in the Mediterranean and Black Sea. This bibliographic analysis, through 661 papers dealing with elasmobranchs in the GFCM area, shows that cartilaginous species, including sharks, rays and chimaeras, are by far the most endangered group of marine fish in the Mediterranean Sea, with 31 species (40 percent of all) critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable. The biological characteristics of elasmobranchs (low fecundity, late maturity, slow growth) make them more vulnerable to fishing pressure than most teleost fish. Overfishing, wide use of non-selective fishing practices and habitat degradation are leading to dramatic declines of these species in the Mediterranean Sea. In general, elasmobranchs are not targeted but are caught incidentally. In many fisheries they are, however, often landed and marketed. The study also highlights the following points: – Works are concentrated mainly in the western Mediterranean. Few works concern endangered species and those of the GFCM priority list; – Much systematic confusion persists for some species and some others are doubtful; – The IUCN red list shows clearly the vulnerability of elasmobranchs and the lack of data; – A decline in cartilaginous fish speci es landings has been observed while fishing effort has generally increased; – A standardization of methods and expression of results on the biology should be generalized in the whole Mediterranean; – Papers on biologic parameters concern few species primarily in the occidental and central Mediterranean areas. Therefore, recommendations to fill gaps in order to protect and manage elasmobranchs stocks are proposed in this document. In fact, better understanding of the composition of incidental and targeted catches of sharks by commercial fisheries and biological and ecological parameters are fundamentally important for the conservation of these populations. Moreover, problems encountered by elasmobranchs in the GFCM area are highlighted and conservation measures are suggested.
Meeting

Report of the Workshop on the implementation of the Data Collection Reference Framework in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea
GFCM Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC). Madrid, Spain, 15–16 December 2014
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The GFCM workshop on the implementation of the Data Collection Reference Framework (DCRF) in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea (Madrid, Spain, 15–16 December 2014) provided technical suggestions for improving two sections of the DCRF document: 1) structure of the data collection; and 2) common practices for data collection. The workshop recognized that the DCRF was an appropriate tool for gathering the data and information necessary both for the provision of advice by the Scientific Advisory C ommittee (SAC) and for supporting the adoption of sound management measures by the Commission. The workshop agreed on the draft terms of references related to the national focal point for data collection (NFC-DC), voiced support for this role as being instrumental in the correct implementation of, and follow-up on, the DCRF. Finally, the meeting proposed a detailed roadmap for the implementation of the DCRF and recommended using the proposed DCRF IT online platform as a core instrument in suppor t of the DCRF; an instrument to be further developed by the GFCM Secretariat in accordance with agreed technical specifications.
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