Abundances of demersal sharks and chimaera from 1994-2009 scientific surveys in the central Mediterranean Sea

Bibliographic and data gathered in scientific bottom trawl surveys carried out off the Southern Coasts of Sicily (Mediterranean Sea), from 1994 to 2009 and between a depth of 10 and 800 m, were analysed in order to prepare a checklist of demersal sharks and chimaera, which are species sensitive to f...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2013-09, Vol.8 (9), p.e74865-e74865
Main Authors: Ragonese, Sergio, Vitale, Sergio, Dimech, Mark, Mazzola, Salvatore
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abundance
Africa
Animals
Biodiversity
Biomass
Centrophorus granulosus
Chimaera
Chimaera monstrosa
Chimera - growth & development
Coasts
Commercial fishing
Councils
Data Collection
Deep water
Exploitation
Extinction (Biology)
Fish
Fisheries
Fishes
Fishing
Galeus melastomus
Geographical distribution
Geography
Information management
Marine
Mediterranean Sea
Micromesistius poutassou
Oxynotus centrina
Polls & surveys
Population Dynamics
Scyliorhinus canicula
Scyliorhinus stellaris
Sharks
Sharks - growth & development
Sicily
Species extinction
Squalus
Squalus acanthias
Squatina
Surveys
Taxa
Trawling
Wildlife conservation
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Summary:Bibliographic and data gathered in scientific bottom trawl surveys carried out off the Southern Coasts of Sicily (Mediterranean Sea), from 1994 to 2009 and between a depth of 10 and 800 m, were analysed in order to prepare a checklist of demersal sharks and chimaera, which are species sensitive to fisheries exploitation. Out of the 27 previously reported demersal shark and chimaera taxa in the Mediterranean, only 23 were found in literature and 20 sampled during the surveys in the investigated area. Among the species sampled in the surveys, only 2 ubiquitous (Squalusblainville and Scyliorhinuscanicula) and 3 deep-water (Chimaeramonstrosa , Centrophorusgranulosus and Galeusmelastomus) species showed a wide geographical distribution with a consistent abundance. Excluding the rare (such as Oxynotuscentrina) or uncommon shark (e.g. Squalusacanthias), the estimated frequencies of occurrence and abundance indexes show a possible risk of local extinction for the almost exclusively (e.g. angelshark, Squatina spp.) or preferential (e.g. Scyliorhinusstellaris) neritic species.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0074865