Catch composition and codend selectivity of inshore trawl fishery with the legal minimum mesh size

Abstract Fisheries is an important socio-economic contribution to the coastal fishing communities of Vietnam. Unfortunately, inshore natural resources have decreased in recent years. This decline has been largely attributed to overfishing and using a fishing gear with poor size selectivity. This paper estimated size selectivity curves for 8 important economic species using a covered codend attached to the codend of a commercial inshore trawl in Quang Ninh province, Vietnam. Results showed that sublegal-sized individuals accounted for a high proportion of the catch, ranging between 29.22 and 46.69%. The lengths at 50% retention ( l 50 ) were below minimum landing sizes (MLS) for all species caught, except conger eel (Muraenesox cinereus). Our study provides important scientific information for the fishery management in the studied area.