By-catch from AFBI Irish Sea & North Channel Queen Scallop Dredge Research Surveys 2013 - present

This dataset contains information on bycatch of non-target species from the AFBI Queen Scallop Research Survey in 2013-2108 in the Irish Sea and North Channel – present on board the R.V. Corystes. The primary objectives of this research surveys series are:
• To obtain information on spatial patterns of abundance of different size-classes of queen scallops in the Irish Sea and off the north coast;
• To further test for optimal sampling gear for future queen scallop surveys
• To collect biological information from queen scallops and scallops by area, including tissue samples.

The survey primarily utilises underwater television (UWTV) footage (c. 10 mins) to identify abundance of queen scallop (this information is not present in this dataset) which is supplement with biological sampling from dredge and beam trawl. Dredge samples were taken at selected stations across a spectrum of observed queenie densities.