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General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean

Management plan
Deep-water red shrimp fisheries in the Strait of Sicily, the Ionian Sea and the Levant Sea

Deep-water red shrimp species, namely giant red shrimp (Aristaeomorpha foliacea) and blue and red shrimp (Aristeus antennatus), are among the most valuable resources in the Mediterranean. They are primarily targeted by deep water bottom trawl fisheries and account for most of the landed value of deep water capture fisheries in the central eastern Mediterranean.

In 2022, the GFCM adopted three multiannual management plans to regulate the exploitation of these species in the Strait of Sicily, the Ionian Sea and the Levant Sea.

To complement and reinforce these management plans, the GFCM adopted, in 2023, three additional recommendations setting a minimum conservation reference size of 25 mm carapace length for giant red shrimp and blue and red shrimp in the eastern-central Mediterranean.

Main provisions

  • Initial transitional fishing effort regime from 2020 to 2021 aimed at decreasing effort by setting percentages
  • Annual catch limits for the two species
  • Spatio-temporal measures to protect juveniles and spawners
  • Increased knowledge of the fishing footprint and its overlap with vulnerable marine ecosystems, as well as further identification of essential fish habitats towards the establishment of additional spatio-temporal measures
  • Establishment of a minimum conservation reference size for the two deep-water red shrimp species
  • Limitation of fishing capacity and effort
  • Establishment of a list of vessels authorized to operate in deep-water red shrimp fisheries with related reporting obligations (operating days and areas, as well as catch and discards)
  • Measures to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing
  • Regular assessment of the status of the stocks, following the collection of data through scientific monitoring
The provisions of the multiannual management plans for the Strait of Siciliy and the Ionian Sea are complemented and enforced through an international joint inspection and surveillance scheme applicable outside the waters under national jurisdiction in the Strait of Sicily (adopted in 2017 and 2018 and extended in 2022).

Objectives

  • Ensure sustainable long-term yields consistent with maximum sustainable yield and guarantee a low risk of stock collapse, adopting a precautionary approach to fisheries management
  • Prevent increases in fishing effort and fishing capacity
  • Protect nursery and spawning areas and essential fish habitats relevant to the two deep-water red shrimp species
  • Contribute to the elimination of discards

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