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Toothfish fishery during the 2023-2024 fishing season 1. In addition to the special requirements for exploratory fisheries set out in Article 7a of Regulation (EC) No 601/2004, fishing for toothfish in the period from 1 December 2023 to 30 November 2024 shall be limited to the Member States, subareas and number of fishing vessels set out in Table A in Annex VII, and the TACs and by-catch limits set out in Table B in that Annex shall apply.

2. Direct fishing of shark species for purposes other than scientific research shall be prohibited. Any by-catch of shark, especially juveniles and gravid females, taken accidentally in the toothfish fishery shall be released alive.

3. Where applicable, fishing for toothfish in any small-scale research unit (SSRU) shall cease when the reported catch reaches the specified TAC, and the SSRU shall be closed to fishing for the remainder of the fishing season.

4. Fishing shall take place over a geographical and bathymetric range as large as possible, so as to obtain the information necessary to determine fishery potential and avoid an overconcentration of catch and fishing effort. However, fishing in FAO subareas 48.6, 88.1 and 88.2 shall be prohibited in depths of less than 550 m.