In the Mediterranean, a global hotspot for shark and ray diversity, these species face critical conservation threats, mainly due to bycatch. Constantly moving and sharing habitats with valuable commercial species like swordfish and tuna, sharks are highly vulnerable to fishing gear. Efforts to improve gear selectivity and limit their capture have proven insufficient, highlighting the need for new strategies to reduce bycatch mortality while maintaining fishing activity. A key approach involves adaptive fisheries management in biologically important areas. By reducing harmful fishing practices in critical breeding and feeding zones, bycatch mortality can be significantly lowered. Understanding the spatial-temporal distribution of sharks and their overlap with fisheries is crucial, as is assessing genetic diversity to identify vulnerable populations.

However, such data remain scarce for pelagic sharks in the northwestern Mediterranean, a heavily impacted region. The COTI project is addressing this gap by tagging sharks to track their movements, analysing genetic diversity to identify priority conservation areas, and raising awareness. By integrating fishing effort data and collaborating with fishers and policymakers, this project aims to propose conservation measures for pelagic sharks while minimising socioeconomic impacts.