Catch composition, length-weight relationship and discard ratios of commercial longline fishery in the Eastern Mediterranean

The aim of the study is to determine the catch composition, catch per unit effort and discard ratios of demersal longline fishery which is the most important fishing method in the Gokova Bay. A total of 25 commercial fishing sets (15000 hooks) were performed between October 2014 and September 2015 with a 6 m length traditional type boat. 14 species belonging to 9 families were obtained during the fishing operations. A total of 718 individuals totally weighed 144.5 kg. CPUE values for total number of individuals and total weight were calculated as 4.8 ind.100 hooks-1 and 0.92 kg. 100 hooks-1, respectively. Discard ratio for Gokova longline fishery was found to be 24.6%.