Reconstruction of Domestic Marine Fisheries Catches for Oman (1950-2015)

Domestic marine fisheries in Oman are increasingly viewed as the eventual economic alternative to the soon to be depleted oil reserves. This has galvanized the Omani government to invest in the management of its marine living resources. This study aims to provide a better estimation of Oman's domestic marine fisheries catches that can be used to improve fisheries management in the country. Using the catch reconstruction approach, total domestic marine fisheries catches by Oman are estimated for the time period 1950-2015, including reported and previously unreported large-scale and small-scale commercial catches, subsistence, and recreational catches, as well as major discards. Catches from the Omani exclave, Musandam, are estimated separately, given this governorate’s geographical separation from the rest of Oman. Reconstructed total catches increased from around 64,000 t∙year-1 in the 1950s to over 200,000 t·year-1 in the 2000s, which are overall 1.2 times the landings reported by the FAO on behalf of Oman. Fish stocks need to be sustainably managed to allow long-term economic viability. This cannot be done without the improvement of fisheries statistical systems around the world, including in Oman

Reconstruction of total marine fisheries catches for Germany in the North Sea (1950-2010)

We reconstructed marine fisheries catches for the Federal Republic of Germany within the North Sea (specifically ICES area IVb) from 1950-2010. ICES landings statistics are used as a reported baseline, and then adjusted using information from ICES stock assessment working group reports, national data, and expert knowledge to estimate unreported landings, recreational and subsistence catches and major discards. Brown shrimp (Crangon crangon) contribute the most to unreported landings and discards. Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus), Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) and European plaice (Pleuronectes platessa) are also important fisheries for the period 1950-2010. The reconstructed total catch of 8.5 million t from 1950-2010 was approximately 63% higher than the baseline reported ICES landings of 5.2 million t. The reconstructed total catch of invertebrates is almost 4 million t, which is 2 times the ICES baseline catch which is just over 1.9 million t. The reconstructed catch for all finfish species is 4.6 million t and is 41% higher than the ICES baseline catch of 3.3 million t. These discrepancies are largely driven by discarded catches that are not accounted for in officially reported (ICES) data, which also form the globally reported data as presented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Our results demonstrate the importance of comprehensively accounting for and disclosing fisheries data to the public (including discarded catches), and effectively monitoring Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) catches

The marine fisheries in Bulgaria's Exclusive Economic Zone, 1950-2013

The aim of this study is to reconstruct the total historic catch of Bulgarian marine fisheries in their Exclusive Economic Zone for the time period 1950-2013, including unreported landings, discards, recreational and subsistence catches from the ecosystem. The landings data officially reported by Bulgaria to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations for the Mediterranean and Black Seas (FAO Area 37) were revised in line with all available information. The reconstructed total catch for 1950-2013 was 1.7 times the (adjusted) baseline data reported by Bulgaria to FAO and 1.5 times the unadjusted data as reported by FAO. This study revealed major deficiencies which exist in the officially reported Bulgarian catch data, foremost being the large amount of unreported industrial catches, especially for the last two decades. Furthermore, the exclusion of some fisheries sectors, notably the absence of data on the subsistence and recreational fisheries in reported data are also noteworthy

Knowing the past to improve the future: Estimating historical fishing catches to improve fisheries management in the Western Mediterranean Sea

We developed for the first time the commercial fishing catches reconstruction of the Balearic Islands (Western Mediterranean) between 1950 and 2010, by adding non-reported components, including unreported landings and discards, to the official reported landing data. To back‑estimate historical unreported landings and discards, collaboration and information acquired from fishermen were essential, as gathered through interviews and observer programs of the Spanish Oceanographic Institute (IEO) on board commercial bottom trawling fleet. We estimated a total catch of 511,500 t over the period 1950‑2010, of which official landings represented 49% (around 248,000 t), followed by unreported catches (32%) and discards (20%). A decrease in unreported catches was observed during the period 1950-2010 (from 58% to 38%) due to a reduction of unreported landings, but substantial efforts are still required to improve the recordings of actual fishing catches. This work contributes to the global assessment of fisheries removals led by the Sea Around Us and aims to provide the basis for an improved management of the Balearic Islands and Mediterranean Sea fisheries

Fishing in Easter Island, a recent history (1950-2010)

Easter Island (Rapa Nui) is well studied in terms of its archaeology; however, information regarding the history of fishing is extremely limited. Marine resources have likely been exploited from the time the first Polynesians arrived on this remote island. While large pelagics are part of the traditional Rapa Nui diet, inshore fish and invertebrates have also made their way into the diet. Official records of fisheries catches in what is now the Easter Island Province of Chile, which also includes the uninhabited island of Salas y Gómez, are very limited and were available for only some years. Using anecdotal information, historical descriptions and the limited quantitative information available, we reconstructed fisheries catches in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Easter Island Province over the 1950-2010 time period. Totaling almost 6,000 ton, legal catches have been increasing rapidly since the late 1970s, but are now stagnating at around 150-200 ton yr-1. The main species targeted were Pacific chub or 'nanue' (Kyphosus sandwicensis) and yellowfin tuna or 'kahi ave ave' (Thunnus albacares), with spiny lobster or 'ura' (Panulirus pascuensis) being the most important invertebrate species. There are indications of a substantial illegal fishery for large pelagics in the EEZ of the province, estimated at 200-2,000 ton yr-1, which may have operated for two decades and may be the cause for the declining artisanal catch of tuna by Rapa Nui fishers. Continued pressure on these geographically remote oceanic and inshore marine species, especially those popular amongst tourists, makes accounting for fisheries catches an even greater priority

Fisheries Centre Research Reports, Vol. 22, No. 2

This is the fourth of our Fisheries Centre Research Reports featuring catch reconstructions for islands. Like its predecessors, a wide variety of islands is covered; some are countries in their own right, e.g., Iceland, while others are overseas territories of other countries, e.g., the British Virgin Islands. This set of reconstructions is particular, however, in that it includes the largest island in the world, Greenland, where all living resources, including seabirds and marine mammals are exploited, as well as the Chagos Archipelagos in the Indian Ocean, where all legal exploitation ceased when its Exclusive Economic Zone was declared a marine reserve in 2010, at the very end of the period covered here. There are six reconstructions from the Caribbean Islands, ranging in size from Cuba to tiny Anguilla, and five from the Pacific, ranging from wealthy Singapore, with a minuscule EEZ to impoverished and tiny Kiribati, with an immense EEZ.Science, Faculty ofOceans and Fisheries, Institute for theUnreviewedFacultyGraduateUndergraduat

Fisheries Centre Research Reports, Vol. 20, No. 5

Science, Faculty ofOceans and Fisheries, Institute for theZoology, Department ofUnreviewedFacultyGraduat

The Marine Fisheries in Bulgaria's Exclusive Economic Zone, 1950-2013

This study presents a reconstruction of the total catch of Bulgarian marine fisheries in the Bulgarian Exclusive Economic Zone for the time period 1950-2013, including previously unreported landings, discards, recreational and subsistence catches. The landings data officially reported by Bulgaria to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations for the Mediterranean and Black Seas (FAO Area 37) were revised in line with all available information. The reconstructed total catch for 1950-2013 was 1.7 times the (adjusted) baseline data reported by Bulgaria to FAO and 1.5 times the unadjusted data as reported by FAO. This study revealed major deficiencies in the officially reported Bulgarian catch data, foremost the large amount of unreported industrial catches, especially for the last two decades. The exclusion of some fisheries sectors, notably the absence of data on the subsistence and recreational fisheries in reported data are also noteworthy

Reconstruction of Italy’s marine fisheries removals and fishing capacity, 1950-2010

11 pages, 7 figures, 4 tables, 1 appendix supplementary data http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fishres.2015.06.028Italy has the highest catches of all countries fishing in the Mediterranean Sea. Despite the availability of fisheries statistics at the national level, reported catch amounts account only for a portion of total fisheries removals. This study aims to provide an estimate of 1) catches for all marine fishing sectors; 2) fishing effort in the major Italian fishing fleets; and 3) catch per unit of effort from 1950 to 2010. Catches were estimated using a catch-reconstruction approach that looked at all types of fisheries removals: from reported and unreported landings (from both industrial and artisanal fisheries) to recreational landings and discards. The reconstructed total catch for the 1950–2010 time period was 2.6 times the amount reported by the FAO on behalf of Italy. Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) landings constituted 53.9% of the reconstructed total catch, followed by reported catches (38.8%) and unreported discards (7.3%). Industrial fisheries were dominant, with 79.1% of the reconstructed total removals, followed by the artisanal catch (16.8%), with recreational (3.2%) and subsistence (0.9%) fisheries making very small contributions. Catch per unit of effort declined since the early 1950s. Our study is the first that estimated total Italian fisheries removals and fishing capacity using a holistic approach; such approach is particularly important in areas like the Mediterranean Sea, where the multi-species and multi-gear nature of fisheries make the assessment of single-species fisheries resources and their management difficultA.U., D.Z. and D.P. thank the Sea Around Us, funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts and The Paul G. Allen Family FoundationPeer Reviewe