Search

Tuna are highly migratory pelagic species (HMPS) with great importance in commercial fishing. Several authors have highlighted the effect of climatic oscillations such as the NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation) on HMPS. This paper analyzes the effects of the NAO on two HMPS: albacore, Thunnus alalunga, and yellowfin tuna, Thunnus albacares. Fishing data from the Spanish fleet operating in the North Atlantic area were obtained from the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) database. The results show a positive correlation between the NAO index and the Catch per Unit Effort (CPUE) for both albacore and yellowfin tuna, depicting a potential effect on their capturability.

We analysed variations in swordfish capture and total by-catches, under different oceanographic and technical conditions, in the artisanal longline fishery operating in the Alboran Sea during the summer period. The oceanographic variable Sea Surface Velocity absolute component (SSV; m s-1) was the variable with the greatest explanatory power, as it was present in all models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the findings of a study on whether fish-only bait can significantly reduce loggerhead turtle Caretta caretta catch in commercial surface longline fisheries targeting swordfish in the Western Mediterranean Sea. It was found that the number of turtles captured using fish-only bait was significantly lower than when using squid fish baits. It was also found that the economic profit diminished due to less catch.