GSA 8, located in the Western Mediterranean Sea, extends on an area of 4562 km². The MEDITS survey has been carried out since 1994, primarily during the second quarter of the year, with an initial sampling intensity of about 20 hauls per year (1994-2001), further slightly increased to 22 hauls per year in 2002. The interruption in the time series occurred in 2002 and 2020.