ICES. 2021. Working Group on Acoustic and Egg Surveys for small pelagic fish in NE Atlantic (WGACEGG; outputs from 2020 meeting) ICES Scientific Reports. 3:76. 706 pp. https://doi.org/10.17895/ices.pub.8234

• Main Authors: Kooij, J. (Jeroen) van der, Angélico, M.M. (María Manuel), Moreno, A. (Ana), Uriarte, A. (Andrés), O'Donnell, C. (Ciaran), Nunes, C. (Cristina), Duhamel, E. (Erwan), Ramos, F. (Fernando), Boyra, G. (Guillermo), Riveiro, I. (Isabel), Ibaibarriaga, L. (Leire), Santos, M. (María), Huret, M. (Martin), Doray, M. (Mathieu), Carrera, P. (Pablo), Díaz-Conde, M.P. (María Paz), Amorim, P. (Pedro), Rodríguez-Climent, S. (Silvia), Domínguez-Petit, R. (Rosario), Campanella, F. (Fabio)
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: Centro Oceanográfico de Cádiz 2021
• Subjects: monitoring; fish; catch composition; data processing; echo integrators; Nordeste; Northeast Atlantic
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10508/12457; https://doi.org/10.17895/ices.pub.8234

This year the group changed its name to Working Group on Acoustic and Egg Surveys for small pelagic fish in NE Atlantic (WGACEGG). WGACEGG coordinates, assesses and quality controls acoustic and daily egg production (DEPM) surveys of several pelagic stocks in ICES areas 6-9. During three 2020 WGACEGG meetings, results of three DEPM surveys, three spring/summer acoustic surveys and all six autumn surveys were presented. Implications of the cancellation of three surveys (SAREVA and PELACUS (Spain)) and PELGAS (France) were also discussed, as were possible mitigations to minimize the effects on the relevant stock assessments. No concerns were raised about the surveys that took place. The results from the DEPM survey for sardine in 9a could not be provided until December, as COVID-19 had restricted laboratory access. WGACEGG also met with members of the Working Group on Southern Horse Mackerel, Anchovy, and Sardine (WGHANSA) to present the results from the 2020 Portuguese (PELAGO) acoustic survey in advance of the June assessment meeting. The working groups discussed the implications of PELAGO using a different vessel and of the earlier timing (compared to the timeseries) on the sardine and anchovy indices. The joint meeting also identified which surveys were at risk of being cancelled because of COVID-19 and discussed possible mitigations. Biomass estimates for both sardine and anchovy in division 9a were higher than observed in recent years as confirmed by both acoustic and DEPM surveys; DEPM derived Bay of Biscay anchovy spawning stock biomass was the highest on record although the number of recruits in the Bay of Biscay observed later in autumn did not reflect this increase. However, this was at least partly due to a northwards expansion into the English Channel where Bay of Biscay juveniles were found for the first time; sardine biomass in the Bay of Biscay from all available surveys suggested slightly lower values than the long-term average; in the English Channel sardine biomass was the second highest in the ...