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| Marine Resource Fact Sheet |
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 | Sprat in Subarea IV (North Sea) |
| | Data Ownership | | This document provided, maintained and owned by International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) , is part of ICES Advice data collection. |
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| Related observations | Locate in inventory | | | | Species: | | FAO Names: en - European sprat, fr - Sprat, es - Espadín, ru - Шпрот европейский |
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| Geographic extent of Sprat - North Sea Map tips - Click on
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| FAO Fishing Statistical Division Areas |
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| 27.4.a | Atlantic, Northeast / 27.4.a |
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| 27.4.b | Atlantic, Northeast / 27.4.b |
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| 27.4.c | Atlantic, Northeast / 27.4.c |
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| Main Descriptors | Considered a single stock: Yes Spatial Scale: Sub-Regional
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 (50 m - 200 m). Vertical distribution: Pelagic. Sprat in the North Sea is short-lived with high natural mortality and the catch is dominated by young fish. The stock size is mostly driven by the recruiting year class. Thus, the fishery in a given year is dependent on that year’s incoming year class. Environmental influence on the stockThe zooplankton community structure that is sustaining the sprat stocks appears to be changing, and there has been a long-term decrease in total zooplankton abundance in the northern North Sea (Reid et al., 2003; Beaugrand, 2003; ICES, 2006a). The implications of the environmental change for sprat are unknown. Geographical Distribution Jurisdictional distribution: National Water Area Overview Spatial Scale: Sub-Regional Ecoregion: North Sea Geo References  | | Geographic extent of Sprat - North Sea
| FAO Fishing Statistical Division Areas | 27.4.a: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.4.a | | 27.4.b: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.4.b | | 27.4.c: Atlantic, Northeast / 27.4.c |
| | | | | | Intersecting Major FAO areas and LME areas |
The following area codes have been found as intersecting the distribution of Sprat - North Sea | FAO Major Fishing Areas | 27: Atlantic, Northeast | | Large Marine Ecosystem Areas (LME) | 22: North Sea | | 24: Celtic-Biscay Shelf |
Resource Structure Considered a single stock: Yes Exploitation The fisheriesThe majority of the sprat landings are taken in the Danish small-meshed trawl fishery. In this fishery there is about 10% bycatch of herring. The Norwegian sprat fishery is mainly carried out by purse seiners. Landings are used for reduction for fish meal and fish oil. Most sprat catches are taken in an a small meshed fishery where catches are limited by herring bycatch restrictions. Bycatches of herring are practically unavoidable except in years with high sprat abundance or low herring recruitment. Given the recent increase in the North Sea Autumn Spawning herring stock, the sprat fishery in has been increasingly limited by the by-catch limits. Effects of the fisheries on the ecosystemSprat is an important prey species in the North Sea ecosystem. The effects of the sprat fishery on other fish species, marine mammals and seabirds are at present unknown. Assessment Scientific Advice Based on the ICES approach for data limited stocks, ICES advises that catches should not be more than 134 000 tonnes (catches of 2011). This is the first year that ICES is providing quantitative advice for data limited stocks (see Quality considerations). Overall Assessment Results  | Figure 6.4.18.1 Sprat in Subarea IV (North Sea). ICES estimates of landings (in ‘000 tonnes), relative biomass estimate from the HERAS survey, and relative abundance estimate from the IBTS survey (* marked estimates are preliminary).  |
Assessment Model Quality considerationBoth the IBTS and the HERAS acoustic survey are currently considered to potentially provide basis for an abundance index. The sampling intensity in Subarea IV has improved in 2011, but is still below the reference level of 0.5 sample per kt in Division IVc where the majority of the fisheries takes place. A reanalysis of the data during the 2012/13 benchmark should further reveal data needs. The methods applied to derive quantitative advice for data limited stocks are expected to evolve as they are further developed and validated. Scientific basis | Assessment type | There is currently only an explorative assessment for this stock. | | Input data | 3 survey indices (IBTS Q1&3, HERAS) | | | Commercial landings | | Discards and bycatch | Bycatches from the Danish sprat fishery | | Indicators | None | | Other information | For this short-lived stock, in year advice is given A benchmark for this stock is planned for 2013. | Management Management unit: Yes Management plansNo specific management objectives are known to ICES. Biological State and Trend Exploitation rate: Unknown
Abundance level: Increasing Source of information The above excerpts are from the first two pages of the ICES advice, the supporting information to this advice can be read in full at the following reference: ICES. Sprat in Subarea IV (North Sea). Report of the ICES Advisory Committee, 2012. ICES Advice 2012.  http://www.ices.dk/committe/acom/comwork/report/2012/2012/spr-nsea.pdf |
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