Stock assessment database

External Data Spec Published 11 Sep 2017
1 min read
The ICES Stock Assessment Database data are available for the analytically assessed ICES stocks from 2014 onwards. Plots and data from previous assessments will be made available when the data and settings have been quality controlled.
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International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES)
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http://www.ices.dk/marine-data/tools/Pages/stock-assessment-graphs.aspx
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The ICES ecosystem advice is based on assessment results that are presented in stock assessment standard graphs and data tables. Data and plots are available in ICES Stock assessment Database.

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Usage and Citation

Data from published advice can be downloaded, please refer to the ICES Data Policy for full conditions and guidance on citation.  When publishing results from the database the minimum citation should include:

ICES Stock Assessment Database. Copenhagen, Denmark. ICES. [accessed date]. http://standardgraphs.ices.dk

Related content

Indicators using this data

Status of marine fish and shellfish stocks in European seas Status of marine fish and shellfish stocks in European seas The indicator tracks both the status of commercial fish stocks in European regional seas and the pressure exerted by fisheries on those stocks, as well as the quality of the information available. To that end, the following is reported: the status of marine fish and shellfish stocks based on the current level of exploitation and reproductive capacity; the importance of the (sub-)region, reflected by the total landings (as a proxy of catch) of fish from commercial fisheries in European seas per MSFD (sub-)region, and the availability of appropriate information for the status assessment, as reflected by the proportion of those landings covered by quantitative stock assessments (i.e. the proportion providing the required indicators and their reference levels). Status of marine fish and shellfish stocks The MSFD requires 'Good Environmental Status' to be achieved by 2020 (EC, 2008). According to the MSFD (Descriptor 3), three criteria are relevant to determining if a fish or shellfish stock has achieved GES: Sustainable exploitation: sustainably exploited stocks are stocks for which F is at or below levels that deliver MSY, i.e. F ≤ F MSY . Thus, a stock is considered to have been assessed against this criterion only if values for F and F MSY  are available ,  and the stock is considered to have achieved GES only if F ≤ F MSY . Reproductive capacity: in areas assessed by the ICES, the criterion for sustainable reproductive capacity (SSB > SSB MSY ) has been modified, for pragmatic reasons, to SSB > MSY B trigger . SSB is consistently provided as part of ICES stock assessments, i.e. of the North-East Atlantic and Baltic Sea, but not, for the most part, by STECF assessments, i.e. of the Mediterranean and Black Sea stocks. Similarly to the above, a stock is considered to have been assessed against this criterion if values of SSB and a good proxy for SSB MSY are available, and the stock is considered to have achieved GES only if SSB > SSB MSY  (or appropriate proxy). Healthy age and size structure: in this case, the assumption is that a stock with sufficient numbers of old and large fish is healthy and that the more older/larger fish there are, the better the health of the fish stock. However, this criterion is not sufficiently developed and no threshold for GES is known for this criterion. Therefore, it is not included. This has resulted in four assessment categories: Not: no sufficient information available to assess status; F: status assessed based only on F and F MSY; SSB: status assessed based only on SSB and SSB MSY (or some proxy, i.e. MSY B trigger ); F & SSB: status assessed based on both F and SSB. Total landings Landings are based on the ICES Official Nominal Catches data set and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) 'GFCM (Mediterranean and Black Sea) capture production' annual statistics. The statistics comprise catch data reported by country, by species and by area or division. Only some of the species/taxa in the landings data can be considered 'commercial fish', which, for assessment purposes, may consist of several stocks. Only some of these stocks are covered by quantitative stock assessments such that their status can be assessed based on the above criteria. Stocks In the North-East Atlantic area, stocks are generally defined based on biological criteria and knowledge of population migration, mixing and spawning areas. For example, cod is currently considered to form eight different stocks, i.e. Sub-areas I and II (Northeast Arctic), Division Va (Iceland grounds), Sub-division Vb1 (Faroe Plateau), Sub-area IV and Divisions VIId and IIIa West, Sub-divisions 22-24 (Western Baltic Sea), Division VIa (West of Scotland), Division VIIa (Irish Sea) and Divisions VIIe-k (Western English Channel), between which mixing is negligible. These eight stocks cover five MSFD (sub-)regions, i.e. the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, the Celtic Sea, the Barents Sea and the Icelandic waters. In the Mediterranean and Black Sea, on the other hand, stocks are mostly defined by management area because of a lack of biological knowledge. Because these stocks are based on a specific geographical area, most can be attributed to a specific MSFD (sub-)region.
Status of marine fish and shellfish stocks in European seas Status of marine fish and shellfish stocks in European seas The indicator tracks both the status of commercial fish stocks in European regional seas and the pressure exerted by fisheries on those stocks, as well as the quality of the information available. To that end, the following is reported: the status of marine fish and shellfish stocks based on the current level of exploitation and reproductive capacity; the importance of the (sub-)region, reflected by the total landings (as a proxy of catch) of fish from commercial fisheries in European seas per MSFD (sub-)region, and the availability of appropriate information for the status assessment, as reflected by the proportion of those landings covered by quantitative stock assessments (i.e. the proportion providing the required indicators and their reference levels). Status of marine fish and shellfish stocks The MSFD requires 'Good Environmental Status' to be achieved by 2020 (EC, 2008). According to the MSFD (Descriptor 3), three criteria are relevant to determining if a fish or shellfish stock has achieved GES.  (1) exploited sustainably consistent with high long-term yields, (2) have full reproductive capacity in order to maintain stock biomass, and (3) the proportion of older and larger fish/shellfish should be maintained (or increased) being an indicator of a healthy stock. Sustainable exploitation: sustainably exploited stocks are stocks for which F is at or below levels that deliver MSY, i.e. F ≤ F MSY . Thus, a stock is considered to have been assessed against this criterion only if values for F and F MSY  are available, and the stock is considered to have achieved GES only if F ≤ F MSY . Reproductive capacity: in areas assessed by the ICES, the criterion for sustainable reproductive capacity (SSB > SSB MSY ) has been modified, for pragmatic reasons, to SSB > MSY B trigger . SSB is consistently provided as part of ICES stock assessments, i.e. of the North-East Atlantic and Baltic Sea, but not, for the most part, by STECF assessments, i.e. of the Mediterranean and Black Sea stocks. Similarly to the above, a stock is considered to have been assessed against this criterion if values of SSB and a good proxy for SSB MSY  (i.e. MSY B trigger ) are available, and the stock is considered to have achieved GES only if SSB > SSB MSY  (or appropriate proxy). Healthy age and size structure: in this case, the assumption is that a stock with sufficient numbers of old and large fish is healthy. However, this criterion is not sufficiently developed and no threshold for GES is known for this criterion. Therefore, it is not included. This has resulted in four assessment categories: Not assessed: no sufficient information available to assess status; F: status assessed based only on F and F MSY; SSB: status assessed based only on SSB and SSB MSY  (or some proxy, i.e. MSY B trigger ); F & SSB: status assessed based on both F and SSB.   Total landings Landings information for the North-East Atlantic and the Baltic Sea is based on the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) Official Nominal Catches, 2006-2017 dataset . Fisheries nominal catch statistics are reported annually by the national offices. In cooperation with Eurostat and FAO, ICES prepares and publishes the official catch statistics dataset for the Northeast Atlantic (FAO major fishing area 27). Landings information for the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea is based on the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) capture production dataset. The figure is based on 2017 landings data. Only some of the species/taxa in the landings data can be considered 'commercial fish', which, for assessment purposes, may consist of several stocks. Only some of these stocks are covered by quantitative stock assessments such that their status can be assessed based on the above criteria. Stocks In the North-East Atlantic area, stocks are generally defined based on biological criteria and knowledge of population migration, mixing and spawning areas. For example, cod in the northeast Atlantic is currently considered to form sixteen different stocks, between which mixing is generally negligible. These stocks are found over multiple MSFD ecoregions, and some individual stock distributions cover more than one ecoregion. However, in this analysis each stock has been assigned to a single ecoregion (see Methodology). In the Mediterranean and Black Sea, on the other hand, stocks are mostly defined by management area because of a lack of biological knowledge. Because these stocks are based on a specific geographical area, most can be attributed to a specific MSFD (sub-)region.

Produced figures

Status of the assessed European fish stocks in relation to Good Environmental Status per regional sea Status of the assessed European fish stocks in relation to Good Environmental Status per regional sea This figure shows the status of the assessed European fish stocks in relation to ‘Good Environmental Status’ (GES) per regional sea in 2015. Stocks for which adequate information is available to determine GES for fishing mortality (F) and/or reproductive capacity (spawning stock biomass (SSB)) are included in this figure (i.e. total number of assessed stocks). A distinction is made between stocks (1) in GES, based on both fishing mortality and reproductive capacity; (2) in GES, based on either fishing mortality or reproductive capacity; and (3) not in GES, based on fishing mortality and/or reproductive capacity (see the Methodology section for further information on how GES is determined). As assessments are carried out in a multiannual cycle within the Mediterranean, the number of stocks included for the Mediterranean depends on the period covered.
Status of the assessed European fish stocks in relation to Good Environmental Status per regional sea Status of the assessed European fish stocks in relation to Good Environmental Status per regional sea The figure shows the status of the assessed European fish stocks in relation to Good Environmental Status (GES) per regional sea. Stocks in the North-East Atlantic and the Baltic Sea were assessed based on the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) database, published in 2016. Stocks in the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea, and other widely distributed stocks were assessed based on assessments available through the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for fisheries (STECF), published in 2015 and 2016. The Figure is based on 2014 data.
Status of the assessed European fish stocks in relation to Good Environmental Status per regional sea Status of the assessed European fish stocks in relation to Good Environmental Status per regional sea This figure shows the status of the assessed European commercially exploited fish and shellfish stocks in relation to ‘Good Environmental Status’ (GES) per EU marine region in 2017 (although in the Mediterranean and Black seas data refers to 2016). Stocks for which adequate information is available to determine GES for fishing mortality (F) and/or reproductive capacity (spawning stock biomass (SSB)) are included in this figure (i.e. Z, total number of stocks; Y, total number of assessed stocks; and X, number of stocks for which adequate information is available to determine GES on the basis of these two criteria). A distinction is made between stocks (1) in GES, based on both fishing mortality and reproductive capacity; (2) in GES, based on only one of fishing mortality or reproductive capacity (either because one of the two criteria in not in GES, either because there is only one available criteria, and it is in GES); and (3) not in GES, based on both fishing mortality and reproductive capacity (also here would be cases where only one criteria is available and it is not in GES) (see the Methodology section for further information on how GES is determined). As assessments are carried out in a multiannual cycle within the Mediterranean Sea, the number of stocks included for this regiondepends on the period covered

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