Incidental catch and estimated discards of pelagic sharks from the swordfish and tuna fisheries in the Mediterranean Sea
Large pelagic sharks are caught incidentally in the swordfish and tuna fisheries of the Mediterranean Sea. In our study, twelve shark species were documented as bycatch over three years from 1998 to 2000. Blue shark (Prionace glauca) was the predominant species in all gears and areas examined. Shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus), common thresher shark (Alopias vulpinus), and tope shark (Galeorhinus galeus) were the next most abundant shark species found in more than half of the areas sampled. Catch composition varied both in the areas and gears investigated.