Análisis de las tendencias de las capturas de atún listado Katsuwonus pelamis (Linnaeus, 1758) de la pesca deportiva en el Mediterráneo occidental (2006-2014)

Skipjack tuna, Katsuwonus pelamis is a tropical tuna species that inhabits the warm waters worldwide. This species is caught as bycatch of tuna fisheries in the Mediterranean Sea whereas a variety of fisheries target skipjack tuna in the three oceans. This species is a resource of high economic value for many countries and information about its basic life history parameters, distribution and catches is available, however that information in the Mediterranean Sea is scarce. The main objective of this study was to test for interannual variability in the catches of this species in two areas: the Balearic Sea and its surroundings (area I), and the Alboran Sea (area II). Catch per unit effort of skipjack tuna (both in number and kilograms) from individuals caught by recreational fisheries was assessed. Our results indicate that the occurrence of skipjack tuna in fishing area II is larger than those found in fishing area I. Nevertheless, larger individuals were caught in fishing area I, coinciding with the spawning season. Finally, the CPUE of skipjack tuna was tested against two explanatory variables (area and year) using a general linear model (GLM). Our results conclude that these variables explain the 58% of the variability of the catches of this species in the studied areas, where an increasing trend of captures was found. Despite the limitations of the present study, our results showed evidence of an increment of the skipjack tuna abundance in the spawning ground of other tuna species.