Porbeagle

Porbeagle biomass is currently within precautionary limits and is not subject to overfishing. However, it remains vulnerable to overexploitation.

There is thought to be a single stock of porbeagle in the Northeast Atlantic which extends from the Barents Sea to Northwest Africa. The low productivity and aggregating nature of this species makes it particularly vulnerable to overexploitation.

Relative biomass of porbeagle has declined from a high in the early 1900's to below Blim in the 1970's. It fluctuated below Blim until 2012 when it began to increase. In 2022, relative biomass (B/BMSY) is above Blim but just below MSY Btrigger.

Relative fishing pressure has fluctuated throughout the time series. Since a zero Total Allowable Catch (TAC) was introduced in 2010, fishing pressure has been below FMSY.

Previous advice from ICES was for a zero catch from 2020-2023. However, this stock was benchmarked in 2022 after improvements in data availability and the stock is now doing better than previously thought. Therefore, ICES now advises that when the MSY approach is applied, catches in 2023 and 2024 should be no more than 219 and 231 tonnes respectively. Landings in 2021 were estimated at 7 tonnes and as the fishery is still prohibited, this is not expected to increase.

In both the EU and UK, it has been illegal to fish for, retain on board, tranship or land porbeagle since 2010. There is no other management plan in place for porbeagle in this area.

Historically, porbeagle was an extremely valuable shark taken in trawl, line and gillnet fisheries, however, it is no longer a targeted fishery and any bycatch, must be released.

It was utilised primarily for human consumption, including fins and high value meat. Porbeagle is also taken by recreational fishers, but catches and post-release survival are unquantified. This species was formerly targeted in longline fisheries and it is also a bycatch species in gillnet and pelagic trawl fisheries. Anecdotal information indicates that porbeagle is a regular bycatch in the Norwegian pelagic trawl fishery for blue whiting in the Norwegian Sea. Due to the fishing method, whereby the catch is pumped on board, all specimens are reportedly dead when caught.

Discarding is known to occur but has not been fully quantified. Discard survival has not been estimated but it is likely to be low for netters and trawlers. The inclusion of porbeagle in the EU prohibited species has increased the discards at sea.