ICES WKMSEL REPORT 2012 ICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE ICES CM 2012/ACOM:59 REF. WGEF, RCM, PGMED, PGCCDBS Report of the workshop on Sexual Maturity Staging of Elasmobranchs (WKMSEL) 11-14 December 2012 Lisbon, Portugal International Council for the Exploration of the Sea Conseil International pour l’Exploration de la Mer H. C. Andersens Boulevard 44–46 DK-1553 Copenhagen V Denmark Telephone (+45) 33 38 67 00 Telefax (+45) 33 93 42 15 www.ices.dk [email protected] Recommended format for purposes of citation: ICES. 2013. Report of the workshop on Sexual Maturity Staging of Elasmobranchs (WKMSEL) , 11-14 December 2012, Lisbon, Portugal. ICES CM 2012/ACOM:59. 66 pp. For permission to reproduce material from this publication, please apply to the Gen- eral Secretary. The document is a report of an Expert Group under the auspices of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea and does not necessarily represent the views of the Council. © 2013 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea ICES WKMSEL REPORT 2012 i Contents Executive summary ................................................................................................................ 1 1 Opening of the meeting ................................................................................................ 3 1.1 Opening of the meeting and adoption of the Agenda ..................................... 3 1.2 Scientific justification and aims .......................................................................... 3 1.3 Terms of Reference ............................................................................................... 4 1.4 Data Collected before the Workshop ................................................................. 5 2 Summary of Presentations ........................................................................................... 5 2.1 Maturity scale proposed for oviparous species applied to skates from Portuguese waters ....................................................................................... 5 2.2 Studies on maturation of South-western Atlantic skates (Chondrichthyes: Rajoidei) .................................................................................. 6 2.3 MEDITS atlas on the maturity stages of Elasmobranchs ................................ 6 2.4 Validation of oviparous and viviparous ICES maturity scales through histological analysis .............................................................................. 7 2.5 Maturity scales applied in Galeus melastomus and Squalus blainville based on the proposed scale by WKMSEL 2010 ............................. 7 2.6 Maturity staging of Chondrichthyans from south-eastern Australian .............................................................................................................. 7 2.7 Pelagic shark research program currently carried out at the Portuguese Sea and Atmospheric Institute (IPMA, I.P), with examples of applications...................................................................................... 8 2.8 Morphological analysis and description of the reproductive tract of the Ginglymostoma cirratum ......................................................................... 8 2.9 Egg cases morphometry used for specific determination of some Mediterranean skates ........................................................................................... 9 2.10 Application of the maturity scale proposed by WKMSEL 2010 for viviparous deep-water sharks ........................................................................... 10 3 The standardised macroscopic maturity scale ........................................................ 10 3.1 Oviparous maturity scales - macroscopic ....................................................... 11 3.1.1 Females .................................................................................................... 12 3.1.2 Males ........................................................................................................ 15 3.1.3 Macroscopic scales proposed for Oviparous species ........................ 17 3.2 Viviparous maturity scales - macroscopic ....................................................... 20 3.2.1 Females .................................................................................................... 20 3.2.2 Males ........................................................................................................ 21 3.2.3 Macroscopic scale proposed for Viviparous species ......................... 21 3.3 Comparison and conversion of previous maturity scales with the new one WKSMEL2 (2012) ................................................................................ 24 4 Histological determination of microscopic maturity stages ................................ 28 ii | ICES WKMSEL REPORT 2012 5 Photo reference atlas for the maturity scales proposed for oviparous and viviparous elasmobranch species ..................................................................... 32 6 Guidelines for an optimal sampling strategy for the determination of maturity stages in elasmobranchs ............................................................................ 33 7 Applications and other data collection .................................................................... 35 7.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................... 35 7.2 Demographic information ................................................................................. 35 7.3 Spatial information ............................................................................................. 37 7.4 Temporal information ........................................................................................ 37 8 Conclusion and recommendations ........................................................................... 38 9 References and working documents ........................................................................ 40 Annex 1: List of participants............................................................................................... 43 Annex 2: Agenda ................................................................................................................... 46 Annex 3: Species list with info on the study areas and mode of reproduction ................................................................................................................. 48 Annex 4: Histological photo reference for oviparous and viviparous elasmobranch species .................................................................................................. 52 Annex 5: Atlas for oviparous species ................................................................................ 53 Annex 6. Atlas for viviparous species............................................................................... 81 Annex 7: WEBGR contact to upload photo reference library ..................................... 103 Annex 8. Working documents presented by corresponding participants ............... 104 Annex 9:Maturity scales proposed by WKMSEL2 (2012) ............................................ 106 ICES WKMSEL REPORT 2012 1 Executive summary In 2010 the first workshop on Sexual Maturity Staging of Elasmobranchs (WKMSEL) was held following the proposal by the Planning Group on Commercial Catches, Dis- cards and Biological Sampling (PGCCDBS) and the Planning group for the Mediter- ranean (PGMed 2009) in response to the requirement of the European Union to collect maturity data under the Data Collection Framework (DCF). As there was no international agreement on the maturity scales to be applied to elasmobranchs, the main objective of the workshop was to agree on a common maturity scale for elas- mobranchs (sharks, skates and rays), oviparous and viviparous species, across labora- tories. The WKMSEL reviewed the maturity scales in use and proposed two new maturity scales, one for oviparous and other for viviparous species. The WKMSEL recommended testing those scales in a wider number of species to improve the standardization before a new workshop take place. ICES requested a new meeting in 2012. The main objectives for the WKMSEL2 (2012) held in Lisbon was to review and update the maturity scales proposed in 2010, based in the experience from its applica- tion, making the descriptions simpler and easy to follow. An annotated table summa- rizing the utility and use of these maturity scales for assessment and management purposes is also presented in this report. Moreover the photographic collection built up in 2010 was updated and better reorganized thanks to the contribution of all par- ticipants. Data Participants from research institutes from Europe, Algeria, Australia and Brazil pro- vided their feedback on macroscopic maturity scales and microscopic assignment of maturity stages as well as on their application for both oviparous and viviparous spe- cies. Digital photos on macro and microscopic maturity stages of reproductive sys- tems were also provided. Discussions and conclusions The participants reviewed the maturity scales proposed by the WKMSEL in 2010 and, sepa-rating the scales by sex, produced four new macroscopic maturity scales for males and females of oviparous and viviparous species. It was proposed the adoption of these scales by all Institutes involved in elasmobranch sampling, both within the framework of EU data collection and by non-EU countries. The draft table containing a summary of the applications of maturity data and other data collection needed for stock