Discover the guide to identifying the main coastal fish species of the Balearic Islands

The goal is to promote, in addition to sustainable fishing practices, all uses of marine resources that, being harmless, generate diversified economic activities. The publication will also be distributed at freediving underwater photography competitions and will be used for educational and informative activities within marine reserves.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Natural Environment and the Balearic Federation of Underwater Activities have published a guide to identifying the main coastal fish species. The publication is funded by the project ITS Blue Economy: new management and monitoring tools for marine and marine reserve areas. The Director General of Fisheries, Antoni M. Grau, highlighted the value of such collaborations between the Government and organizations: "We want to promote, in addition to sustainable fishing practices, all uses of marine resources that, being harmless, generate diversified economic activities, such as freediving photography, which is why this guide has been published."

The guide is a DIN-A3 plastic sheet, designed for use in the sea, featuring images of 55 common fish species of the Balearic coastal waters. Its main purpose is to distribute it among participants of freediving underwater photography competitions, and it will also be used for educational and informative activities within the marine reserves of the Balearic Islands.

The Director General of Fisheries explained that: "This sheet replaces the 2004 version, which had similar characteristics and is now out of print. Although the images are different, they were provided by the Balearic Federation of Underwater Activities, coming from three renowned underwater photographers: Juan Moya, Candelario Villar, and Bernardo García de la Villa."

The Balearic Islands, due to their waters and the good conservation status of fishery resources within the marine reserves, are an ideal location for freediving underwater photography. Evidence of this is the Spanish Championship in this sport, held in Mallorca in autumn 2024, which was attended on behalf of the Government by Director General Antoni M. Grau.

Additionally, Grau took the opportunity to remind that the Government intends to amend Article 5 of Decree 34/2014, of August 1st, on the general principles of recreational fishing in inland waters, to align the validity of the recreational spearfishing license with other recreational fishing licenses, changing it from one year to three years.

"This will reduce unnecessary procedures and help decrease administrative burdens, both for the administration and citizens, without compromising control or safety mechanisms, as current requirements, minimum age, weapon permit (federative license), and valid insurance, remain in place," emphasized the Director General of Fisheries.