Sandeel Stock Status
Key Findings
- Sandeels (Family Ammodytidae) are demersal shoaling species with a distinct diurnal behaviour where they bury themselves in the sand at night and during winter months and forage for planktonic prey in the pelagic waters during daylight hours. Five species are commonly found throughout the North Sea
- Most commercial landings are of the Raitt’s sandeel and are industrially exploited for reduction to meal and oil and locally harvested for bait in recreational fisheries and small-scale longline fisheries
- Sandeels are a salient component of the food web as one of the abundant and preferred prey for several marine predators including mackerel, whiting, cod, salmon, other economically important fish species, seabirds and marine mammals and are considered as a cornerstone of the Scottish marine ecosystem.
- They are adjacent to the North East of Scotland Regional Marine Planning area and are currently closed to Sandeel fishing
NMPi Sandeel - spawning and nursery grounds (Coull et al 1998)
ICES Stock assessment for Whiting
Area closed to Sandeel fishing
Notes
Linked Information Sheets
Seafood Landings by Value into the North East of Scotland - Employment in the fishing industry offshore- Employment in the fishing industry onshore- Markets for Seafood - Fraserburgh Harbour, Peterhead Harbour - Aberdeen Harbour - Small Harbours north of Aberdeen - Small Harbours South of Aberdeen – Status of key commercial species – Numbers of fishing vessels – Training - Employment - Mackerel line catch value
Key sources of Information
Marine Scotland (September 2022), Scottish Sea Fisheries Statistics 2021
Current Sandeel management Scotland
ICES acronyms and explanations
Reviewed on/by
14/09/23 by Ian Hay
Status
First Draft (this is for demonstration only at this time and has not been reviewed)
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Contact us
Telephone: 07971149117
E-mail: ian.hay@stateofthecoast.scot
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