| Bottom trawling is a widespread fishing activity that covers most of the North-European continental shelves. This activity is likely to alter the benthic habitats, the structure and biodiversity of benthic communities as well as the ecosystem functioning. However, bottom trawling effects vary according to the habitats and, specifically according to the magnitude of the natural sources of disruptions. Consequently, it is difficult to predict the effects of the fishing activity. So, a specific investigation has to be conducted in each fishery in order to characterize the effect of bottom trawling. The Bay of Biscay (BoB) is fished for Norway lobsters and hake. Bottom trawling is one of the most important fishing activities, both economically and regarding to... |
