Abstract
The present study describes for the first time the spatial distribution of five macrourid species throughout the Mediterranean Sea and analyses depth, geographical and time-related trends regarding their abundance, biomass and mean fish weight. The data were collected as part of the MEDITS annual bottom trawl survey carried out by several European Mediterranean countries from 1994 to 2015, using the same standardized gear and sampling protocol. The most represented species in terms of abundance and biomass was Coelorinchus caelorhincus. The bathymetric trend was different for each species. The shallowest occurring species was C. caelorhincus, followed by Hymenocephalus italicus and Nezumia sclerorhynchus, while Nezumia aequalis and Trachyrincus scabrus were the deepest. Overall, the mean weight of all the species increased with depth. C. caelorhincus and H. italicus occurred in the entire study area: the first species showed relatively high catches in most areas, while the second was more abundant in the central and easternmost areas. N. aequalis and T. scabrus were mainly reported in the western basin, and N. sclerorhynchus in the central-eastern areas of the Mediterranean. An increasing inter-annual trend in abundance was only detected for C. caelorhincus and N. sclerorhynchus, while variable fluctuations were observed in the other species.
Highlights
The Macrouridae are one of the most dominant fish families in deep-sea habitats due to their high number of species and their positive contribution to the global biomass of ecosystems (Shi et al 2016)
Summary: The present study describes for the first time the spatial distribution of five macrourid species throughout the Mediterranean Sea and analyses depth, geographical and time-related trends regarding their abundance, biomass and mean fish weight
The data were collected as part of the MEDITS annual bottom trawl survey carried out by several European Mediterranean countries from 1994 to 2015, using the same standardized gear and sampling protocol
Summary
The Macrouridae are one of the most dominant fish families in deep-sea habitats due to their high number of species and their positive contribution to the global biomass of ecosystems (Shi et al 2016). Macrourids are globally distributed across a wide depth range, but 90% of the species inhabit the continental slope between 200 and 2000 m depth (Sobrino et al 2012). They are often close to the top of the food chain, playing a vital role in many communities by controlling prey populations, exerting selective pressure and influencing general community dynamics (Drazen 2002). Five macrourid species can be found in the depth range sampled by the MEDITS programme (Coelorinchus caelorhincus [Risso, 1810], Hymenocephalus italicus [Giglioli, 1884], Nezumia aequalis [Günther, 1878], Nezumia sclerorhynchus [Valenciennes, 1838] and Trachyrincus scabrus [Rafinesque, 1810]), most of them exceed this depth range
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