2026/07/01 by Verena Vollmer, Bianca T. C. Bobowski, Bastian Huwer +8
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · #Cephalopods and Marine Biology #Marine Bivalve and Aquaculture Studies #Marine and fisheries research
paper · doi:10.1002/aqc.70422
openalex publication_date 2026/07/01 · openalex created_date 2026/07/20 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/21
ABSTRACT Cephalopods are increasing in biomass and abundance in the North Sea. In addition to their amplified importance for the ecosystem, they have also become a relevant resource for fisheries and landings are rising. Besides a growing knowledge about cephalopod biology, many gaps exist about the early life phases (ELP) of cephalopods. For the first time, our study analysed standardised international plankton surveys and document the occurrence of cephalopod ELP in the North Sea. In general, average catch frequency of cephalopods of the Midwater Ringnet (MIK) was 20.9%, with most catches in the western‐central part of the North Sea and the least catches in the eastern area along the Norwegian Trench. The specimens found belong to the families Sepiolidae, Loliginidae, Ommastrephidae and Eledonidae. Based on our data, we compared the abundance of ELP with the abundances of larger (likely older life phases) individuals to test whether an easy‐to‐handle recruitment index could be calculated to support a sustainable fisheries management. Our results show no coherent linkage between the numbers of ELP and the numbers of larger individuals, which might be due to various reasons that we discuss.