Cefas ECST 1/81: Young Fish Survey of British Isles Coasts

244 stations were surveyed along the British Isles coasts in late 1981 to evaluate Sole and Plaice recruitment. The Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas) collected station, catch, length, and biological data using push nets and beam trawls. 42 different species were recorded during this survey, which is part of the International Young Fish Survey.

Use Cases

• Modeling recruitment trends for Sole and Plaice based on biological data collected.
• Analyzing species abundance and diversity based on the catch of 42 different species.
• Studying spatial distribution of young fish based on survey station data from the South and East coasts.
• Comparing fishing gear efficiency based on the use of push nets and beam trawls mentioned in the description.

Strengths

• Survey operations were undertaken on 244 stations, providing spatial granularity.
• Recorded data for 42 different species caught.
• Includes multiple data types: station, catch, length, and biological data for key species.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.

Provenance

Source

Centre for Environment, Fisheries & Aquaculture Science (Cefas)

Collection Method

Survey using 1.5 metre push nets with tickler chain and beam trawls.

Time Range

01/09/1981 to 06/10/1981

Freshness

Data collected in 1981; historical dataset.

Geography

British Isles, predominantly the South and East coasts.