The demersal fishery of the North Sea plaice exploits several flatfish species. The implications of this exploitation have been extensively studied for commercially important species such as sole and plaice. However, the effects of this fishery on other species that may be equally affected have gained much less attention. By collating available data from a number of countries around the North Sea, this project aims at getting a clear picture on the changes that have taken place in turbot and brill, two flatfish species. It is the first time that this data is available, and the results of this project will thus offer a broader view of the effects of the fishery for the first time.
The results of the project are important in the light of the changes in marine governance that are currently taking place, changing focus from a single harvestable species to an ecosystem based fisheries management, where the effects of fishing on larger number of species is considered.
In this project, historic data of the surveys and commercial landings for the flatfish species Turbot and Brill will be analysed to quantify the historic changes in their populations with respect to the age-, size and maturity. The results will allow a first time comparison with other flatfish species, gaining a helicopter view of the changes that have taken place in the North sea over the past few decades.
Supervisor: Jan Jaap Poos – JanJaap.Poos@wur.nl
Location: IJmuiden
Duration: 5-6 months