As part of Southern IFCA's management of Bivalve species in the Solent, a baseline survey, repeated annually, has been carried out in order to better understand the extent and nature of the Solent scallop fishery. This survey aims to provide an initial understanding on the distribution of the king scallop (Pecten maximus) and collect information on the population structure of the scallops found within the Solent. The intention is to use the findings of this survey to not only provide an initial baseline but also be used to develop an annual monitoring programme which will enable Southern IFCA to track population trends and feed this into its management of the Solent bivalve fisheries through the newly confirmed Solent Dredge Permit Byelaw. Survey includes Catch Per Unit Effort (kg/m of dredge/hr) and height and width measurements of all scallops sampled.
