The bluefin tuna fishery and other industrial activities were discussed recently by
Cort and Abaunza (2019) in the framework of the crisis of the fisheries of this species
in the eastern Atlantic since the 1960s.
Fishing with driftnets targeting bluefin tuna was a former Spanish fishery carried
out in the Strait of Gibraltar area that was pointed out as one of the most dangerous to
the marine megafauna (Camiñas 1995a, b; Camiñas and de la Serna 1995; Silvani
et al. 1999). Nevertheless, even in the twenty-first century, there is an illegal,
unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fleet that uses this fishing gear in the Alboran
Sea and other parts of the western Mediterranean Sea leading to a permanent conflict
with the Spanish longline vessels that operate legally. The former Spanish driftnet
fleet had its homeports in the cities of Algeciras, Tarifa, and La Línea de la
Concepción, in the Strait of Gibraltar area. This activity started in the close Atlantic
Ocean (de la Serna and Alot 1990) but in later years was extended to the Alboran
Sea. It is prohibited by the Spanish law since 1990. The tuna reach team of the IEO in
Malaga study this fleet, before and after its ban (1989–1993). After it was banned in
Spain and until its absolute disappearance, the technology, fishing arts, and artisanal
methods were transferred to fishermen of northern Morocco ports, where this driftnet
fishery was later developed. The number of vessels based in the Moroccan ports,
mainly in Tangiers and Nador, using this fishing gear in the area of the Strait of
Gibraltar (Atlantic and Mediterranean areas) targeting swordfish reached almost
400 units. The driftnets were built of rectangular grid layers, with 400 mm mesh
size, equipped with a float-line and a lead rope. The common dimensions fluctuate
between 2 and 3 Km of total length, joining several units (Camiñas 2006). This
fishery was seasonal, beginning in March and extending its activity until November.
The choice of the fishing area relied on the availability of the target resource
throughout the fishing season. From April and July, the fleet fish mainly westerly
of the Strait of Gibraltar. From August to the end of the season, the driftnets were
placed mainly in the Alboran Sea. The average duration of a fishing operation was
12 hours, but it could last up to 3 days depending on the abundance of the resource,
leaving the gear drifting during that time period.
Another currently banned fishery is the small-scale fishery called “saltillo.” It was
a seasonal fishing activity specialized in the capture of bluefin tuna of age class
0 (tunas born in the same year around Balearic islands move in the Iberian Peninsula
coast, from southern Catalonia to Cape of Gata, in Andalusia, the eastern limit of the
Alboran sea, where the nursery was exploited by artisanal vessels using this ancient
gear), born at the end of the summer, when it only has a few hundred grams until it
migrates to open waters or out of the Mediterranean Sea. The saltillo consisted of a
hook attached to a short line and to a meter-long fishing rod, handled from a boat
commonly used by commercial boats or sport fishermen. Fishing was usually
facilitated by throwing dead bait, which favored the concentration of juvenile bluefin
tuna. In 1985, approximately 420 t of bluefin tuna were captured by this system.
ICCAT’s ban on catching tuna of less than 6.4 kg and an exhaustive control ended
with that coastal and seasonal fishing activity.
582
J. C. Báez et al.
Cort and Abaunza (2019) in the framework of the crisis of the fisheries of this species
in the eastern Atlantic since the 1960s.
Fishing with driftnets targeting bluefin tuna was a former Spanish fishery carried
out in the Strait of Gibraltar area that was pointed out as one of the most dangerous to
the marine megafauna (Camiñas 1995a, b; Camiñas and de la Serna 1995; Silvani
et al. 1999). Nevertheless, even in the twenty-first century, there is an illegal,
unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fleet that uses this fishing gear in the Alboran
Sea and other parts of the western Mediterranean Sea leading to a permanent conflict
with the Spanish longline vessels that operate legally. The former Spanish driftnet
fleet had its homeports in the cities of Algeciras, Tarifa, and La Línea de la
Concepción, in the Strait of Gibraltar area. This activity started in the close Atlantic
Ocean (de la Serna and Alot 1990) but in later years was extended to the Alboran
Sea. It is prohibited by the Spanish law since 1990. The tuna reach team of the IEO in
Malaga study this fleet, before and after its ban (1989–1993). After it was banned in
Spain and until its absolute disappearance, the technology, fishing arts, and artisanal
methods were transferred to fishermen of northern Morocco ports, where this driftnet
fishery was later developed. The number of vessels based in the Moroccan ports,
mainly in Tangiers and Nador, using this fishing gear in the area of the Strait of
Gibraltar (Atlantic and Mediterranean areas) targeting swordfish reached almost
400 units. The driftnets were built of rectangular grid layers, with 400 mm mesh
size, equipped with a float-line and a lead rope. The common dimensions fluctuate
between 2 and 3 Km of total length, joining several units (Camiñas 2006). This
fishery was seasonal, beginning in March and extending its activity until November.
The choice of the fishing area relied on the availability of the target resource
throughout the fishing season. From April and July, the fleet fish mainly westerly
of the Strait of Gibraltar. From August to the end of the season, the driftnets were
placed mainly in the Alboran Sea. The average duration of a fishing operation was
12 hours, but it could last up to 3 days depending on the abundance of the resource,
leaving the gear drifting during that time period.
Another currently banned fishery is the small-scale fishery called “saltillo.” It was
a seasonal fishing activity specialized in the capture of bluefin tuna of age class
0 (tunas born in the same year around Balearic islands move in the Iberian Peninsula
coast, from southern Catalonia to Cape of Gata, in Andalusia, the eastern limit of the
Alboran sea, where the nursery was exploited by artisanal vessels using this ancient
gear), born at the end of the summer, when it only has a few hundred grams until it
migrates to open waters or out of the Mediterranean Sea. The saltillo consisted of a
hook attached to a short line and to a meter-long fishing rod, handled from a boat
commonly used by commercial boats or sport fishermen. Fishing was usually
facilitated by throwing dead bait, which favored the concentration of juvenile bluefin
tuna. In 1985, approximately 420 t of bluefin tuna were captured by this system.
ICCAT’s ban on catching tuna of less than 6.4 kg and an exhaustive control ended
with that coastal and seasonal fishing activity.
582
J. C. Báez et al.