North Sea Greater Silver Smelt Fisheries Management Plan

Glossary

Bathydemersal species - A species that lives close to the seabed in deep-water environments, typically at depths of several hundred metres or more.

Biomass - The total weight of a fish stock or population in a given area.

Btrigger - The spawning stock biomass reference point used within the MSY framework that triggers management caution when stock size falls below it.

Bycatch - Non-target fish or other marine species caught during fishing operations.

Coastal State - A country with rights and responsibilities for managing marine resources within its waters.

Demersal fishery - A fishery targeting species that live on or near the seabed.

Ecosystem-based fisheries management - An approach that considers interactions between target stocks, other species, habitats and wider ecosystem processes when making management decisions.

Evidence-based management - Fisheries management informed by the best available scientific, economic and stakeholder evidence.

Fishing mortality - The rate at which fish are removed from a stock through fishing activity.

Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) - A statutory plan prepared under the Fisheries Act 2020 that sets out policies and actions for the sustainable management of fish stocks.

Good Environmental Status (GES) - The environmental condition that marine waters should achieve under the UK Marine Strategy.

Greater Silver Smelt (Argentina silus) - A deep-water schooling fish species found in the North Atlantic and managed under this FMP.

International Bottom Trawl Survey (IBTS) - A long-running scientific survey that provides data on the abundance and distribution of fish stocks in the North Sea and surrounding areas.

Landing Obligation - A regulatory requirement that catches of quota species must generally be landed and counted against quota, subject to specific exemptions.

Marine Protected Area (MPA) - A designated area where measures are used to conserve marine habitats, species or ecosystem features.

Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) - The highest long-term average catch that can be taken from a fish stock without compromising its future productivity.

Precautionary Approach - A management approach whereby action is taken to prevent environmental harm despite scientific uncertainty.

Priority Marine Feature (PMF) - A marine species, habitat or geological feature identified as being of conservation importance in Scottish waters.

Quota - A share of a Total Allowable Catch allocated to a country, administration, licence holder or vessel.

Recruitment - The process by which young fish survive and enter the fishable stock.

Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) - The use of cameras and sensors on fishing vessels to collect information about fishing activity and catches.

Shared Stock - A fish stock that occurs within the waters of more than one country and is managed jointly through international arrangements.

Semi-pelagic species - A species that spends time both near the seabed and within the water column.

Spawning Stock Biomass (SSB) - The total weight of sexually mature fish in a stock and a key indicator used in stock assessments.

Sustainability Objective - The Fisheries Act 2020 objective requiring fish stocks to be exploited in a way that is environmentally sustainable in the long term.

Total Allowable Catch (TAC) - The maximum quantity of a stock that may be caught over a specified period, usually one year.

Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) - The agreement governing UK-EU relations, including arrangements for the management of shared fish stocks.

Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) - A satellite-based system used to track the location and activity of fishing vessels.