This document describes the morphological and taxonomical characteristics of early life stages of bony fish collected during the MedSudMed ichtyoplankton survey which was carried out in Libyan waters on board the R/V Urania in August 2006. The survey and data processing were conducted in the framework of the MedSudMed Project and in cooperation between the Institute for Coastal Marine Environment of the National Council for the Research (Italy) and the Marine Biology Research Centre (Libya). The document is structured in order to provide the readers with the baseline knowledge for the identification of fish larvae found in the seas bordering the Libyan coasts. In particular, in Chapters 1 and 2 an introduction to the ecological relevance of ichtyoplankton and on the water mass circulation in Libyan waters are respectively reported, as well as a description of the materials and methods used to sample, store and identify fish larvae. Chapter 3 describes the criteria and technical background necessary for the species identification and the main morpho-biometric characteristics used to describe the fish larvae. In Chapter 4 a description of the larvae collected during the survey along the Libyan waters is provided according to a systematic classification. An overview of the references on this topic is also included in the document (Chapter 5).

The Workshop on “Octopus stocks and related fisheries in the MedSudMed Project area” (Salammbô, Tunisia, 18-20 November 2008) was attended by experts from Italy, Libya, Malta and Tunisia. The main objectives of the workshop were: i) to synthesise and compare the existing knowledge on the biology and distribution of O. vulgaris; ii) to identify the gaps to be filled for the identification of O. vulgaris populations units; iii) to prepare a work plan in order to verify if the population units of O. vulgaris belong to shared stock(s); and iv) to contribute to identifying the Operational Units targeting O. vulgaris in the Project area. Ten presentations were given on biological aspects, distribution and exploitation (including socio-economic aspects) of O. vulgaris in the MedSudMed area. The differences and similarities of biological features, exploitation, market and fisheries regulations among countries in the Project area were also pointed out. A joint exercise to identify the fleet segments targeting O. vulgaris in the area was carried out. The gaps to be filled in order to identify population units for O. vulgaris and to provide a detailed description of the Ous targeting this species in the MedSudMed area were listed and the outline of a work plan to fill these gaps was agreed upon. Two main thematic areas were identified: i) tentative identification of nursery and spawning areas along the Tunisian coasts by processing available surveys data, ii) genetic studies to compare population units. Moreover, a further field of interest was discussed: the collection of data for the proper identification of Ous targeting O. vulgaris.