News & announcements

The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) is today, September 30, issuing advice on fishing opportunities for Norwegian spring-spawning herring, Atlantic mackerel, and blue whiting for the year 2027.

In accordance with the MSY approach, the Marine and Freshwater Research Institute advises that the shrimp catch in Arnarfjörður in the 2026/2027 fishing year should not exceed 248 tonnes, and that shrimp fishing should not be permitted in Ísafjarðardjúp.

A recent study by scientists at MFRI examined the recovery of knotted wrack (Ascophyllum nodosum) following harvesting in Breiðafjörður Bay, western Iceland. Knotted wrack has been harvested in the area for around 50 years, primarily using mechanical cutting barges.

A new synthesis in the journal Fish and Fisheries brings together thirty obstacles that stand in the way of measuring and improving the sustainability of bottom fisheries, together with the same number of recommendations for addressing them. Haraldur A. Einarsson, fishing gear specialist at the Marine and Freshwater Research Institute, is one of 29 authors.

As the E(ddies)GC survey aboard RV Þórunn Þórðardóttir draws to a close, the international team of researchers is completing several weeks of intensive fieldwork off East Greenland.

The 2026 capelin autumn survey will be conducted from 23 August to 24 September. The survey aims to estimate the abundance of both immature and mature capelin in the Iceland-East Greenland-Jan Mayen area (IEGJM). A similar survey has been conducted since 1978.

Earlier this year, the article "Where are you from? Finding the origin of the recently observed sprat in Iceland using a panel of SNPs" was published.

Results are now available from a joint pelagic survey conducted by Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Norway, and Denmark between June 29 and July 30, 2026.

The Icelandic harbour seal population is about to start. For the first time, drones will be used to count the seals in the haul-out sites.

A research survey investigating the seafloor and the organisms that inhabit it recently returned to port after 20 days at sea.