Tuesday's top quality Cornish hake from the Newlyn netter Ygraine.

This morning's market saw an early landing for this neap tide of MSc Certified hake form the netter Ygraine

while fish from the port's inshore fleet made up the bulk of the fish up for auction tis morning like these superb red mullet...

and squid from the Spirited Lady III

along with a cracking platter-sized turbot from Tom...

John Dory...

Cornish sole...

and lemon sole from Brackan...

a symmetrical pair of lobsters - with one left and one right-handed crushing claw...

top quality tip - check this bright-eyed red gurnard...

a creche of craws...

underbelly of a ray, a member of the shark family with cartilaginous bones...

a few bass fell to the wily lures of a line fisherman...

and yet more hake from the Ygraine...

fish-fact of the day - turbot are bled on capture in order to prevent discolouration of the flesh...

upon reflection, what would be described by the Beaufort Scale as 'smoke' - the system still used by sailors and the Met Office today was initially based on the appearance of the sea state and sky

you never know what you are going to dredge up from the harbour...

classic lines of a classic yacht, Sunburst - the last yacht, built in 1967, byAlexander Robertson & Sons yard on the Clyde and designed by .David Boyd...

the busy deck of Interfish's sardine catcher, Charlotte may

multi-purpose vessel Severn Sea... 

there's been a yarn bombing in Newlyn, Rosebud Gardens was badly hit...

built in 1929 the full body of the Evangelical brig...

provides a stunning silhouette while on the slip in Newlyn...

passionate about fish, Andrew heads out to sea to chase a few mackerel...

familiar lines?, Phoenix, star of many a TV drama and film over the years.

First Cornish sardines in August - and a huge blue fin tuna!

Landing the Golden Harvest tonight, George on the winch...

Dan the sardine man on the forklift...

Tom on the brail...

Jolyon on deck...

manning the landing winch controls...

it all adds up to another 10 tons of fresh Cornish sardines...

coming ashore...

the Vesta was the last boat in the fleet to land... 

a few hours earlier...

the Pelagic Marksman...

 became the first UK fishing boat to land a bluefin tuna in years...

which oddly feature several rows of small yellow fins between the dorsal fin and tail...

under a new MMO/Cefas scheme which allows for licensed vessels to land one fish per day at sea as a by-catch - however, despite being given advance notice over three months ago, none of the entitled vessels being given a new variation on their licence to fish for sardines none has actually been issued - this, despite weeks of being told by the MMO that the changes would be made, "by the weekend" - skipper Stefan's frustrations at the lack progress stems from the MMO's publicly expressed intent on reducing discards through licence variations which are  designed to stop the current practice of dumping these huge creatures, dead, back in the sea - MMO knew well in advance that this year's Cornish sardine fishery would get underway in early July...

at two metre long, the fish weighed in at 285 kilos...

seen here getting admiring glances from a local fish porter and giving a better idea of the fish's size.

The frailty of fishing communities caught by Covid.

Covid continues to severely income and welfare of fishing communities in countries that have little in the way of shore based resources - you can help them.

 

Hi, my name is Ifesinachi Okafor-Yarwood. 

I am fundraising to provide:

• Solar-powered dual refrigerators with AC-DC systems for women fish traders in Bonny Island, Rivers State Nigeria.

• Cash donations to the BONNY INDIGENIOUS FISHERMEN COOPERATIVE UNION to support their members - women fishers, processors and sellers are part of this union. 

• Extra funds raised will be donated to a women cooperative union in Cote d'Ivoire. 

Women play a crucial role in artisanal fishing in Nigeria. 

However, their contributions to the sector are widely un(der)paid, undervalued and largely invisible. This affects them in many ways – for instance, they have less access to capital and other resources. They also don’t have access to the required processing and storage facilities to avoid fish loss through spoilage.

The COVID-19 restrictions made it harder for fisherfolks, especially women in Bonny Island, in Rivers State Nigeria, to access, store and sell fish stocks.

• The lockdown also coincided with an incident whereby scores of dead fish washed ashore on the Island and other communities across the Niger Delta. Fishers could not fish under those circumstances since they did not know the reason for that phenomenon. 

• With the easing of the lockdown and very limited funds to trade with, women were pressured to buy fish they could not sell to avoid losing the supplier. 

• They also sell at low prices to reduce wastage and loss of capital due to a lack of storage facilities such as chamber freezers or cold rooms.

Eja-ice , the company we are collaborating with, is a solar-powered refrigeration and cold chain service company based in Nigeria. The business offers 218 litre solar-powered DC freezers with 3 years of maintenance support. For this project, Eja-Ice will train youths in the benefiting community on the installation and maintenance of the freezers and grant them access to lead engineers who can offer advice and support as required. This will contribute to local knowledge in the community.

You can watch the video below to see how this is helping women improve their fishing business in Lagos, Nigeria:

 

 

 The solar-powered refrigerator will not only reduce food waste for the benefiting women:

It will also increase their earnings, because they will not need to sell below cost and importantly, The freezer will also contribute to global efforts to mitigate the adverse effect of climate change.

Skippers qualify for CHART Atlantic Bluefin Programme.

 

Cefas Scientist explains fish tagging to skippers Today, some 40 skippers and crew members from fishing ports across South-West and Southern England have successfully completed their specialist training to catch, tag and release Atlantic Bluefin Tuna.

The skippers are taking part in CHART, a Defra-funded pilot programme. This aims to provide important scientific data on the Atlantic Bluefin Tuna while benefiting coastal communities and offering an exciting opportunity for recreational anglers to legally encounter these ocean giants.

The completion of training means they are on track to be granted scientific licences to fish for Atlantic Bluefin Tuna, from August to November this year. This unique collaboration brings together for the first time in England a breadth of fishing, science and conservation interests in support of this innovative approach to tuna scientific research.

The 15 skippers were selected by the Centre for Environment, Fisheries, and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and will join forces with a team of observers and scientists, as well as other organisations, such as the Marine Management Organisation (MMO), Bluefin Tuna UK and Natural England, with the aim of collecting data to improve the science understanding and management of bluefin tuna

The Environment Secretary, George Eustice said:

“While Atlantic Bluefin Tuna are increasingly present in UK waters we know little about their movements and time spent here.

“Our catch, tag and release pilot programme will provide an economic boost for local coastal communities, particularly here in the South West, and contribute to international efforts to manage this fish stock effectively for the benefit of future generations”.

Steven Murphy, Bluefin Tuna UK said:

“After an exhaustive 7 months’ consultation process, we have here a world class example of collaboration and the value that the Recreational Sea Angling sector can bring to important scientific research.

"Combining the scientific expertise of Cefas, with the great experience of seasoned UK Charter skippers and anglers with notable experience of large pelagic species, we have a program which will deliver important scientific data, real economic benefits to coastal communities, and an opportunity for anglers to engage with this iconic sportfish in a professional, managed environment."

Sophy Phillips, Cefas Senior Fisheries Scientist said:

“Scientific research and citizen science projects have provided evidence that Atlantic Bluefin Tuna are returning to UK waters in increasing numbers during the summer months. But we still don’t understand enough about these amazing predators; CHART offers the potential to fill gaps in our knowledge of their distribution, movements, behaviour, numbers and demographics. Training the skippers to carefully tag the Atlantic Bluefin Tuna, as well as how to collect data on their size, fishing effort and sightings will enable us to develop a clearer picture of ABT in English waters.”

Lyle Stantiford of the Professional Boatman’s Association, who has led Charter Skipper representation in the consultation process said:

“CHART is a great illustration of the value the Charter fishing fleet can bring to important research such as this. The recovery in Atlantic Bluefin over the last 10 years and their repeated presence in our waters since around 2015 presents a great opportunity for scientists, anglers and our charter fleet to work together to better understand this change and ensure a sustainable future for them in our waters.”

CHART skippers must be certified as trained and competent before being licensed to take out paying customers to catch Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (ABT), to then be tagged and released by trained skippers or crew. Bespoke workshops led by Cefas scientists and sector experts, have been held in Weymouth and Falmouth this month, with 40 participants attending from Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, East Sussex and Hampshire.

The mandatory training in fishing, tagging, fish handling and welfare, along with data collection techniques is designed to ensure compliance with strict operating standards aiming to safeguard animal welfare and support the conservation objectives at the heart of this valuable citizen science initiative.

In recent years, the number of reported sightings of ABT in UK waters has been increasing. This has led to a growing interest in the species from the science community, recreational fishing groups, and the commercial fishing sector. Representatives from the recreational fishing sector suggested that a CHART programme could contribute to international ABT research, as well as the potential socio-economic benefits it could bring to coastal communities. A CHART programme in Ireland has been in place since 2019.

The data collected will contribute not only to improving understanding of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna in English waters, but will also be supplied to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), who supply the tags for CHART and coordinate international tagging of ABT.

Background

Atlantic bluefin tuna are known for being amongst the biggest, fastest and most valuable fish in the sea. They were once a common sight in UK waters, ranging throughout the Celtic and North Sea, and were a popular sport fish in the North Sea in the 1930s to the 1950s. However, they largely disappeared from British waters in the 1960s, likely, as a result of population decline and changes in the availability of their preferred prey.

In recent years, they have been observed more frequently in our coastal waters, particularly during the late summer, autumn and winter as they move into coastal areas to feed on energy rich pelagic fish, such as sprats and herring, in waters around the UK. There are multiple and complex reasons why their numbers may have increased, such as conservation measures and climate change impacts, including abundance of prey and changes to the marine environment.

Atlantic bluefin tuna can migrate over thousands of kilometres in a single year and occupy the coastal waters of Europe and the deep offshore environments of the North Atlantic. However, despite historic evidence of captures around the UK, we know relatively little detail of their day-to-day movements and behaviour, for example how long they stay in British waters and where they go, once they leave our coastal environment.

Fish tails - on the final #FishyFriday of July.

Hard to believe looking across the harbour this morning that six hours before this was taken both St Marys and Sennen lifeboat were patrolling the Scillys as gusts up to 69mph caused chaos both ashore and at sea as dozens of yachts in the islands wrestled with dragged anchors and missing fenders...

meanwhile, back inside the fish market there are some fishy tails to identify...

most...

but not all...

are flatfish...

as most of the fish up for auction this morning were from...

the beam trawlers, Enterprise and Trevessa IV who target mainly flatfish...

though both would love to see more boxes of plaice this big...

every marina berth on the pontoons was taken up with sheltering yachts...

along with a dozen more moored outside of the fleet impatient to...

get the gear sorted...

before leaving the quay and heading back to sea...

which is more than enough to keep the ever-cheerful Ben smiling down from his office window as he prepares for another three-day stint working through several thousand pots...

first away was the hake netter Ajax...

closely followed by the Stelissa...

an Jed with the Louisa N...

minutes later Tristan took the Silver Dawn out through the gaps...

as young Edwin fired up the Volvo with the morning's catch safely on board... 

always good to see the boats head straight back out to sea, though they would soon be rolling heavily once they rounded the Runnelstone Buoy and felt the full force of the heavy SW swell that would be there to greet them following the passing of storm Evert.

With storm Evert on the way, keeping an eye on things.

Yesterday a full team of HMC volunteer coastguards wasted several hours fruitlessly searching for an EPIRB (Emergency Position-Indicating Radio-Beaon) that had been triggered somewhere in the vicinity of the harbour - although it had had stopped emitting its signal on the distress frequency the device was unregistered which meant that the coastguard team were left manually checking every fishing vessel and yacht moored in the harbour - to no avail - the guys were minded to say that all EPIRBS should be immediately registered to avoid unnecessary call-outs even if they are accidentally triggered...

visiting Plymouth registered sardine boat Charlotte Clare...

lays ahead of the Mayflower, Vesta and Asthore...

at the wheel, Little Graham taking care to miss those superb paintings that are now a permanent feature of the fish market wall...

like a still from an old Village People music video the crew of the good ship Enterprise make their way ...

back to the boat to land the rest of their trip...

watched over by skipper Bill Worth who narrowly escaped being caught with a smile on his face...

watching the antics of these two on deck...

up the quay the boys on the Trevessa IV continue to repair the port side trawl, she as with the rest of the fleet, have delayed sailing today by a forecast which is giving Storm Force 10 later tonight as the first (and hopefully the last) named storm for the summer passes through...

causing the ever-vigilant harbour staff to make a quick check of moorings and fenders around the harbour to ensure that Evert does not lead to any damage being incurred.