Elasmobranch species including electric rays and guitarfish face significant bycatch mortality in Mediterranean trawl and net fisheries, with limited welfare consideration.
Rays caught in trawl nets experience crowding stress, pressure injuries from net hauls, and hypoxia during extended tow periods. Animals hauled on deck asphyxiate slowly as air-breathing-analogous water-breathing fish without gills able to process air. Electric rays that discharge when stressed on deck are often mishandled due to the electric shock hazard, causing additional injury. Rays returned as bycatch after extended tow and deck exposure have high post-release mortality. The collapse of Mediterranean elasmobranch populations means individual welfare impacts have critical conservation consequences.