The Cofradia occupies the area of the Port of Barcelona where the fishermen are. It has been located in the Moll del Rellotge since the mid-18th century.
At present, the Barcelona Fishermen’s Guild has 22 boats and some 220 workers. The fleet is divided into 3 types:
– 11 spider-web or hoop boats, which fish for blue fish (anchovy, mackerel, sardines…) at night between 11 pm and 8 am,
– 9 trawlers, which fish for white fish and shellfish (monkfish, hake, shrimp, Norway lobster, cuttlefish…) during the day between 6 am and 5 pm.
– 2 small fishing boats that also fish during the day, between 7am and 1.30pm, sailing close to the coast (prawns, soles, sea bass, castanets, sonso…).
– Find out about the 3 types of fishing:
Purse seine fishing
This is the system responsible for catching the bluefish, a fish that swims in the shape of a tooth and is guided by light. Hoop fishing boats, with the help of a small auxiliary boat, let go a net that ‘surrounds’ the shoal of fish.
It is a very selective gear that allows the fish shoals to be selected in such a way that species other than small pelagic fish are not spoiled. The nets used allow small and immature fish to pass through, ensuring the maintenance and renewal of the marine fauna.
The technique consists of a net 330 metres long and 60 metres high that surrounds the school of fish previously attracted and concentrated by a spotlight. Once surrounded, the net is closed at the bottom, as if it were a bag. This technique is used to catch migratory fish that move on the surface or between two waters, such as anchovies, mackerel, sardines… Fishing is done throughout the night, arriving at port in the early hours of the morning.
Trawling
This system is used to catch fish and crustaceans that live sedentarily on the seabed at depths of up to 900 metres.
The usual spots where they are found are called fishing grounds and used to be locations that were passed down from father to son. Now new technology allows them to be located automatically.
The technique uses a weighted net towed from the boat. An open net is used to catch all the fish along its path. The fishing is done on sandy or muddy seabed, never on rocky bottoms. In this way they preserve the quality of the seabed. Depending on the type of species to be fished, the boats move about 20 miles away from the coast.
Trawling helps to enrich and oxygenate the seabed. Fishing takes place between 6 am and 5 pm.
Small-scale fishing
This is the most traditional of all fishing techniques. With small boats that use traditional tools and techniques, such as longlines, trawls, trammel nets…
They fish between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m., very close to the coast. Some of the species caught with this gear are prawns, soles, sea basses, sea basses, damselfish… It is the most selective gear and the one that allows us to obtain high quality species
Subsidized training for fisheries professionals
