This work was carried out as part of the Fisheries Science Partnership (FSP),
a Defra-funded collaborative programme of scientific research between the UK
fishing industry and scientists.
Fishermen that normally switch from netting in the western channel to netting
in the southern north sea in early spring, wanted to explore the viability of
wreck netting for pollack within the channel. The fishermen theorised using a
large mesh net in the channel, would be a feasible alternative to fishing the
North Sea, were the minimising of the bycatch of cod is a problem.
From late February through to mid March 2012, 100 hauls were observed by Cefas
scientists. Catch varied from one wreck to the next. But overall the Jubilee
Pride successfully demonstrated the feasibility of conducting a targeted
fishery for pollack. Catches were dominated by pollack and bib. Pollack
accounted for nearly 90% of the total landed weight of fish. Bib on the other
hand was mostly discarded, accounting for just 0.7% of the total landed weight
of fish. After pollack, the next biggest landing was ling accounting for 6% of
the total landed weight of fish. The contribution of cod to the total landed
weight of fish was just over 1% (just 20 individuals taken throughout the
survey).
The bycatch of sensitive species such as marine mammals and sharks was
minimal, with no mammals caught and just a few tope and spurdog.
