Scottish Pelagic Industry-Science Data Collection Programme Annual Report (Oct 2023): Herring – Mackerel – Blue whiting

The Scottish Pelagic Industry-Science Data Collection Programme (SPISDCP) is a
collaboration between the Scottish Pelagic Fishermen’s Association, UHI Shetland and the
Marine Directorate of the Scottish government. Within the programme, crews onboard
Scottish pelagic fishing vessels undertake sampling of their catches in two ways: self-sampling, whereby vessel crews measure the length and weight of a sample of fish in the
catch; and co-sampling, whereby crews collect frozen samples of fish for scientists
onshore to carry out biological sampling of length, sex, maturity and ageing. The data
collected provide valuable biological information for each of the targeted species,
highlighting patterns and changes in distribution and size of fish in the catch. This report
provides a summary of the data collected across the herring, mackerel and blue whiting
fisheries, from the start of data collection in July 2018, up to the latest collation of data in
September 2023, and is intended as an overview of the current dataset to date.