Document of dataset 4421

Dataset record

Type

Dataset

title in English

Mackerel and horse mackerel eggs surveys

Acronym

MEGS

Description in English

There are currently nine nations and ten institutes participating in the survey which has a geographical area that extends from Cadiz in the south to Icelandic waters in the north. Egg data collected from both surveys provide an estimate of the total annual egg production (TAEP) that in turn provides an estimate of spawning stock biomass (SSB) for both the western and North Sea stocks of Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus). In addition it also provides a relative abundance index of spawning for horse mackerel (Trachurus trachurus) in the Northeast Atlantic. The surveys are divided into three geographical component areas, the western, southern and the North Sea. In the western area, the mackerel egg survey has been running continuously on a triennial basis since 1977 and since 1992 has also sampled the southern spawning component. It typically takes place between February and July and aims to cover the entire spawning area from Cadiz in the south up as far as NW Scotland in the north and since 2010, up to the waters around the Faroe Islands and southeast of Iceland. The egg survey in the North Sea has been running since 1968.

Abstract in English

A survey is carried out every 3 years in the north eastern Atlantic. The year after the Atlantic survey, a mackerel egg survey is conducted in the North Sea. The survey creates a basis for the stock assessment of Atlantic and North Sea mackerel and management plan for Atlantic horse mackerel. The group responsible for the survey is WGMEGS

Rights

Licence

bibliographicCitation

ICES. Mackerel and horse mackerel eggs surveys. Available online at http://eggsandlarvae.ices.dk. Consulted on yyyy-mm-dd.