Publication Abstract

The ICES Working Group on Southern horse mackerel, anchovy and sardine (WGHANSA) assessed the stock status and provided a draft catch advice for anchovy in Atlantic Iberian waters (ane.27.9a; western and southern components) and horse mackerel in Atlantic Iberian waters (hom.27.9a) in the May meeting. The status of anchovy in Bay of Biscay (ane.27.8), sardine in southern Celtic Seas and the English Channel (pil.27.7), sardine in Bay of Biscay (pil.27.8abd), sardine in Cantabrian Sea and Atlantic Iberian waters (pil.27.8c9a) and jack mackerel in the Azores grounds (jaa.10.a2) will be assessed in the November meeting.

The stock of anchovy in Atlantic Iberian waters (ane.27.9a) is composed by the western component (distributed in areas 9.a North, Central–North, and Central–South) and the southern component (distributed in area 9.a South). The catch advice is provided for the two components sep-arately and for the management calendar that goes from July to June next year. The advice is obtained by applying a constant harvest rate to a biomass index. For the western component, the 2024 index is obtained by combining the biomass derived from the 2024 PELACUS and PELAGO acoustic surveys. For the southern component, the biomass index corresponds to the SSB ob-tained from an analytical assessment conducted with GADGET. The 2024 biomass index de-creased by 54% and 56% compared to the 2023 biomass index for the western and southern com-ponent respectively. The stock is being benchmarked in September 2024.

Horse mackerel in Atlantic Iberian waters (hom.27.9a) was benchmarked in April 2024. The new assessment model is performed in Stock Synthesis and includes revised biological information and additional indices. It can accommodate for changes in fisheries selectivity, and it is considered to provide more realistic and accurate estimates than the previous model. The reference points and the assumptions for the short-term forecast were also reviewed and updated. The estimated SSB shows an increasing trend since 2013 and is above MSY Btrigger. The fishing mortality has been relatively stable over the years although it has undergone a decreasing trend since 2017. Fishing mortality has been below FMSY for most of the time series. Recruitment in 2023 was lower than in 2022 but is still above the average of the time series.

Leire Citores, Jose Luis Cebrian, Gersom Costas, Susana Garrido, Leire Ibaibarriaga, Hugo Mendes, David Miller, Rosana Ourens*, Fernando Ramos, Margarita Rincón, Isabel Riveiro, Laura Wise, Maria Jose Zuniga

Working Group on Southern Horse Mackerel, Anchovy and Sardine (WGHANSA)