Closed Season for Spanish Mackerel and Black Porgy in May... True Octopus from May 16 to End of June

Octopus. (Photo by Asia Economy DB)

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries announced on the 30th that a fishing ban period will be applied to the common octopus, Spanish mackerel, and black porgy starting next month.

The common octopus has been experiencing a high initial mortality rate of juvenile octopuses due to high summer water temperatures, and coastal spawning grounds have been damaged, causing a continuous decline in catch volume. The catch volume of common octopus, which was 10,300 tons in 2009, decreased to 5,100 tons last year, less than half of that.

Accordingly, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries has designated a fishing ban period from the 16th of next month to June 30th, which corresponds to the spawning season, during which catching common octopus is prohibited.

Also, considering that the spawning season of the common octopus varies slightly by region, it is allowed to separately designate a fishing ban period of at least 46 days by region until September 15th. Gyeongnam Province has set the fishing ban period for common octopus from the 24th of next month to July 8th.

The catch volume of Spanish mackerel has also been continuously decreasing recently. It dropped by 8.6% from 35,000 tons in 2016 to 32,000 tons last year. The fishing ban period for Spanish mackerel is designated mainly for the month of May, when spawning occurs.

The black porgy is also subject to a fishing ban during the entire month of May. During the spawning season, an illegal fishing method called "ppungchigi" has been rampant, leading both anglers and fishermen to demand the establishment of a fishing ban period.

The "ppungchigi" method is an illegal fishing technique where nets are laid on the seabed and hydraulic or rotating machines installed on vessels strike the water surface forcefully to gather fish for capture.

The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries plans to actively inform not only fishermen but also anglers and leisure sports enthusiasts who enjoy tidal flat fishing about the fishing ban period and policies to protect juvenile fish in accordance with the implementation of the fishing ban.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.