The dynamics of whitemouth croaker fishing by gillnet and pair trawl in Southeastern Brazilian Bight

The whitemouth croaker is considered the main demersal resource landed in southeastern and southern Brazil, caught mainly by gillnets and pair trawls. This study evaluated the directed fishing effort at whitemouth croaker in different fishing modalities (or ‘metiers’). We also investigated the bathymetric range and seasonal variations related to capture of whitemouth croaker in each modality. In the different types of gillnet, the whitemouth croaker was considered an incidental species or "by catch", a target species and a ‘massive’ target. For pair trawlers, the species was considered a target species. Catches occurred mainly in depths ranging between 10-20 m. However, in winter the largest catches occurred in 75 m depths. Catches of the gillnet fisheries peaked mainly between May and July. Pair trawl catches had two annual peaks one between March and May and another between August and November. This seasonal variation is probably related to the migration pattern of the species in association with physical and operational characteristics of vessels.