Stock Assessment Form Demersal species Reference year: Reporting year:
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Stock Assessment Form version 1.0 (January 2014)

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Stock assessment form

1	Basic Identification Data	2

2	Stock identification and biological information	4

2.1	Stock unit	4

2.2	Growth and maturity	4

3	Fisheries information	6

3.1	Description of the fleet	6

3.2	Historical trends	8

3.3	Management regulations	8

3.4	Reference points	8

4	Fisheries independent information	9

4.1	{TYPE OF SURVEY}	9

4.1.1	Brief description of the direct method used	9

4.1.2	Spatial distribution of the resources	14

4.1.3	Historical trends	14

5	Ecological information	14

5.1	Protected species potentially affected by the fisheries	14

5.2	Environmental indexes	14

6	Stock Assessment	15

6.1	{Name of the Model}	15

6.1.1	Model assumptions	15

6.1.2	Scripts	15

6.1.3	Input data and Parameters	15

6.1.4	Tuning data	15

6.1.5	Results	15

6.1.6	Robustness analysis	16

6.1.7	Retrospective analysis, comparison between model runs, sensitivity analysis, etc.	16

6.1.8	Assessment quality	16

7	Stock predictions	17

7.1	Short term predictions	17

7.2	Medium term predictions	17

7.3	Long term predictions	17

8	Draft scientific advice	18

8.1	Explanation of codes	19

Basic Identification Data

Scientific name:	Common name:	ISCAAP Group:
[Species Common Name]	[ISCAAP Group]
1st Geographical sub-area:	2nd Geographical sub-area:	3rd Geographical sub-area:
[GSA_2]	[GSA_2]	[GSA_3]
4th Geographical sub-area:	5th Geographical sub-area:	6th Geographical sub-area:
[GSA_4]
1st Country	2nd Country	3rd Country
[Country_1]	[Country_2]	[Country_3]
4th Country	5th Country	6th Country
Stock assessment method: (direct, indirect, combined, none)
Authors:
[Authors]
Affiliation:

The ISSCAAP code is assigned according to the FAO 'International Standard Statistical Classification for Aquatic Animals and Plants' (ISSCAAP) which divides commercial species into 50 groups on the basis of their taxonomic, ecological and economic characteristics. This can be provided by the GFCM secretariat if needed. A list of groups can be found here:

http://www.fao.org/fishery/collection/asfis/en

Direct methods (you can choose more than one):

Acoustics survey

Egg production survey

Trawl survey

SURBA

Other (please specify)

Indirect method (you can choose more than one):

ICA

VPA

LCA

AMCI

XSA

Biomass models

Length based models

Other (please specify)

Combined method: you can choose both a direct and an indirect method and the name of the combined method (please specify)

Stock identification and biological information

Specify whether the assessment is considered to cover a complete stock unit. If the stock unit limits are more or less known, but for technical reasons the assessment only covers part of the stock (e.g. a GSA area but stock spreads to other GSAs), explain the state of the art of the stock unit knowledge. If there are doubts about the stock unit, state them here. If there is knowledge on migration rates between different stock units that affect the stock state them here.

Stock unit

Growth and maturity

Incorporate different tables if there are different maturity ogives (e.g. catch and survey). Also incorporate figures with the ogives if appropriate. Modify the table caption to identify the origin of the data (catches, survey). Incorporate names of spawning and nursery areas and maps if available.

Table 2.21: Maximum size, size at first maturity and size at recruitment.

Somatic magnitude measured (LT, LC, etc)	Units
Sex	Fem	Mal	Combined	Reproduction season
Maximum size observed	Recruitment season
Size at first maturity	Spawning area
Recruitment size to the fishery	Nursery area

Table 22.2: M vector and proportion of matures by size or age (Males)

Size/Age	Natural mortality	Proportion of matures
…	…	…

Table 22.3: M vector and proportion of matures by size or age (Females)

Size/Age	Natural mortality	Proportion of matures
…	…	…

Table 23: Growth and length weight model parameters

Sex
Units	female	male	Combined	Years
Growth model	L∞
K
t0
Data source
Length weight relationship	a
b
M (scalar)
sex ratio (% females/total)

Fisheries information

Description of the fleet

Identification of Operational Units exploiting this stock. Use as many rows as needed

Table 31: Description of operational units exploiting the stock

Country	GSA	Fleet Segment	Fishing Gear Class	Group of Target Species	Species
Operational Unit 1*	[Country1]	[GSA1]	[Fleet Segment1]	[Fishing Gear Class1]	[ISCAAP Group]
Operational Unit 2	[Country2]	[GSA2]	[Fleet Segment2]	[Fishing Gear Class2]	[ISCAAP Group]
Operational Unit 3	[Country3]	[GSA3]	[Fleet Segment3]	[Fishing Gear Class3]	[ISCAAP Group]
Operational Unit 4	[Country4]	[GSA4]	[Fleet Segment4]	[Fishing Gear Class4]	[ISCAAP Group]
Operational Unit 5	[Country5]	[GSA5]	[Fleet Segment5]	[Fishing Gear Class5]	[ISCAAP Group]
Operational Unit 6	[Country6]	[GSA6]	[Fleet Segment6]	[Fishing Gear Class6]	[ISCAAP Group]

Table 3.12: Catch, bycatch, discards and effort by operational unit in the reference year

Operational Units*	Fleet (n° of boats)*	Catch (T or kg of the species assessed)	Other species caught (names and weight )	Discards (species assessed)	Discards (other species caught)	Effort (units)
[Operational Unit1]
[Operational Unit2]
[Operational Unit3]
[Operational Unit4]
[Operational Unit5]
Total

Historical trends

Time series analysis with tables and figures showing the observed trends in catches, landings, fishing capacity or effort .

Management regulations

List current and past (recent) management regulations that affect the different operational fleets and/or the whole fishery.

Reference points

Table 3.3-1: List of reference points and empirical reference values previously agreed (if any)

Indicator	Limit Reference point/empirical reference value	Value	Target Reference point/empirical reference value	Value	Comments
B
SSB
F
Y
CPUE
Index of Biomass at sea

Fisheries independent information

{TYPE OF SURVEY}

Fill in one section for each of the direct methods used. The name of the section should be the name of the TYPE OF SURVEY.

Brief description of the direct method used Description of the survey and method applied. One of several tables would have to be chosen: Egg Production Method, Acoustic survey, Trawl.

Direct methods: trawl based abundance indices

Table 4.11: Trawl survey basic information

Survey	Trawler/RV
Sampling season
Sampling design
Sampler (gear used)
Cod –end mesh size as opening in mm
Investigated depth range (m)

Table 4.12: Trawl survey sampling area and number of hauls

Stratum	Total surface (km2)	Trawlable surface (km2)	Swept area (km2)	Number of hauls
Total (… – … m)

Map of hauls positions

Table 4.13: Trawl survey abundance and biomass results

Depth Stratum	Years	kg per km2	CV or other	N per km2	CV or other
……
……
……
……
……
Total (… – … m)	……

*

Comments

Specify CV or other index of variability of mean Specify sampling design (for example random stratified with number of haul by stratum proportional to stratum surface; or systematic on transect;…) Specify if catchability coefficient is assumed =1 or other

Direct methods: trawl based length/age structure of population at sea

Slicing method

Report the maturity scale and age slicing method used

Table 4.14: Trawl survey results by length or age class

N (Total or sex combined) by Length or Age class	Year
….	….	…..
Total

Sex ratio by Length or Age class	Year
….	….	…..
Total

Comments

Specify if numbers are per km2 or raised to the area, assuming the same catchability . In case maturity ogive has not been estimated by year, report information for groups of years. Possibility to insert graphs and trends

Direct methods: trawl based Recruitment analysis

Table 4.15: Trawl surveys; recruitment analysis summary

Survey	Trawler/RV
Survey season
Cod –end mesh size as opening in mm
Investigated depth range (m)
Recruitment season and peak (months)
Age at fishing-grounds recruitment
Length at fishing-grounds recruitment

Table 4.16: Trawl surveys; recruitment analysis results

Years	Area in km2	N of recruit per km2	CV or other

Comments

Specify type of recruitment: continuous and diffuse discrete and diffuse discrete and localised continuous and localised. Specify the method used to estimate recruit indices Specify if the area is the total or the swept one Possibility to insert graphs and trends

Direct methods: trawl based Spawner analysis

Table 4.17: Trawl surveys; spawners analysis summary

Survey	Trawler/RV
Survey season
Investigated depth range (m)
Spawning season and peak (months)

Table 4.18: Trawl surveys; spawners analysis results

Surveys	Area in km2	N (N of individuals) of spawners per km2	CV or other	SSB per km2	CV or other

Comments

Specify type of spawner: total spawner sequential spawner presence of spawner aggregations Specify if the area is the total or the swept one Possibility to insert graphs e trends

Spatial distribution of the resources

Include maps with distribution of total abundance, spawners and recruits (if available)

Historical trends

Time series analysis (if available) and graph of the observed trends in abundance, abundance by age class, etc. for each of the directed methods used.

Ecological information

Protected species potentially affected by the fisheries

A list of protected species that can be potentially affected by the fishery should be incorporated here. This should also be completed with the potential effect and if available an associated value (e.g. bycatch of these species in T)

Environmental indexes

If any environmental index is used as i) a proxy for recruitment strength, ii) a proxy for carrying capacity, or any other index that is incorporated in the assessment, then it should be included here.

Other environmental indexes that are considered important for the fishery (e.g. Chl a or other that may affect catchability, etc.) can be reported here.

Stock Assessment

In this section there will be one subsection for each different model used, and also different model assumptions runs should be documented when all are presented as alternative assessment options.

{Name of the Model}

Model assumptions

Scripts

If a script is available which incorporates the stock assessment run (e.g. if using FLR in R) it should be provided here in order to create a library of scripts.

Input data and Parameters

For analytical models: catch matrix in lengths or ages (see the example below for age). Specify if catch includes discards

Catch-at-age (thousands)
Age class	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011
0	3341.40	4910.60	3802.40	5038.00	2259.70	1694.70
1	12424.30	22450.20	23198.00	12214.20	4095.70	5262.40
2	9114.20	9817.60	8351.40	7186.50	4849.10	4656.30
3	765.86	482.89	353.26	506.52	379.20	285.98
4	44.20	17.37	16.79	30.43	33.35	15.46
5+	0.05	0.26	0.23	0.04	0.02	0.01

Tuning data

Catch-at-age (thousands)
Age class	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011
0
1
2
3
4
5+

If it is the case add a table per gear (i.e. VIT)

Add a table with input parameters and model settings

Results

Tables and graphs of Total biomass, SSB, Recruitment, F or other outcomes of the stock assessment model with comments on trends in stock size, recruitment and exploitation.

Robustness analysis

Retrospective analysis, comparison between model runs, sensitivity analysis, etc.

Assessment quality

Stability of the assessment, evaluation of quality of the data and reliability of model assumptions.

Stock predictions

When an analytical assessment exists, predictions should be attempted. All scenarios tested (recruitment and/or fishing mortality) should be reported. The source of information/model used to predict recruitment should be documented.

Short term predictions

Medium term predictions

Long term predictions

Draft scientific advice

(Examples in blue)

Based on	Indicator	Analytic al reference point (name and value)	Current value from the analysis (name and value)	Empirical reference value (name and value)	Trend (time period)	Stock Status
Fishing mortality	Fishing mortality	(F0.1, = value, Fmax= value)	N	IOI
Fishing effort	D
Catch
Stock abundance	Biomass	33th percentile	OL
SSB
Recruitment	D
Final Diagnosis	Example: In intermediate level of overfishing and overexploited with low level of biomass

State the rationale behind that diagnoses, explaining if it is based on analytical or on empirical references

Explanation of codes

Trend categories

N - No trend

I - Increasing

D – Decreasing

C - Cyclic

Stock Status

Based on Fishing mortality related indicators

N - Not known or uncertain – Not much information is available to make a judgment;

U - undeveloped or new fishery - Believed to have a significant potential for expansion in total production;

S - Sustainable exploitation- fishing mortality or effort below an agreed fishing mortality or effort based Reference Point;

IO –In Overfishing status– fishing mortality or effort above the value of the agreed fishing mortality or effort based Reference Point. An agreed range of overfishing levels is provided;

Range of Overfishing levels based on fishery reference points

In order to assess the level of overfishing status when F0.1 from a Y/R model is used as LRP, the following operational approach is proposed:

If Fc*/F0.1 is below or equal to 1.33 the stock is in (OL): Low overfishing

If the Fc/F0.1 is between 1.33 and 1.66 the stock is in (OI): Intermediate overfishing

If the Fc/F0.1 is equal or above to 1.66 the stock is in (OH): High overfishing

*Fc is current level of F

C- Collapsed- no or very few catches;

Based on Stock related indicators

N - Not known or uncertain: Not much information is available to make a judgment

S - Sustainably exploited: Standing stock above an agreed biomass based Reference Point;

O - Overexploited: Standing stock below the value of the agreed biomass based Reference Point. An agreed range of overexploited status is provided;

Empirical Reference framework for the relative level of stock biomass index

Relative low biomass: Values lower than or equal to 33rd percentile of biomass index in the time series (OL)

Relative intermediate biomass: Values falling within this limit and 66th percentile (OI)

Relative high biomass: Values higher than the 66th percentile (OH)

D – Depleted: Standing stock is at lowest historical levels, irrespective of the amount of fishing effort exerted;

R –Recovering: Biomass are increasing after having been depleted from a previous period;

Agreed definitions as per SAC Glossary

Overfished (or overexploited) - A stock is considered to be overfished when its abundance is below an agreed biomass based reference target point, like B0.1 or BMSY. To apply this denomination, it should be assumed that the current state of the stock (in biomass) arises from the application of excessive fishing pressure in previous years. This classification is independent of the current level of fishing mortality.

Stock subjected to overfishing (or overexploitation) - A stock is subjected to overfishing if the fishing mortality applied to it exceeds the one it can sustainably stand, for a longer period. In other words, the current fishing mortality exceeds the fishing mortality that, if applied during a long period, under stable conditions, would lead the stock abundance to the reference point of the target abundance (either in terms of biomass or numbers)