Improving fishing effort descriptors: Modelling engine power and gear-size relations of five European trawl fleets

Based on information from an international inventory of gears currently deployed by trawlers in five European countries, the relationship between vessel engine power and trawl size is quantified for different trawl types, trawling techniques and target species. Using multiplicative modelling it is estimated that the fishing circle (or circumference) of trawls targeting shoaling species such as mackerel (Scomber scombrus) and herring (Clupea harengus) increases approximately 44.1 m with each 100 hp increase, whereas the increase for trawls targeting demersal species such as Nephrops (Nephrops norvegicus) and monkfish (Lophius piscatorius) is only approximately 9.4 m per 100 hp. Trawling technique also affects the relationship between vessel horsepower and fishing c