Dover sole

Solea solea

5: Avoid How we work out the ratings

What to check for

Location

English Channel (East)

Technical location

Atlantic, Northeast, English Channel (East)

Caught by

Net (demersal seine)

Rating summary

Eastern English Channel sole biomass is below safe biological levels and there is no recovery plan in place. Benthic seines interact with the seabed and have the potential to cause some damage to sea floor habitats, but the majority of the interaction comes from ropes which have a lighter impact than otter and beam trawl fisheries.Rating last updated July 2024.

Technical consultation summary

Spawning-stock biomass (SSB) has been on a downward trend since 2014. In 2023 and 2024, it is below Blim (11,181 tonnes) and there is no recovery plan in place. Benthic seines interact with the seabed and have the potential to cause some damage to sea floor habitats, but the majority of the interaction comes from ropes which have a lighter impact than otter and beam trawl fisheries.

How we worked out this Rating

Eastern English Channel sole is a critical fail as biomass is outside safe biological levels.Stock assessments are carried out annually by the International Council for Exploration of the Sea (ICES). The most recent assessment was published in 2024.Spawning-stock biomass (SSB) has been on a downward trend since 2014. In 2023 and 2024, it is below Blim (11,181 tonnes) and there is no recovery plan in place. In 2024, SSB is 10,467 tonnes.Fishing pressure (F) has shown a decreasing trend since 2008 and is now around FMSY (0.23) at 0.22.ICES advises that when the MSY approach is applied, catches in 2025 should be no more than 1,209 tonnes. This is a 19.6% decrease as a result of a lower stock size at the start of the advice year compared to the previous advice (including a lower recruitment estimated for 2023 than assumed last year), and lower target F for the advice year.

References

Eigaard, O. R., Bastardie, F., Breen, M., Dinesen, G. E., Hintzen, N. T., Laffargue, P. et al. 2016. Estimating seabed pressure from demersal trawls, seines, and dredges based on gear design and dimensions. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 73(1). pp. i27-i43. Available at https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsv099 [Accessed on 12.07.2024].Hamon, K.G., S. Glorius, A. Klok, J. Tamis, R. Jongbloed, 2020. Seine fishing on the Dutch and German parts of the Dogger Bank, 2013-2019; Overview of the economic importance and the ecologic impact of the Belgian, British, Danish, Dutch, French, German and Swedish fleets. Wageningen, Wageningen University & Research, Report 2020-105. 46 pp. Available at https://edepot.wur.nl/533439ICES. 2024. Sole (Solea solea) in Division 7.d (eastern English Channel). In Report of the ICES Advisory Committee, 2024. ICES Advice 2024, sol.27.7d. Available at https://doi.org/10.17895/ices.advice.25019675. [Accessed on 12.07.2024].Seafish. Scottish Seine. Available at https://www.seafish.org/responsible-sourcing/fishing-gear-database/gear/ssc-scottish-seine/ [Accessed on 12.07.2024].