Charter fishing in the Aegean Sea (Turkey), Eastern Mediterranean: The missing point of fisheries management

This study attempts to improve the scientific knowledge of charter fishing on the Aegean coast of Turkey, where fishing activity and ecological indicators were investigated. Fishing and socio-economic data from both charter boat owners and charter fishers were collected using on-site questionnaires, and seasonal on-hoard surveys during 2017. No differences were observed between CPUE estimates from the questionnaire and the on-board surveys. The highest and lowest fishing activity were found in autumn and summer respectively. Charter owners reported conflicts with both private boat owners as well as commercial fishers. The annual activity was estimated to be 9246 charter trips hosting 138,690 charter fishers, who caught 277 - 305 tonnes. The total annual fisher and boat owner expenditure was estimated at (sic)3.5 million and (sic)0.6 million respectively. A total of 38 species were identified; most of the catch was represented by sparids, of which there were several species, such as Diplodus vulgaris, Spares aerates, and Pagellus erythrinus, all of which were highly undersized. The results highlighted that the fishers and boat owners had limited knowledge of fishing policies. We conclude that managers should pay more attention to this activity and revise the existing regulations of charter fishing to improve fisheries management.