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Aran, Galway Bay and Slyne Head Nephrops Grounds (FU17) 2023 UWTV Survey Report and catch scenarios for 2024
Aristegui, M. Ryan, Gráinne Fahy, James Manning, Laurence McCann, Neve Woodcock, Kirsty Course, Grant Meireles de Castro, Rita Murphy, Natasha White, Jonathan
Aristegui, M.
Ryan, Gráinne
Fahy, James
Manning, Laurence
McCann, Neve
Woodcock, Kirsty
Course, Grant
Meireles de Castro, Rita
Murphy, Natasha
White, Jonathan
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Date
2023
Publisher
Marine Institute
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Abstract
This report provides the main results and findings of the 21st annual underwater television
survey on the Aran, Galway Bay and Slyne head Nephrops grounds, ICES assessment area;
Functional Unit 17. The survey was multi-disciplinary in nature collecting UWTV, CTD and
other ecosystem data. In 2023 a total of 44 UWTV stations were successfully completed, 34
on the Aran Grounds, 5 on Galway Bay and 5 on Slyne Head patches. The mean burrow
density observed in 2023, adjusted for edge effect, was medium at 0.29 burrows/m². The
final krigged burrow abundance estimate for the Aran Grounds was 356 million burrows
with a CV (Coefficient of Variance; relative standard error) of 3%. The final abundance
estimate for Galway Bay was 15 million and for Slyne Head was 5 million, with CVs of 7%
and 4% respectively. The total abundance estimates have fluctuated considerably over the
time series. The 2023 combined abundance estimate (375 million burrows) is 13% higher
than in 2021, and it is below MSY Btrigger (540 million burrows). Using the 2023 estimate of
abundance and updated stock data imply that catches in 2024 should be no more than 454
tonnes, according to the EU MAP and ICES MSY approach and assuming that discard rates
and fishery selection patterns do not change from the average of 2020–2022. Virgularia
mirabilis was the only sea-pen species observed on the UWTV footage. Trawl marks were
present at 5% of the Aran stations surveyed.
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Citation
Aristegui, M., Ryan, G., Fahy, J., Manning, L., McCann, N., Woodcock, K., Course, G., Meireles de Castro, R., Murphy, N., White, J., and O’Connor, S. (2023). Aran, Galway Bay and Slyne Head Nephrops Grounds (FU17) 2023 UWTV Survey Report and catch scenarios for 2024. Marine Institute UWTV Survey report