those that suffer the highest decrease, while ports where the artisanal fleets are
located maintained their captures at a relatively stable level.
A major concern regarding the consistencies of landing time series is that
trawlers, purse seiners, and longliners of the Northern Alboran Sea fish in the
territorial waters of Spain and Morocco without distinction. This is something
expected given that Morocco did not reach independence until 1956. The access
of the Spanish fleet to the territorial waters of Morocco became more restricted,
especially from 1979, as Spain and Morocco signed the first bilateral agreement in
1999 when the Moroccan fishing grounds were closed to the Spanish fleet. The part
of the fleet located in the Northern Alboran Sea that operated from the ports of Adra,
Almeria, Malaga, and, to a lesser extent, Motril was relatively big, and it is
impossible to distinguish landings from Northern and Southern Alboran Sea until
1978 and only approximated after 1999.
140,000
Crustaceans
Molluscs
Fishes
120,000
100,000
80,000
60,000
Weight of landings (tons)
40,000
20,000
0
1940 1945 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980
Years
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015
Fig. 22.2 Landings of fishes, molluscs, and crustaceans of Northern Alboran Sea fishing fleets
(GSA 1) (1940–2018). Source: Estadísticas Pesqueras (1939–1971) and Anuario de Pesca
Marítima (1972–1986) of the Spanish government, Producción Pesquera Andaluza (1985–2018)
of the Andalucía regional government, and fishing statistics of the Murcia regional government
762
J. J. García-del-Hoyo and D. Castilla-Espino
located maintained their captures at a relatively stable level.
A major concern regarding the consistencies of landing time series is that
trawlers, purse seiners, and longliners of the Northern Alboran Sea fish in the
territorial waters of Spain and Morocco without distinction. This is something
expected given that Morocco did not reach independence until 1956. The access
of the Spanish fleet to the territorial waters of Morocco became more restricted,
especially from 1979, as Spain and Morocco signed the first bilateral agreement in
1999 when the Moroccan fishing grounds were closed to the Spanish fleet. The part
of the fleet located in the Northern Alboran Sea that operated from the ports of Adra,
Almeria, Malaga, and, to a lesser extent, Motril was relatively big, and it is
impossible to distinguish landings from Northern and Southern Alboran Sea until
1978 and only approximated after 1999.
140,000
Crustaceans
Molluscs
Fishes
120,000
100,000
80,000
60,000
Weight of landings (tons)
40,000
20,000
0
1940 1945 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980
Years
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015
Fig. 22.2 Landings of fishes, molluscs, and crustaceans of Northern Alboran Sea fishing fleets
(GSA 1) (1940–2018). Source: Estadísticas Pesqueras (1939–1971) and Anuario de Pesca
Marítima (1972–1986) of the Spanish government, Producción Pesquera Andaluza (1985–2018)
of the Andalucía regional government, and fishing statistics of the Murcia regional government
762
J. J. García-del-Hoyo and D. Castilla-Espino