Trawling fishery of the Western Mediterranean Sea: Métiers identification, effort

52 53 Due to the diversity of fleet characteristics and catch composition in Mediterranean fisheries, the General 54 Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean has placed emphasis on the direct control of fishing capacity 55 and effort rather than catch limitation. This paper aims to analyse the evolution of fishing effort, landings 56 and métiers in three trawling ports of the western Mediterranean between 2002 and 2011. Four métiers 57 were identified, using multivariate techniques, in the fishery: Red mullet, European hake, Norway lobster 58 and Red shrimp. The mean catch composition within the same métier was similar between ports, although 59 the relative importance of species differed slightly from one port to another. Variation in fishing effort 60 exerted was observed between métiers reflecting differences in the importance and usage of each métier 61 by port. Temporal variations were found among different métiers at seasonal and annual scales. These 62 temporal variations showed that métiers Red mullet and European hake were alternated. Positive 63 significant correlations were observed between landings and different fishing effort variables with an 64 exception of the relation between landings and engine power in the Norway lobster métier with negative 65 significant correlations. Significant differences in total vessel length, gross tonnage, total CPUE and total 66 income were detected among the four métiers depending on each port with few exceptions. These 67 findings are considered a keystone for more practical implications and to assist fisheries’ managers in the 68 decision-making process. As demonstrated in the current paper, the management of multi-specific 69 fisheries should start off considering the characteristics of each métier separately. In the sound of métier70 based management, the patterns observed in the effort temporal distribution between métiers can indicate 71 the most suitable time to reduce effort on specific target species. 72 73