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| Marine Resource Fact Sheet |
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| | Capelin - Iceland, East Greenland and Jan Mayen area, 2006 |
| | Capelin in the Iceland-East Greenland-Jan Mayen area (Sub-areas V and XIV and Division IIa west of 5°W) |
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| | Owned by | International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES)
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| Related observations | Locate in inventory | | | | | Distribution of Capelin - Iceland, East Greenland and Jan Mayen area | |  Map legend
Area Details 
FAO Fishing Statistical Division Areas27.2.a: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.2.a 27.5.a: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.5.a 27.14.a: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.14.a 27.14.b: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.14.b FAO Fishing Statistical Subdivision Areas27.5.b.1: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.5.b.1 27.5.b.2: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.5.b.2 More Geo References | |
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| Main Descriptors | Considered a single stock: Yes
Spatial Scale: Sub-Regional
Considered a management unit: Yes |
| Considered a single stock: A group of individuals in a species occupying a well defined spatial range independent of other stocks of the same species. It can be affected by random dispersal movements and directed migrations due to seasonal or reproductive activity. |
| Spatial Scale: Spatial scale contains a standard term such as Global, Regional (e.g. for the whole Atlantic), sub-regional (e.g. for a part of the Atlantic), national, local (for sub-national levels). |
| Considered a management unit: An aquatic resource or fishery is
declared as [Fishery] Management Unit if it is
effectively the focus for the application of selected
management methods and measures, within the broader
framework of a management system. According to the FAO
Glossary for Responsible Fishing, "a Fishery Management
Unit (FMU) is a fishery or a portion of a fishery
identified in a Fishery Management Plan (FMP) relevant
to the FMP's management objectives." FMU's may be
organised around fisheries biological, geographic,
economic, technical, social or ecological dimensions ,
and the makeup and attribute of a fishery management
unit depends mainly on the FMP's management
objectives. |
| Jurisdictional distribution: Jurisdictional qualifier (e.g.
"shared", "shared - highly migratory") of the aquatic
resource related with its spatial distribution. |
| Environmental group: Classification of the aquatic
resource according to the environmental group (e.g.
pelagic invertebrate, or demersal fish) to which the
species belong. |
| | | | | | Habitat and Biology Depth zone: Shelf Vertical distribution: Pelagic Geographical Distribution Jurisdictional distribution: Shared between nations Water Area Overview Spatial Scale: Sub-Regional Geo References | | Distribution of Capelin - Iceland, East Greenland and Jan Mayen area
| FAO Fishing Statistical Division Areas | 27.2.a: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.2.a | | 27.5.a: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.5.a | | 27.14.a: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.14.a | | 27.14.b: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.14.b | | FAO Fishing Statistical Subdivision Areas | 27.5.b.1: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.5.b.1 | | 27.5.b.2: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.5.b.2 |
| | | | | | Intersecting Major FAO areas and LME areas |
The following area codes have been found as intersecting the distribution of Capelin - Iceland, East Greenland and Jan Mayen area | FAO major areas | 27:
Atlantic, Northeast | | (LME) Large Marine Ecosystem Areas | 19: East Greenland Shelf | | 20: Barents Sea | | 21: Norwegian Shelf | | 22: North Sea | | 59 | | 60 |
Resource Structure Considered a single stock: Yes Exploitation Factors affecting the fisheries and the stockRegulations and their effectsDiscards are allowed when catches are beyond the carrying capacity of the vessel. Methods of transferring catches from the purse seine of one vessel to another vessel were invented long ago, and since skippers of purse-seine vessels prefer to operate in groups, discards are practically zero. In the pelagic trawl fishery, such large catches of capelin rarely occur. A regulation calling for immediate, temporary area closures when high abundance of juveniles are measured in the catch (more than 20% of the catch composed of fish less than 13 cm) is enforced, using on-board observers. The environmentThe decline in stock abundance in the early 1990s was likely to be due to natural causes (Vilhjálmsson, 2002; Guðmundsdóttir and Vilhjálmsson, 2002). Distribution of the stock may have changed in response to environmental factors. Icelandic waters are characterized by highly variable hydrographical conditions, with temperatures and salinities depending on the strength of Atlantic inflow through the Denmark Strait and the variable flow of polar water from the north. In the years 2002–2005, great difficulties were encountered in locating and assessing the juvenile part of the stock (ages 1 and 2; and ages 2 and 3 after 31 December). In this period, the quarterly monitoring of environmental conditions of Icelandic waters shows a rise in sea temperatures north and east of Iceland, which probably also reaches farther north and northwest. The temperature increase is so great that it may have led to displacements of the juvenile part of the capelin stock. In 2006 the 2005 year class was observed in its traditional locations on the continental shelf. Assessment Assessment Model Assessment Model Entry Data Scientific basisData and methodsThe basis for stock assessment and short-term forecasts of the Icelandic capelin are several acoustic surveys. Overall Assessment Results  | | Graphs |
 | | Graphs |
Figure 2.4.11.1 Capelin in the Iceland–East Greenland–Jan Mayen area (Subareas V and XIV and Division IIa west of 5°W). Recruitment. Spawning stock biomass. Capelin in the Iceland–East Greenland–Jan Mayen area 1978/79–2007/08. Recruitment of 1-year-old fish (unit 10 9) and total stock biomass (‘000 t) are given for 1 August. Spawning-stock biomass (‘000 t) is given at the time of spawning (March next year). Landings (‘000 t) are the sum of the total landings in the season starting in the summer/autumn of the year indicated and ending in March of the following year. Stock summary
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Year
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-
Recruitment
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Total
Stock biomass
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-
Landings
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Spawning-
stock biomass
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1978/79
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164
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2832
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1195
|
600
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1979/80
|
60
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2135
|
980
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300
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1980/81
|
66
|
1130
|
684
|
170
|
|
1981/82
|
49
|
1038
|
626
|
140
|
|
1982/83
|
146
|
1020
|
0
|
260
|
|
1983/84
|
124
|
2070
|
573
|
440
|
|
1984/85
|
251
|
2427
|
897
|
460
|
|
1985/86
|
99
|
2811
|
1312
|
460
|
|
1986/87
|
156
|
3106
|
1333
|
420
|
|
1987/88
|
144
|
2639
|
1116
|
400
|
|
1988/89
|
81
|
2101
|
1037
|
440
|
|
1989/90
|
64
|
1482
|
808
|
115
|
|
1990/91
|
118
|
1293
|
314
|
330
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|
1991/92
|
133
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1975
|
677
|
475
|
|
1992/93
|
163
|
2058
|
788
|
499
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|
1993/94
|
144
|
2287
|
1179
|
460
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|
1994/95
|
224
|
2287
|
864
|
420
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1995/96
|
197
|
3007
|
929
|
830
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1996/97
|
191
|
2885
|
1571
|
430
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|
1997/98
|
165
|
2348
|
1245
|
492
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1998/99
|
168
|
2197
|
1100
|
500
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1999/00
|
138
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2315
|
933
|
650
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2000/01
|
146
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2164
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1071
|
450
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2001/02
|
140
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2432
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1249
|
475
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2002/03
|
142
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1993
|
988
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410
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2003/04
|
132
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2540
|
741
|
535
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2004/05
|
57
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1651
|
783
|
602
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2005/06
|
95*
|
975*
|
238
|
400
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2006/07
|
51*
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1177*
|
377
|
410
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2007/08 1)
|
NA
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-
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-
|
400
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*Preliminary. NA: Not available. Projection Short-term implicationsAn estimate of the 2005 year class (immature age 1 capelin) is available from an acoustic survey in November 2006. It is estimated as relatively low. With this estimate a preliminary TAC could be set for the 2007/08 season. This may be revised when new information on the abundance of the whole stock becomes available. Scientific Advice Single-stock exploitation boundariesExploitation boundaries in relation to existing management plansWith the estimate of the 2005 year class a TAC could be predicted. As the predicted TAC is relatively low, it is suggested that no summer fishery should be allowed. The starting quota will be 206 000 t (2/3 of predicted TAC 308 000 t) assuming that the fishery starts in the beginning of November 2007. Management considerationsThe fishery is mainly an industrial fishery based on maturing capelin, i.e. age 2 and age 3 in the autumn, which spawn at ages 3 and 4 in March of the following year. Ecosystem considerationsCapelin is an important forage fish and declines in stock may be expected to have implications for the productivity of their predators. Management Considered a management unit: Yes Management Objectives The fishery is managed according to a two-step management plan which requires a minimum spawning-stock biomass of 400 000 t by the end of the fishing season. The first step in this plan is to set a preliminary TAC based on the results of an acoustic survey carried out to evaluate the immature (age 1 and most of age 2) part of the capelin stock about a year before it enters the fishable stock. The initial quota is set at 2/3 of the preliminary TAC, calculated on the condition that 400 000 t of the SSB should be left for spawning. The second step is based on the results of another survey conducted during the fishing season for the same year classes. This result is used to revise the TAC, still based on the condition that 400 000 t of the SSB should be left for spawning. ICES has not evaluated the management plan with respect to its conformity to the precautionary approach. Catch and TACsCatch and TACsWeights in ‘000 t. 1)TAC advised for the July–December part of the season. 2)Final TAC recommended by national scientists for the whole season. 3)July–March of following year. *Preliminary TAC set according to the results of an assessment survey in late June/early July 2004. **All surveys of the prospective 2005/06 fishable stock abundance during the 2004/2005 season were unsuccessful. The advice is preliminary and subject to revision following results of further surveys. Biological State and Trend Exploitation rate: Undefined
Abundance level: Undefined In the absence of defined reference points, the state of the stock is unknown. The SSB is highly variable because it is dependent on only two age groups. It is estimated that 410 000 t were left for spawning in spring 2007. In the years 2002–2005 no recruitment estimates were available from surveys. An estimate for the 2005 year class is available from an acoustic survey in November 2006. It is estimated low, but sufficient to allow a fishery in 2007/08. Source of information Guðmundsdóttir, A., and Vilhjalmsson, H. 2002. Predicting total allowable catches for Icelandic capelin, 1978–2001. ICES Marine Science Symposia, 216: 115–1115. ICES. 2007. Report of the North Western Working Group, 24 April–3 May 2007. ICES CM 2007/ACFM:17. Vilhjálmsson, H. 2002. Capelin ( Mallotus villosus) in the Iceland–East Greenland–Jan Mayen ecosystem. ICES Marine Science Symposia, 216: 870–883. ICES  . |
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