NEAMAP Fall 2007 Final Report
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Transcript of NEAMAP Fall 2007 Final Report
Northeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (NEAMAP)
Mid-Atlantic Nearshore Trawl Program
Progress Report: Fall 2007 Survey Data Summary
20 March 2008
Submitted to:
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Washington, DC
By:
Christopher F. Bonzek James Gartland J. David Lange
Robert J. Latour, Ph.D.
Department of Fisheries Science Virginia Institute of Marine Science
College of William and Mary Gloucester Point, VA
NEAMAP ASMFC Progress Report
I. Project Title: Data collection and analysis in support of multispecies stock assessments in the mid-Atlantic: Northeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program Nearshore Trawl Program.
II. Grantee State and Contact Name: Virginia/Virginia Institute of Marine Science –
Christopher F. Bonzek
III. Project Period: 1 August 2005 – 31 May 2009 Reporting Period: 1 August 2007 – 31 January 2008
IV. Project Description: This is a new fisheries-independent bottom trawl survey operating
in the near coastal ocean waters of the Mid-Atlantic region. The survey is an element of the ASMFC Northeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (NEAMAP) and is designed to sample fishes and invertebrates from coastal waters bounded by the 20ft.and 60ft. depth contours between Montauk, New York and Cape Hatteras, North Carolina and waters between the 60ft.and 120ft. depth contours in Rhode Island Sound and Block Island Sound using a bottom trawl. The main objective of the survey is the estimation of biomass, length and age structures, various other assessment related parameters and diet compositions of select finfishes inhabiting the area.
V. Project Summary/Accomplishments: The fall 2007 survey was successfully completed
during a research cruise which occurred between 27 September and 20 October 2007. A total of 150 stations, the target number, were sampled. About 1.1 million individual fishes weighing almost 50,000kg and representing about 130 species (including selected invertebrates which where processed similarly to fishes) were captured. Individual length measurements were recorded for over 73,000 specimens. Lab processing is proceeding on the 5,150 otoliths and 3,905 stomach samples which were collected (2,433 otoliths and 1,930 stomachs have been fully processed as of the date of this report). A full report is attached to this standard project summary.
VI. Challenges/Changes: Beyond completion of laboratory samples, no significant
challenges remain for this contract segment.
VII. Participants: Primary program personnel remain unchanged.
VIII. Quality Assurance: Previous progress reports provided brief descriptions of quality assurance procedures in selecting fishing gear, conducting fishing operations, and processing the catch. These are interwoven into the attached report as well. Data collected during the survey have been processed through several data quality checks which were previously developed for other survey work and new checks developed specifically for NEAMAP.
IX. Funding Status: Expenditures have been generally in line with expectations. We
anticipate sufficient funds will be available until Research Set Aside Program funds are dispersed later in 2008.
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X. Future Activities: The future of this program is dependent upon continued funding. We
anticipate sufficient funds to complete both the spring and fall 2008 cruises.
XI. Presentations/Public Outreach: Since completion of field sampling, presentations of survey results have been (or will be) made as follows:
• February 2008: Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council • February 2008: Cape May NJ Party and Charter Boat Association • February 2008: NMFS NEFSC Trawl Advisory Panel • February 2008: Bass Pro Shops Fishing Classic (Hampton, VA), Booth exhibit • March 2008: NEAMAP Operations Committee • March 2008: NEAMAP Board • April 2008: New England Fishery Management Council
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Introduction Concerns regarding the status of fishery-independent data collection from the continental shelf waters between Cape Hatteras, North Carolina and the U.S. / Canadian border led the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (ASMFC) Management and Science Committee (MSC) to draft a resolution in 1997 calling for the formation the Northeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (NEAMAP) (ASMFC 2002). NEAMAP is a cooperative state-federal program modeled after the Southeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (SEAMAP), which had been coordinating fishery-independent data collection south of Cape Hatteras since the mid-1980s (Rester 2001). The four main goals of this new program directly address the deficiencies noted by the MSC for this region and include 1) developing fishery-independent surveys where current sampling is either inadequate or absent 2) coordinating data collection amongst existing surveys as well as any new surveys 3) providing for efficient management and dissemination of data and 4) establishing outreach programs (ASMFC 2002). The NEAMAP Memorandum of Understanding was signed by all partner agencies by July 2004. One of the first major efforts of the NEAMAP was to design a trawl survey intended to operate in the coastal zone of the Middle Atlantic Bight (MAB - i.e., Montauk, New York to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina). While the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Northeast Fisheries Science Center’s (NEFSC) bottom trawl survey has been sampling from Cape Hatteras to the U.S. / Canadian border in waters less than 91.4m since 1963, few stations are sampled in waters less than 27.4m due to the sizes of the sampling area and vessels (NEFSC 1988, R. Brown, NMFS, pers. comm). In addition, of the six coastal states in the MAB, only New Jersey conducts a fishery-independent trawl survey in its coastal zone (Byrne 2004). This new NEAMAP Inshore Trawl Survey is intended to fill the aforementioned gap in fishery-independent survey coverage, which is consistent with the program goals. In early 2005, the ASMFC made $250,000 of “plus-up” funds that it had received through the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act (ACFCMA) available for pilot work in an effort to assess the viability of the NEAMAP Inshore Trawl Survey. The Virginia Institute of Marine Science provided the sole response to the Commission’s request for proposals and was awarded the funding in August 2005. Two brief pre-pilot cruises and the full pilot cruise were conducted in 2006 (Bonzek et al., 2007). Early in 2007 ASMFC bundled funds from a combination of sources which were sufficient to begin full scale sampling operations in the fall of 2007. This report summarizes results from the fall 2007 cruise. Two significant changes to the area sampled by the NEAMAP Nearshore Trawl Program occurred prior to the fall 2007 cruise:
• In 2007 NEFSC took delivery of the FSV Henry B. Bigelow, began preliminary sampling operations, and determined that the vessel could safely operate in waters as shallow as 18.3m. NEFSC then made a determination that future surveys would likely extend inshore to that depth contour (R. Brown, NMFS, pers. comm.). The NEAMAP Operations Committee subsequently decided that the offshore boundary of the NEAMAP survey coastal sampling (i.e., Montauk to Cape Hatteras) should be realigned to coincide
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with the inshore boundary of the NEFSC survey, and that NEAMAP should discontinue sampling between the 18.3m and 27.4m contours along the coast.
• NEFSC contributed significant funds toward NEAMAP full implementation with the provision that the additional under-sampled areas of Block Island Sound and Rhode Island Sound be added to the NEAMAP sampling area. These areas are deeper than other NEAMAP regions but from a ‘distance from shore’ standpoint are within the range covered by NEAMAP in other states.
Methods Station Selection Primary consideration in regards to survey stratification was consistency with the NMFS bottom trawl surveys. However, those surveys will be redesigned and re-stratified for 2009 (and beyond) and so re-stratification for the inshore NEAMAP areas was open for consideration as well. Examination of existing NMFS strata revealed that the major divisions among survey areas (latitudinal divisions from New Jersey to the south, longitudinal divisions off Long Island) generally corresponded well with major estuarine outflow areas. Therefore these boundary definitions, with minor modifications so that regional boundaries would more closely correspond to state borders, were used for the NEAMAP survey. However, examination of the current NMFS depth stratum definitions reveals that in some areas (primarily off the southern states) current stratum boundaries do not correspond well to actual depth contours. Depth stratum assignments were redrawn using depth sounding data from the National Ocean Service using depth strata 20ft.-40ft. and 40ft.-60ft. Finally, each stratum was subdivided into a grid pattern of potential sampling locations, with each cell measuring 1.5 x 1.5 minutes (2.25sq. nm). The number of stations (cells) selected for each stratum was assigned by proportional sampling according to surface area within the stratum, with a minimum of two stations per stratum. During the pilot cruise, an equal number of stations was selected for each depth stratum within a particular region. This assured that sufficient sampling occurred in the small, shallow strata closest to shore. As the large offshore (60ft. – 90ft.) strata were not sampled in the fall of 2007, this procedure was no longer required and straight proportional sampling was implemented. Species Priority Lists During the survey design phase, the NEAMAP Operations Committee developed a set of species priority lists. Priority ‘A’ species were to be subjected to the full processing procedure (see Procedures at Each Station below) at each station in which they were collected. Compared to the list used for the 2006 pilot survey, several Priority ‘A’ species were added due to the expanded survey area (should lead to collections of additional species of management importance) and the requests of the Mid-Atlantic Fisheries Management Council. Priority ‘B’ species were to be sampled for full processing as time allowed. Priority ‘C’ species would only be taken for full processing if sampling of A and B species would not be affected. These three categories might be summarized as ‘must have’ ‘great to have’ and ‘nice to have,’ respectively. All other species (here called Priority ‘D’) were to have aggregate weights recorded and all or an appreciable subsample to be measured. A fifth category (‘E’) was later defined, including
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species which required special handling. This category included sharks (other than dogfish) and sturgeon, which were measured, tagged, and released; and selected invertebrates which were processed similarly to Priority D fish species. Species included in categories A-C are presented below (Table 1). Table 1. Species priority lists (categories A-C only).
A LIST
Atlantic Cod Gadus morhua Black Sea Bass Centropristis striata Bluefish Pomatomus saltatrix Butterfish Peprilus triacanthus Haddock Melanogrammus aeglefinus Pollock Pollachius virens Scup Stenotomus chrysops Silver Hake Merluccius bilinearis Striped Bass Morone saxatilis Summer Flounder Paralichthys dentatus Weakfish Cynoscion regalis Winter Founder Pleuronectes americanus
B LIST American Shad Alosa sapidissima Atlantic Menhaden Brevoortia tyrannus Atlantic Croaker Micropogonias undulatus Monkfish Lophius americanus Skate and Ray Species Smooth Dogfish Mustelus canis Spiny Dogfish Squalus acanthias Spot Leiostomus xanthurus Yellowtail Flounder Limanda ferruginea
C LIST Alewife Alosa pseudoharengus Atlantic Herring Clupea harengus Atlantic Mackerel Scomber scombrus Black Drum Pogonias cromis Blueback Herring Alosa aestivalis Red Drum Sciaenops ocellatus Speckled Trout Cynoscion nebulosus Tautog Tautoga onitis
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Gear Performance Wingspread, doorspread, and headrope height were measured on each tow during the fall 2007 cruise using a digital Netmind Trawl Monitoring System. Wingspread sensors were positioned on the middle net ‘jib’ in accordance with NFMS procedures. The headrope sensor was mounted at the midpoint of the headrope. A catch sensor was mounted in the cod-end, set to signal when the catch reached roughly 5,000lbs. GPS coordinates and vessel speed were recorded every 60 seconds using the ship’s chartplotting software. These data can be used to plot tow tracks for each station. The same computer used to record Netmind readings was also employed to plot station locations (and the corners of each sampling cell) and to run the countdown clock for each tow. Procedures at Each Station All fishing operations were conducted during daylight hours. Each tow was 20 minutes in duration with a target tow speed of between 2.9 and 3.3 knots. No tows were truncated due to known hangs in the tow path, surface traffic etc. One tow was terminated at 15 minutes due to an anticipated (and realized – 6,400kg) large catch, as indicated by triggering of the catch sensor midway through the tow. At each station several standard parameters were recorded. These included:
• All necessary station identification parameters (date, station number, stratum, depth). • All necessary vessel operation parameters (beginning and ending GPS position,
beginning and ending tow times, compass course, engine RPMs). • All necessary gear identification and operational parameters (net type code and net
number, door type code and door numbers, amount of cable deployed). • Atmospheric and weather data (air temperature, wind speed, wind direction, general
weather state, sea state, barometric pressure). • Hydrographic data at the surface and at the bottom (water temperature, salinity, and
dissolved oxygen). Upon arrival near a sampling cell, the Captain and Chief Scientist jointly determined the desired starting point and tow path. Flexibility was allowed with regard to these parameters such that a clear tow could be accomplished while staying within the boundaries of the defined cell. Hydrographic data were taken prior to the beginning of each tow, except rarely when taking these readings would have delayed the tow until after sunset; in these cases hydrographic data were recorded at the completion of the tow. Vessel crew were responsible for all aspects of deployment and retrieval of the fishing gear. Due to the relatively shallow waters, 75fm. or less of warp was set out at all stations. One scientist was present in the wheelhouse during deployment and retrieval. The Captain signaled when the gear was fully set (winch brakes engaged), at which time the Netmind software and the countdown clock were both activated. At the conclusion of each tow, the scientist signaled the Captain when the clock reached zero, haulback commenced, and the Netmind recording software was stopped. Vessel crew dumped the catch into one of two enclosed locations on deck for sorting.
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The catch was sorted by species and modal size group. Aggregate biomass (kg) was measured for each species-size group combination. For priority A species, and often for priority B and C species, a subsample of five individuals from each group was selected for full processing (see next paragraph). For certain common priority B species including spot (Leiostomus xanthurus), Atlantic croaker (Micropogonias undulatus), skates, rays, and dogfish only three individuals per group were sampled for full laboratory processing. Data collected from each subsampled specimen included length (to the nearest millimeter), total and eviscerated weight (measured in grams, accuracy depended upon the balance on which individuals were measured), and macroscopic sex and maturity stage (immature, mature-resting, mature-ripe, mature-spent) determination. Stomachs were removed (except for spot and butterfish, for which previous sampling indicated that little useful data could be obtained from the stomach contents) and those containing prey items were preserved for subsequent examination. Otoliths or other appropriate ageing structures were removed from each subsampled specimen for later age determination. All specimens not selected for the complete processing were weighed (aggregate weight), and individual length measurements were recorded for either all or a large proportion, in accordance with approved subsampling procedures when necessary. Laboratory Methods Otoliths (or, depending upon the species, other appropriate ageing structures) were (and are being) prepared according to methodology established for other VIMS surveys. One otolith was selected and mounted on a piece of 100 weight paper with a thin layer of Crystal Bond. A thin transverse section was cut through the nucleus of the otolith using two Buehler diamond wafering blades and a low speed Isomet saw. The section was then mounted on a glass slide and covered with Crystal Bond. If necessary, the section was wet-sanded to an appropriate thickness before being covered with Crystal Bond. Some smaller, fragile otoliths were read whole. Both sectioned and whole otoliths were most commonly read using transmitted light under a dissecting microscope. Age was determined as the mode of three independent readings, one by each of three readers. Stomach samples were (and are being) analyzed according to standard procedures (Hyslop 1980). Prey were identified to the lowest possible taxon. Experienced laboratory personnel are able to process, on average, approximately 30 to 40 stomachs per person per day. Analytical Methods (Abundance) Estimates of abundance are expressed in terms of minimum trawlable number or biomass according to the general formula:
a
cA N = , (1)
where N is the minimum number (or biomass) of fish present within the sampling area that are susceptible to the sampling gear, c is the mean number (or weight) of fish captured per tow, a is the area swept by one trawl tow, and A is the total survey area. Specifically, abundance was calculated in accordance with standard stratified random sampling:
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∑=
=sn
sss NAN
1
ˆˆ , (2)
where As is the area of stratum s, ns is the total number of strata in which striped bass were
captured, and sN is an estimate of the mean area-swept catch in stratum s given by:
st
n
i i
i
s nac
N
st
,
1
,
ˆˆ∑== , (3)
In equation (3), ci and represent the catch (number or weight) and an estimate of the trawl area-swept at sampling location i, respectively, and n
iat,s is the number of tows in stratum s. Note
that the ai estimates were calculated using vessel GPS data for distance towed and net mensuration gear for measurements of net opening (an average value was calculated from the measurements taken during each tow). As no correction is made for gear efficiency these estimates represent the minimum number (or biomass) of fish present within the sampling area that are susceptible to the sampling gear. This method produces estimates of abundance for each stratum, which are totaled to produce estimates for the entire survey area. As regional stratum boundaries were drawn to generally correspond with state borders, estimates of abundance (and certain other stock parameters) can be produced on a state-specific basis. While usually not biologically meaningful, for some parameters it was considered worthwhile to present results in this way due to the potential usefulness for fishery managers. Analytical Methods (Sex Ratios) Sex ratios were determined by summation of data from fully processed specimens. For this and several other stock parameters, data from fully processed specimens are expanded to the entire sample (i.e., catch level) for parameter estimation. Because workup procedures result in differential subsampling rates among size groups, failure to account for such factors would bias resulting stock parameter estimates. In the NEAMAP database each specimen has a calculated expansion factor associated with it which represents the number of fish that the specimen represents in the total sample for that station. Analytical Methods (Length Frequency) Length frequency histograms were designed using 10mm bins and the expansion factors as previously described. Length bins were identified using the bin midpoint (e.g. the 250mm bin represents individuals between 245mm and 254mm). Analytical Methods (Length-Weight Regressions) Power regressions for length-weight relationships were calculated and plotted by sex as well as both sexes combined. No tests for differences in growth by sex were performed. No expansion factors were used in these calculations as they do not depend on subsampling rates.
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Analytical Methods (Maturity Regressions) Logistic regressions were calculated and plotted separately for males and females. No expansion factors were used in these calculations as they do not depend on subsampling rates. Analytical Methods (Diets) Diets for each species were determined by estimating the mean proportional contribution of prey type (k) to predator (x) by weight or number (Wk,x) using the following equation:
∑
∑
=
== n
ixi
n
ixkixi
xk
M
qMW
1,
1,,,
, , (4)
where
xi
xkixki w
wq
,
,,,, = , (5)
where Mi,x is the number of predator x captured at station i, wi,k,x is the total weight (or number) of prey type k encountered in the stomachs of predator x collected at station i, and wi,x is the total weight (or number) of all prey items encountered in these stomachs (Buckel et al. 1999). This cluster sampling estimator was used since trawl collections yield a cluster of each predator at each station. Results Gear Performance As was the case during the pilot survey and prior work, the 4-seam net performed consistently within the expected parameters (Figure 1). The addition of doorspread sensors provided valuable supplementary information. Mounting these sensors onto the relatively small trawl doors however (Figure 2), decreased the efficiency (i.e., spreading power) of the doors, and early in the cruise wingspread measurements were 1-2m less than previously achieved. Slight modifications to the warp and backstrap attachment points on the doors, combined with additional scope, brought the net back within specifications and provided the expected door spread measurements. Discounting the early stations at which the gear was slightly underspread, there did not appear to be an increasing trend in either the doorspread or wingspread measurements as was observed in the 2006 pilot survey. The same net was used for the fall 2007 survey as was used for the pilot survey. We will monitor whether this phenomenon appears in future surveys using new nets. No major gear damage occurred during the survey.
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Stations Sampled Based on a specified sampling rate of one station per 30sq.nm, the target number of stations to be sampled was 150 for the entire sampling area (1,938 cells x 2.25sq.mi. per cell / 30 stations per sq.nm. = 145 stations) and 150 stations were successfully occupied. The number of stations available and the number sampled in each stratum is given (Table 2). Of the 150 stations sampled, 129 were sampled within the specified primary sampling cell and 21 were chosen from the available randomly selected alternate sites, due to issues such as known hangs or other obstructions, fixed gear, or vessel traffic. One extra station was occupied in Region 12 (Virginia) to make up for one station not sampled in BI Sound (data from this station were assigned to Region 12, not to BI Sound). The highest number of alternate stations occupied was in BI Sound (2 out of 10) and RI Sound (7 out of 17) due to a high degree of caution, to unfamiliarity with the area, and to a relatively small number of towable locations in this area. For future surveys we anticipate obtaining a better sample of known towable locations through cooperation with local industry representatives. A region-by-region summary of these results is presented (Table 3). Maps comparing selected and actual stations sampled are shown (Figure 3).
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Table 2. Number of available sample cells and number sampled in each stratum.
Table 3. Number of primary and alternate stations occupied in each region.
Region State* Stations Sampled 20ft.-40ft. 40ft. – 60ft. 60ft. – 90ft. 90ft. – 120ft. Stations
sampled Total cells
Stations sampled
Total cells
Stations sampled
Total cells
Stations sampled
Total cells
Stations per sq.
nm.
RI Sound RI 6 85 11 161 32.6 BI Sound RI 4 42 5 88 32.5
1 NY 0 0 2 19 21.4 2 NY 2 8 3 19 12.2 3 NY 2 16 3 28 19.8 4 NY 2 16 3 29 20.3 5 NY 2 27 3 45 32.4 6 NJ 2 20 3 42 27.9 7 NJ 4 49 6 97 32.9 8 NJ 2 32 7 90 30.5 9 DE 4 53 8 113 31.1
10 MD 2 33 8 114 33.1 11 VA 5 62 9 122 29.6 12 VA 5 60 6 67 26.0 13 VA 7 94 11 142 29.5 14 NC 2 24 5 61 27.3 15 NC 2 25 4 55 30.0
Total 43 519 81 1043 10 127 16 249 29.1 * Note that region boundaries are not perfectly aligned with all state boundaries:
• Some stations in RI Sound may occur in MA • Some stations in BI Sound may occur in NY • Region 5 spans the NY-NJ Harbor area • Some stations in Region 9 may occur in NJ
Region
Primary Stations
Alternate Stations
Total
Region
Primary Stations
Alternate Stations
Total
RI Sound 10 7 17 8 8 1 9BI Sound 7 2* 9 9 11 1 12
1 1 1 2 10 10 0 102 4 1 5 11 13 1 143 5 0 5 12 9 2* 114 5 0 5 13 15 3 185 5 0 5 14 7 0 76 4 1 5 15 5 1 67 10 0 10 Total 129 21 150
* One planned station in BI Sound was not sampled; an extra station was occupied in Region 12.
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On the 17 full sampling days (i.e., no long steam times or port calls), an average of 7.9 stations per day were sampled. Counting all 24 days at sea, including transit days and partial sampling days, the number of stations averaged 6.25. Day-by-day vessel activities and work schedules are presented (Table 4). Table 4. Summary of activities conducted during each day at sea during the fall 2007 NEAMAP cruise.
Date
12: 00 AM
6: 00 AM
12: 00 PM
6: 00 PM
11: 00 PM
No. Station
24-Sep 025-Sep 026-Sep 027-Sep 728-Sep 729-Sep 730-Sep 71-Oct 62-Oct 23-Oct 74-Oct 85-Oct 96-Oct 107-Oct 108-Oct 29-Oct 910-Oct 911-Oct 712-Oct 913-Oct 614-Oct 015-Oct 016-Oct 117-Oct 718-Oct 719-Oct 820-Oct 421-Oct 0
= Fishing hours = Personnel hours
No Fishing / Crew Change and Resupply in Hampton
Time of DayHours Worked and Stations Sampled Each Day
Survey Finished
Final Survey PreparationsSteaming Day - Hampton to MontaukSteaming Day - Hampton to Montauk
Crew Change / Survey Demo. Montauk
Survey Demo. Cape May
No Fishing / Crew Change and Resupply in Hampton
Catch Summary A total of 1,101,152 specimens weighing 49,868kg were collected during the fall 2007 survey. A total of 73,473 individuals were measured (laying all individuals head-to-tail 11,465m, or 7.1miles, of fish were measured). Of those specimens taken for full workup, 5,150 otoliths (or other ageing structures) were taken and 3,905 full stomachs were preserved for later analysis. On average at each station, 7,132 (range 75 – 151,598) specimens were captured (Figure 4) weighing 332kg (range 7.4kg – 6,396kg) (Figure 5), 490 specimens were measured (range 57 – 1,394), and 34 specimens were processed for the full workup (range 4 – 77). At each station, an average of 20.4 species was captured (range 7 – 36) (Figure 6). The number of specimens processed for each species, separately for each priority category, is summarized in Table 5.
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Species Data Summaries Several graphical data summaries are shown for each species (Figures 7-173). Species are organized alphabetically. For priority A species, most or all of the following figures are presented (at the time of report preparation 2,433 otoliths and 1,930 stomachs for priority A species have been analyzed):
• Distribution maps showing catch rates by number and biomass for all stations. • Bar graphs showing the minimum trawlable number (MTN) and biomass (MTB) by state,
annotated with estimates of the overall MTN and MTB and percent standard error for each.
• Length-frequency histograms annotated with the total number of specimens captured and measured and the number of otoliths and stomachs removed for processing.
• Length-frequency histograms by age. • Histograms of sex ratio by state, and for species with adequate sample size, by size
groups, annotated with the number of specimens examined. • Logistic regressions for maturity, by sex, annotated with sizes at 50% and 99% maturity. • von Bertalanffy growth regressions, by sex if appropriate. • Age distribution graphs (ageing has been completed only for black sea bass, scup,
summer flounder, weakfish, and striped bass (not shown) ) shown with the total number of specimens by age if all specimens had been aged.
• Length-weight power regressions for sexes combined and separately. • Diet compositions by weight and number, with prey types separated into broad
taxonomic groups, annotated with the number of stomachs analyzed.
These data summaries are numbered as follows: • Black seabass – Figures 33-42. • Bluefish – Figures 43-49. • Butterfish – Figures 59-64. • Scup – Figures 96-105. • Silver hake – Figures 106-111. • Summer flounder – Figures 139-148. • Weakfish – Figures 149-158. • Winter flounder – Figures 159-168.
For priority B species, some or all of the following data summaries are presented:
• Distribution maps showing catch rates by number and biomass for all stations. • Bar graphs showing the MTN and MTB by state, annotated with estimates of the overall
MTN and MTB and percent standard error for each. • Length-frequency histograms annotated with the total number of specimens captured and
measured and the number of otoliths (or vertebrae for elasmobranchs) and stomachs removed for processing.
• Histograms of sex ratio by state, and for species with adequate sample size, by size groups, annotated with the number of specimens examined.
• Logistic regressions for maturity, by sex, annotated with sizes at 50% and 99% maturity.
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• Length-weight power regressions for sexes combined and separately.
These data summaries are numbered as follows: • Atlantic croaker – Figures 12-17. • Atlantic menhaden – Figures 18-23. • Bluntnose stingray – Figures 50-52. • Bullnose ray – Figures 56-58. • Clearnose skate – Figures 65-70. • Cownose ray – Figures 71-73. • Little skate – Figures 82-86. • Smooth butterfly ray – Figures 115-117. • Smooth dogfish – Figures 118-123. • Spot – Figures 127-132. • Winter skate – Figures 169-173.
No Priority C species were captured in sufficient numbers to allow meaningful data summaries to be presented. Several other species were captured in significant numbers as well (labeled as Priority D in Table 5). Data summaries for these species that are shown are:
• Distribution maps showing catch rates by number and biomass for all stations. • Bar graphs showing the MTN and MTB by state, annotated with estimates of the overall
MTN and MTB and percent standard error for each. • Length-frequency histograms annotated with the total number of specimens captured and
measured.
These data summaries are numbered as follows: • Atlantic spadefish – Figures 24-26. • Atlantic thread herring – Figures 27-29. • Bay anchovy – Figures 30-32. • Kingfish spp. – Figures 79-81. • Northern searobin – Figures 90-92. • Pinfish – Figures 93-95. • Silver perch – Figures 112-114. • Spanish mackerel – Figures 124-126. • Striped anchovy – Figures 133-135. • Striped searobin – Figures 136-138.
Finally, several invertebrate species (or species groups) and selected sharks were captured in sufficient numbers to be of note (described as Priority D species in Table 5). Data summaries for these species that are shown are:
• Distribution maps showing catch rates by number and biomass for all stations. • Bar graphs showing the MTN and MTB by state, annotated with estimates of the overall
MTN and MTB and percent standard error for each.
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• Length-frequency histograms annotated with the total number of specimens captured and measured.
• Histograms of sex ratio by state, annotated with the number of specimens examined (horseshoe crab only).
• Length-weight power regressions for sexes combined and separately (horseshoe crab only).
These data summaries are numbered as follows:
• American lobster – Figures 7-11. • Brown shrimp – Figures 53-55. • Horseshoe crab – Figures 74-78. • Loligo squid – Figures 87-89.
Literature Cited Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC). 2002. Development of a Cooperative State/Federal Fisheries Independent Sampling Program. ASMFC Document, Washington, DC. Bonzek, C.F., J. Gartland, R.J. Latour. 2007. Northeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (NEAMAP) Mid-Atlantic Nearshore Trawl Program Pilot Survey Completion Report. ASMFC. 97pp. Byrne, Don. 2004. Counting the fish in the ocean. Online. Internet. <http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/artoceancount.htm> Hyslop, E. J. 1980. Stomach contents analysis – a review of methods and their application. Journal of Fish Biology 17:411-429. NEFC. 1988. An evaluation of the bottom trawl survey program of the Northeast Fisheries Center. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS-F/NEC-52, p. 83. Rester, J.K. 2001. Annual report to the Technical Coordinating Committee Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission. Report of the Southeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (SEAMAP) to the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
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Table 5. Number of specimens captured and measured and number of otoliths (or other hard parts) and stomachs sampled, by species priority level.
Priority A Species
Species
Total Number Caught
Total Species
Weight (kg) Number
Measured
Number of
Otoliths Number of Stomachs
black seabass 401 85.3 401 219 210bluefish 4,635 394.5 2,613 588 485butterfish 148,182 1,904.9 6,015 538 11scup 276,234 3,928.7 13,718 808 797silver hake (whiting) 346 24.8 346 59 59striped bass 17 66.3 17 16 16summer flounder 960 625.5 926 716 448weakfish 60,990 4,168.1 5,747 572 471winter flounder 391 98.7 391 118 114
Priority B Species
Species
Total Number Caught
Total Species
Weight (kg) Number
Measured
Number of
Otoliths Number of Stomachs
American shad 9 0.8 9 9 9Atlantic croaker 58,763 7,616.5 2,843 211 193Atlantic menhaden 740 30.2 288 78 78Atlantic torpedo 8 92.3 8 7 3bluntnose stingray 349 1,178.9 307 bullnose ray 731 1,155.0 631 clearnose skate 1,499 1,847.7 1,355 340 324cownose ray 451 3,976.6 150 Leucoraja spp. 20 5.7 20 little skate 5,288 3,026.2 2,659 194 187monkfish 6 31.2 6 6 6roughtail stingray 92 510.1 92 1 1skate spp. 60 37.0 60 smooth butterfly ray 292 557.1 292 smooth dogfish 1,690 1,555.6 765 202 200southern stingray 18 139.0 18 spiny butterfly ray 133 1,366.7 133 spiny dogfish 17 51.3 17 13 12spot 44,437 3,942.0 2,507 160 9winter skate 951 925.3 735 171 160yellowtail flounder 1 0.1 1 1 1
Priority C Species
Species
Total Number Caught
Total Species
Weight (kg) Number
Measured
Number of
Otoliths Number of Stomachs
alewife 56 3.1 56 24 24Atlantic herring 198 5.4 198 20 20Atlantic mackerel 3 0.3 3 3 1black drum 35 5.8 35 33 25blueback herring 50 1.6 50 18 18red drum 2 14.9 2 1 1tautog 4 3.7 4 4 4
continued
- 16 -
Table 5. cont.. Priority D Species
Species
Total Number Caught
Total Species
Weight(kg) Number
Measured
Number of
Otoliths Number of Stomachs
African pompano 2 0.2 2 Atlantic bumper 2 0.0 2 Atlantic cutlassfish 212 2.1 117 Atlantic moonfish 2,803 15.1 1,196 Atlantic pomfret 2 0.2 2 Atlantic spadefish 673 31.0 478 Atlantic sturgeon 2 29.4 2 Atlantic thread herring 3,345 167.7 554 Atlantic threadfin 3 0.3 3 banded drum 655 50.7 210 bay anchovy 119,741 203.4 3,961 Berycidae 5 13.7 5 bigeye 11 1.7 11 bigeye scad 75 2.4 75 blackcheek tonguefish 3 0.2 3 blue runner 175 9.9 160 bluespotted cornetfish 1 0.0 1 cobia 4 33.1 4 conger eel 1 0.7 1 crevalle jack 31 1.1 31 dwarf goatfish 13 0.2 8 Etropus sp. 24 0.3 24 Florida pompano 43 7.6 43 flying gurnard 1 0.0 1 fourbeard rockling 1 0.1 1 fourspot flounder 73 15.7 73 fringed flounder 27 0.4 27 gray triggerfish 23 9.2 23 Gulf Stream flounder 91 1.9 91 harvestfish 102 10.0 57 hickory shad 7 2.4 7 hogchoker 130 14.3 129 inshore lizardfish 514 56.9 514 jellyfish spp 818.3 king mackerel 5 22.1 5 kingfish spp 9,124 1,398.8 1,707 lane snapper 4 0.1 4 lined seahorse 2 0.0 2 longspine snipefish 1 0.2 1 lookdown 5 0.2 5
continued
- 17 -
Table 5. cont.
Priority D Species (continued)
Species
Total Number Caught
Total Species
Weight (kg) Number
Measured
Number of
Otoliths Number of Stomachs
mackerel scad 38 0.4 38 mantis shrimp 14 0.4 14 northern pipefish 1 0.0 1 northern puffer 93 5.8 93 northern searobin 881 104.2 782 northern sennet 222 19.7 76 northern stargazer 12 21.1 12 orange filefish 1 0.1 1 pigfish 287 18.7 269 pinfish 2,744 107.3 331 planehead filefish 1 0.0 1 red goatfish 1 0.0 1 red hake 74 8.4 74 rock crab 117 12.6 117 rough scad 140 2.9 70 round herring 452 9.1 447 round scad 258 1.9 243 sea raven 4 3.8 4 sharksucker 3 0.2 3 sheepshead 6 21.5 6 short bigeye 3 0.1 3 silver anchovy 42 0.5 42 silver perch 1,398 39.0 141 smallmouth flounder 32 0.5 32 Spanish mackerel 161 42.5 161 Spanish sardine 276 5.2 114 species unidentified 40 22.8 40 spotfin mojarra 87 1.3 82 spotted hake 207 25.7 207 striped anchovy 224,369 2,519.3 4,990 striped burrfish 25 11.2 23 striped searobin 760 171.5 546 threadfin shad 2 0.2 2 triggerfish spp. 1 0.1 1 windowpane 744 114.0 694
continued
- 18 -
Table 5. cont.
Priority E Species
Species
Total Number Caught
Total Species
Weight (kg) Number
Measured
Number of
Otoliths Number of Stomachs
American lobster 262 59.0 262 Atlantic angel shark 3 12.8 3 Atlantic sharpnose shark 68 257.4 68 10 8 blue crab - juvenile female 1 0.0 1 blue crab - male 4 0.1 4 blue crab, adult female 12 1.6 12 brown shrimp 898 21.6 459 dusky shark 4 18.1 4 1 1 horseshoe crab 795 1,447.9 342 jonah crab 2 0.2 2 Loligo squid 119,501 2,277.5 9,614 sandbar shark 15 100.1 15 9 9 sea scallop 32 4.3 32 squid spp 11 1.1 11 thresher shark 5 73.6 5 white shrimp 48 1.8 20 Total 1,101,152 49,868 73,473 5,150 3,905
Figure 1. Chronological summary of average net performance parameters for each tow. Accepted ranges for each parameter are given by the dotted lines.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
1 10 19 28 37 46 55 64 73 82 91 100 109 118 127 136 145
Station Number
Dis
tanc
e (m
)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Speed (kts)
D. Spread - 32.6m
W. Spread – 13.1m
Height – 5.3m
Speed – 3.2kts
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 1500
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
1 10 19 28 37 46 55 64 73 82 91 100 109 118 127 136 145
Station Number
Dis
tanc
e (m
)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Speed (kts)
D. Spread - 32.6m
W. Spread – 13.1m
Speed – 3.2kts
Height – 5.3m0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
1 10 19 28 37 46 55 64 73 82 91 100 109 118 127 136 145
Station Number
Dis
tanc
e (m
)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Speed (kts)
D. Spread - 32.6m
W. Spread – 13.1m
Speed – 3.2kts
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150
Height – 5.3m
Tow Number
- 19 -
Figure 2. Thyboron Type IV 66” trawl doors frontside (A) and backside (B) with mounting bracket for Netmind sensor.
A.
B.
- 20 -
Figure 3. Comparison of stations selected (red) to locations sampled (black) in Rhode Island to New York (A), New Jersey to Maryland (B), and Virginia to North Carolina (C).
RI BI12
35 4
A
6
7
8
9
10
B 11
12
13
14
15
C
- 21 -
Figure 4. Frequency histogram of number of species captured at each station.
Num
ber o
f Tow
s
0
10
20
Number of Species per Tow
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40
Figure 5. Frequency histogram of number of specimens captured at each station (note irregularly incremented values at the high end of the x-axis).
Num
ber o
f Tow
s
0123456789
101112131415161718
Number of Fish per Tow
050
01,0
001,5
002,0
002,5
003,0
003,5
004,0
004,5
005,0
005,5
006,0
006,5
007,0
007,5
008,0
008,5
009,0
009,5
00
10,00
0
10,50
0
11,00
0
11,50
0
12,00
0
12,50
0
13,00
0
13,50
0
14,00
0
14,50
0
15,00
0
15,50
0
16,00
0
16,50
0
17,00
0
17,50
0
18,00
0
18,50
0
19,00
0
19,50
0
20,00
0
25,00
0
26,00
0
27,00
0
28,00
0
29,00
0
30,00
0
31,00
0
32,00
0
33,00
0
34,00
0
35,00
0
50,00
0
68,00
0
150,0
00
- 22 -
Figure 6. Frequency histogram of biomass of all specimens captured at each station (note irregularly incremented values at the high end of the x-axis).
Num
ber o
f Tow
s
0
10
20
30
Total Weight per Tow (kg)
0 50 100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
500
550
600
650
700
750
800
850
900
950
1,000
1,050
1,100
1,150
1,200
1,250
1,300
3,600
6,500
- 23 -
AmericanLobster
(Priority E)A
B
- 24 -
Figure 7. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for American lobster.
Figure 8. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for American lobster.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 1,164,274
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 262,773
Pct. S.E. = 50% (number) 46% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.344kg
Avg Wt:0.284kg
Avg Wt:0.224kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Carapace Length (cm)0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Figure 9. Length frequency histogram for American lobster.
Number Captured = 262
Number Measured = 262
- 25 -
Figure 10. Sex ratios for American lobster, by state.
Sex
UMF
49
51100
100100
67
33100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ
n = 126 2 3
- 26 -
Weight(g) = 1.8115 x Length(cm)2.4836(n = 131)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
Carapace Length(cm)
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Figure 11. Length-weight regression for American lobster, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: Weight(g) = 1.923 x Length(cm) 2.4553(n = 65)
Males: Weight(g) = 1.6928 x Length(cm)2.5167(n = 65)
Wei
ght(
g)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
Carapace Length(cm)
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
- 27 -
B
AtlanticCroaker
(Priority B)A
B
Figure 12. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for Atlantic croaker.
- 28 -
Figure 13. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for Atlantic croaker.N
umbe
r
0
10,000,000
20,000,000
30,000,000
40,000,000
50,000,000
60,000,000
70,000,000
80,000,000
90,000,000
100,000,000
110,000,000
120,000,000
130,000,000
140,000,000
150,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
8,000,000
9,000,000
10,000,000
11,000,000
12,000,000
13,000,000
14,000,000
15,000,000
16,000,000
17,000,000
18,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 231,508,457
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 30,231,523
Pct. S.E. = 42% (number) 40% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.281kg
Avg Wt:0.305kg
Avg Wt:0.194kg
Avg Wt:0.122kg
Avg Wt:0.086kg
Avg Wt:0.794kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
8,000
9,000
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Figure 14. Length frequency histogram for Atlantic croaker.
Number Captured = 58,763
Number Measured = 2,843
Number of Otoliths = 211
Number of Stomachs = 193
- 29 -
Sex
UMF
100100.00
41
59100.00
25
74
99.99
42
57
100.00
58
42100.00
62
38100.00
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 3 54 25 31 71 27
Sex
UMF
26
74100
86
14100
57
43100
48
52100
60
39
100
26
74100
53
46
100
82
18100
85
15100
100100
100100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
15.0-
17.5
17.5-
20.0
20.0-
22.5
22.5-
25.0
25.0-
27.5
27.5-
30.0
30.0-
32.5
32.5-
35.0
35.0-
37.5
37.5-
40.0
40.0-
42.5
n = 7 14 32 43 40 30 18 15 8 3 1
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Inch-class
Figure 15. Sex ratios for Atlantic croaker by state (A) and length group (B).
- 30 -
A
B
Figure 16. Maturity logistic regression for Atlantic croaker, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Total Length (cm)10 20 30 40 50
- 31 -
Females: W eight(g) = 0.0103 x Length(cm) 3.0676(n = 132)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.0123 x Length(cm) 3.0124(n = 75)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1100
Total Length(cm)10 20 30 40 50
Weight(g) = 0.0104 x Length(cm)3.0628(n = 209)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1100
Total Length(cm)10 20 30 40 50
Figure 17. Length-weight regression for Atlantic croaker, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
B
- 32 -
AtlanticMenhaden(Priority B)A
B
Figure 18. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for Atlantic menhaden.
- 33 -
Figure 19. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for Atlantic menhaden.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 2,255,876
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 109,297
Pct. S.E. = 70% (number) 32% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.012kg
Avg Wt:0.202kg
Avg Wt:0.018kg
Avg Wt:0.269kg
Avg Wt:0.330kg
Avg Wt:0.187kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 190 200
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Figure 20. Length frequency histogram for Atlantic menhaden.
Number Captured = 740
Number Measured = 288
Number of Otoliths = 78
Number of Stomachs = 78
- 34 -
Sex
UMF
20
60
20100
6
94100
21
53
26100
50
38
13100
100100
33
67100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA
n = 7 12 33 8 7 6
Sex
UMF
46
54100
96
100
50
50100
100100
100100
19
81100
32
627
100
53
48100
83
17100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
07.5-
10.0
10.0-
12.5
12.5-
15.0
17.5-
20.0
20.0-
22.5
22.5-
25.0
25.0-
27.5
27.5-
30.0
30.0-
32.5
n = 12 2 1 2 9 18 9 6 14
3 4 5 7 8 9 10 11 12 Inch-class
Figure 21. Sex ratios for Atlantic menhaden by state (A) and length group (B).
- 35 -
A
B
Figure 22. Maturity logistic regression for Atlantic menhaden, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Fork Length (cm)0 10 20 30 40
- 36 -
Weight(g) = 0.0331 x Length(cm)2.7901(n = 78)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
Fork Length(cm)
0 10 20 30 40
Figure 23. Length-weight regression for Atlantic menhaden, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: Weight(g) = 0.0358 x Length(cm)2.7632(n = 19)
Males: Weight(g) = 0.0319 x Length(cm)2.8059(n = 35)
Wei
ght(
g)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
Fork Length(cm)
0 10 20 30 40
B
- 37 -
AtlanticSpadefish(Priority D)A
B
Figure 24. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for Atlantic spadefish.
- 38 -
Figure 25. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for Atlantic spadefish.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
1,700,000
1,800,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 2,595,794
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 102,415
Pct. S.E. = 35% (number) 32% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Avg Wt:0.045kg
Avg Wt:0..047kg
Figure 26. Length frequency histogram for Atlantic spadefish.
Number Captured = 673
Number Measured = 478
- 39 -
AtlanticThreadHerring
(Priority D)A
B
Figure 27. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for Atlantic thread herring.
- 40 -
Figure 28. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for Atlantic thread herring.N
umbe
r
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 13,526,564
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 710,948
Pct. S.E. = 52% (number) 65% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.005kg
Avg Wt:0.141kg
Avg Wt:0.080kg
Avg Wt:0.027kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25
Figure 29. Length frequency histogram for Atlantic thread herring.
Number Captured = 3,345
Number Measured = 554
- 41 -
BayAnchovy
(Priority D)A
B
- 42 -
Figure 30. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for bay anchovy.
Figure 31. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for bay anchovy.N
umbe
r
0
10,000,000
20,000,000
30,000,000
40,000,000
50,000,000
60,000,000
70,000,000
80,000,000
90,000,000
100,000,000
110,000,000
120,000,000
130,000,000
140,000,000
150,000,000
160,000,000
170,000,000
180,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 452,812,195
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 799,420
Pct. S.E. = 28% (number) 15% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15
Avg Wt:0.005kg
Avg Wt:0.001kg
Avg Wt:0.002kg
Avg Wt:0.002kg Avg Wt:
0.002kgAvg Wt:0.003kg
Figure 32. Length frequency histogram for bay anchovy.
Number Captured = 119,741
Number Measured = 3,961
- 43 -
BlackSea Bass(Priority A)A
B
Figure 33. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for black sea bass.
- 44 -
Figure 34. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for black sea bass.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
100,000
110,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 1,568,759
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 326,991
Pct. S.E. = 22% (number) 23% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.741kg
Avg Wt:0.253kg
Avg Wt:0.198kg
Avg Wt:0.102kg Avg Wt:
0.111kg
Avg Wt:0.074kg
Avg Wt:0. 069kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60
Figure 35. Length frequency histogram for black sea bass.
Number Captured =401
Number Measured = 401
Number of Otoliths = 219
Number of Stomachs = 210
- 45 -
Sex
UMF
79
14
7100.00
67
31
100.00
87
85
100.00100
100.00
74
22100.00
82
16
100.00
43
14
43100.01
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 24 45 69 22 18 34 7
Sex
UMF
100100.0
946
100.0
86
10
100.0
86
11
100.0
78
18
100.0
52
38
10100.1
74
26100.0
60
40100.0
100100.0
67
33100.0
100100.0
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
05-10
10-15
15-20
20-25
25-30
30-35
35-40
40-45
45-50
50-55
55-60
n = 2 13 97 32 29 24 11 5 2 3 1
2-4 4-6 6-8 8-10 10-12 12-14 14-16 16-18 18-20 20-22 22-24 Inch-class
Figure 36. Sex ratios for black sea bass, by state (A) and length group (B).
- 46 -
A
B
Figure 37. Maturity logistic regression for black sea bass, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Total Length (cm)10 20 30 40 50 60
Figure 38. Expanded age frequency histogram for black sea bass.
54
169
93
61
6 3 2 1 0 2 0
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
140
150
160
170
Age (Year Class)
0 (2007
)
1 (2006
)
2 (2005
)
3 (2004
)
4 (2003
)
5 (2002
)
6 (2001
)
7 (2000
)
8 (1999
)
9 (1998
)
10 (199
7)
Catch curve Z ages 1-9 = -0.68Catch curve Z ages 2-9 = -0.63
- 47 -
Figure 39. Age-specific length-frequency histograms for black sea bass for ages 0 through 3, and 5.
AG E =0
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9
1 0 1 1
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
AG E =1
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
AG E =2
0
1
2
3
4
5
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
AG E =3
0
1
2
3
4
5
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
AG E =5
0
1
2
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
- 48 -
Figure 40. von Bertalanffy growth curves for black sea bass, by sex.
Fem ales : L(m ax) = 70.5 T(zero) = 0.263 K = 0.232M ales: L(m ax) = 46.2 T(zero) = 0.401 K = 0.453
Leng
th (c
m)
10
20
30
40
50
60
Age
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
- 49 -
Weight(g) = 0.0286 x Length(cm)2.7973(n = 219)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
Total Length(cm)0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Figure 41. Length-weight regression for black sea bass, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B)..
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.0251 x Length(cm) 2.8433(n = 177)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.1191 x Length(cm) 2.3719(n = 26)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
Total Length(cm)10 20 30 40 50 60
- 50 -
B
Figure 42. Diets of black sea bass by percent weight (A) and percent number (B).
A
B
- 51 -
Bluefish(Priority A)A
B
Figure 43. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for bluefish.
- 52 -
Figure 44. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for bluefish.N
umbe
r
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
8,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 16,765,929
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 1,519,012
Pct. S.E. = 17% (number) 13% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.453kg
Avg Wt:0.028kg
Avg Wt:0.103kg
Avg Wt:0.297kg
Avg Wt:0.134kg
Avg Wt:0.100kg
Avg Wt:0. 149kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75
Figure 45. Length frequency histogram for bluefish.
Number Captured = 4,635
Number Measured = 2,613
Number of Otoliths = 588
Number of Stomachs = 485
- 53 -
Sex
UMF
24.6
66.2
9.2100
13.9
84.7100
32.0
45.7
22.3100
53.5
46.5100
37.9
57.05.1100
31.6
21.3
47.1100
28.7
54.3
17.0100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 64 99 164 43 70 104 37
Sex
UMF
99100
21
78100
20
35
45100
39
47
14100
42
58100
64
36100
88
12100
60
40100
50
50100
14
86100
50
50100
73
27100
100100
100100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
05-10
10-15
15-20
20-25
25-30
30-35
35-40
40-45
45-50
50-55
55-60
60-65
65-70
70-75
n = 18 78 123 194 56 67 13 5 2 7 4 11 2 1
2-4 4-6 6-8 8-10 10-12 12-14 14-16 16-18 18-20 20-22 22-24 24-26 26-28 28-30 Inch-class
Figure 46. Sex ratios for bluefish, by state (A) and length group (B).
A
B
- 54 -
Figure 47. Maturity logistic regression for bluefish, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Fork Length (cm)0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
- 55 -
Weight(g) = 0.0211 x Length(cm)2.8645(n = 588)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
Fork Length(cm)
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Figure 48. Length-weight regression for bluefish, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B)..
A
Females: Weight(g) = 0.0218 x Length(cm)2.8541(n = 236)
Males: Weight(g) = 0.0179 x Length(cm)2.9133(n = 229)
Wei
ght(
g)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
Fork Length(cm)
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
- 56 -
B
Figure 49. Diets of bluefish by percent weight (A) and percent number (B).
A
B
- 57 -
BluntnoseStingray
(Priority B)A
B
- 58 -
Figure 50. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for bluntnosestingray.
Figure 51. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for bluntnose stingray.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 1,342,462
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 4,613,305
Pct. S.E. = 21% (number) 23% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.492kg
Avg Wt:0.772kg
Avg Wt:2.493kg
Avg Wt:3.874kg
Avg Wt:2.542kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
Disk Width (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85
Figure 52. Width frequency histogram for bluntnose stingray.
Number Captured = 349
Number Measured = 307
- 59 -
BrownShrimp
(Priority E)A
B
Figure 53. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for brown shrimp.
- 60 -
Figure 54. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for brown shrimp.N
umbe
r
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 3,364,019
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 81,052
Pct. S.E. = 20% (number) 16% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.021kg
Avg Wt:0.023kg
Avg Wt:0.026kg
Avg Wt:0.024kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20
Figure 55. Length frequency histogram for brown shrimp.
Number Captured = 898
Number Measured = 459
- 61 -
BullnoseStingray
(Priority B)A
B
Figure 56. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for bullnosestingray.
- 62 -
Figure 57. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for bullnose stingray.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 2,989,245
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 4,747,851
Pct. S.E. = 16% (number) 17% (biomass)
Avg Wt:1.209kg
Avg Wt:1.360kg
Avg Wt:1.236kg
Avg Wt:1.938kg
Avg Wt:1.127kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Disk Width (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80
Figure 58. Width frequency histogram for bullnose stingray.
Number Captured = 731
Number Measured = 631
- 63 -
Butterfish(Priority A)A
B
Figure 59. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for butterfish.
- 64 -
Figure 60. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for butterfish.N
umbe
r
0
100,000,000
200,000,000
300,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 556,339,149
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 7,433,615
Pct. S.E. = 30% (number) 18% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.018kg
Avg Wt:0.004kg
Avg Wt:0.012kg
Avg Wt:0.018kg
Avg Wt:0.023kg
Avg Wt:0.037kg
Avg Wt:0.043kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20
Figure 61. Length frequency histogram for butterfish.
Number Captured = 148,182
Number Measured = 6,015
Number of Otoliths = 538
Number of Stomachs = 11
- 65 -
Figure 62. Sex ratios for butterfish, by state (A) and length group (B).
Sex
UMF
6.7
14.0
79.3100.0
97.8100.0
11.5
6.7
81.8100.0
99.6100.0
17.05.3
77.7100.0
37.3
10.4
52.3100.0
60.5
30.5
9.1100.1
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 120 90 107 30 54 104 24
Sex
UMF
100100.0
100100.0
99100.0
17
26
57100.0
39
50
11100.0
55
42
100.1
82
18100.0
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
02.5-
05.0
05.0-
07.5
07.5-
10.0
10.0-
12.5
12.5-
15.0
15.0-
17.5
17.5-
20.0
n = 33 135 121 75 79 66 20
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Inch-class
- 66 -
A
B
Figure 63. Maturity logistic regression for butterfish, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Fork Length (cm)7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
- 67 -
Weight(g) = 0.015 x Length(cm) 3.1259(n = 535)
Wei
ght(g
)
0102030405060708090
100110120130140150160170180
Fork Length(cm)3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
Figure 64. Length-weight regression for butterfish, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.0269 x Length(cm) 2.9149(n = 106)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.0113 x Length(cm) 3.2363(n = 96)
Wei
ght(g
)
0102030405060708090
100110120130140150160170180
Fork Length(cm)7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
- 68 -
B
ClearnoseSkate
(Priority B)A
B
- 69 -
Figure 65. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for clearnose skate.
Figure 66. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for clearnose skate.N
umbe
r
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
1,700,000
1,800,000
1,900,000
2,000,000
2,100,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 5,728,724
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 6,975,177
Pct. S.E. = 8% (number) 8% (biomass)
Avg Wt:1.178kg
Avg Wt:1.542kg
Avg Wt:1.414kg
Avg Wt:1.177kg
Avg Wt:1.052kg
Avg Wt:1.084kg
Avg Wt:1.295kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
Disk Width (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55
Figure 67. Width frequency histogram for clearnose skate.
Number Captured = 1,499
Number Measured = 1,355
Number of Vertebrae = 340
Number of Stomachs = 324
- 70 -
Sex
UMF
68.7
31.3100
11.8
88.2100
25.4
74.6100
39.0
61.0100
25.0
75.0100
73.0
27.0100
66.7
33.3100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 9 58 63 39 22 121 28
Sex
UMF
72
28100
100100
45
55100
48
52100
25
75100
39
61100
41
59100
73
27100
62
38100
60
40100
100100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
25.0-
27.5
27.5-
30.0
30.0-
32.5
32.5-
35.0
35.0-
37.5
37.5-
40.0
40.0-
42.5
42.5-
45.0
45.0-
47.5
47.5-
50.0
52.5-
55.0
n = 4 2 18 46 45 72 69 48 28 7 1
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 21 Inch-class
Figure 68. Sex ratios for clearnose skate, by state (A) and width group (B).
- 71 -
Disk Width (cm)
A
B
Figure 69. Maturity logistic regression for clearnose skate, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Disk Width (cm)20 30 40 50 60
- 72 -
Weight(g) = 0.0283 x Length(cm) 2.9061(n = 339)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
Disk Width(cm)20 30 40 50 60
Figure 70. Width-weight regression for clearnose skate, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.0265 x Length(cm) 2.9201(n = 166)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.0231 x Length(cm) 2.9641(n = 173)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
Disk Width(cm)20 30 40 50 60
- 73 -
B
CownoseRay
(Priority B)A
B
Figure 71. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for cownose ray.
- 74 -
Figure 72. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for cownose ray.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
1,700,000
1,800,000
1,900,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
8,000,000
9,000,000
10,000,000
11,000,000
12,000,000
13,000,000
14,000,000
15,000,000
16,000,000
17,000,000
18,000,000
19,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 2,015,335
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 18,366,308
Pct. S.E. = 63% (number) 88% (biomass)
Avg Wt:1.681kg
Avg Wt:1.705kg
Avg Wt:10.089kg
Avg Wt:1.232kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
Disk Width (cm)
0 5 10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
105
110
115
Figure 73. Width frequency histogram for cownose ray.
Number Captured = 451
Number Measured = 150
- 75 -
HorseshoeCrab
(Priority E)A
B
Figure 74. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for horseshoe crab.
- 76 -
Figure 75. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for horseshoe crab.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
Minimum TrawlableNumber = 3,394,754
Minimum TrawlableBiomass (kg)= 6,168,907
Pct. S.E. = 31% (number)32% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
Carapace Width (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Avg Wt:0.136kg
Avg Wt:0.246kg
Avg Wt:0.158kg
Avg Wt:0.118kg
Avg Wt:0.122kg
Avg Wt:0.120kg
Avg Wt:0.092kg
Figure 76. Width frequency histogram for horseshoe crab.
Number Captured = 795
Number Measured = 342
- 77 -
Figure 77. Sex ratios for horseshoe crab, by state (A) and width group (B).
Sex
UMF
60.0
40.0100
63.1
36.9100
78.8
21.2100
61.8
38.2100
58.2
41.8100
65.0
35.0100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA
n = 5 52 36 18 32 21
Sex
UMF
100100
100100
11
89100
17
84100
85
15100
97
100100100
100100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
12.5-
15.0
15.0-
17.5
17.5-
20.0
20.0-
22.5
22.5-
25.0
25.0-
27.5
27.5-
30.0
30.0-
32.5
n = 1 1 12 44 40 42 22 2
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Inch-class
- 78 -
Carapace Width (cm)
A
B
Weight(g) = 0.0297 x Length(cm) 3.4455(n = 166)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
Carapace Width (cm)13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32
Figure 78. Width-weight regression for horseshoe crab, sexes combined (A), and by sex (B).
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.1044 x Length(cm) 3.068(n = 108)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.2982 x Length(cm) 2.6636(n = 56)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
Carapace Width (cm)13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32
- 79 -
B
Kingfishspp.
(Priority D)A
B
Figure 79. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for kingfish (spp).
- 80 -
Figure 80. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for kingfish (spp).N
umbe
r
0
10,000,000
20,000,000
30,000,000
40,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 36,116,481
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 5,611,106
Pct. S.E. = 33% (number) 35% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.119kg
Avg Wt:0.142kg
Avg Wt:0.159kg
Avg Wt:0.117kg
Avg Wt:0. 205kg
Avg Wt:0.158kg
Avg Wt:0.120kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1,000
1,100
1,200
1,300
1,400
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Figure 81. Length frequency histogram for kingfish (spp).
Number Captured = 9,124
Number Measured = 1,707
- 81 -
LittleSkate
(Priority B)A
B
Figure 82. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for little skate.
- 82 -
Figure 83. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for little skate.N
umbe
r
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
8,000,000
9,000,000
10,000,000
11,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 18,483,896
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 10,732,786
Pct. S.E. = 14% (number) 13% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1,000
1,100
1,200
1,300
1,400
1,500
Disk Width (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60
Figure 84. Width frequency histogram for little skate.
Number Captured = 5,288
Number Measured = 2,659
Number of Vertebrae = 194
Number of Stomachs = 187
- 83 -
Avg Wt:0.592kg
Avg Wt:0.549kg
Avg Wt:0.566kg
Avg Wt:0.530kg
Avg Wt:1.254kg
Figure 85. Sex ratios for little skate, by state (A) and width group (B).
Sex
UMF
65
35100
84
16100
96
100100100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE
n = 81 74 38 1
Sex
UMF
100100
75
25100
75
25100
77
23100
87
13100
100100
100100
100100
100100
100100
100100
100100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
20.0-
22.5
22.5-
25.0
25.0-
27.5
27.5-
30.0
30.0-
32.5
32.5-
35.0
40.0-
42.5
45.0-
47.5
47.5-
50.0
50.0-
52.5
52.5-
55.0
55.0-
57.5
n = 3 17 117 44 4 1 1 1 2 2 1 1
8 9 10 11 12 13 16 18 19 20 21 22 Inch-class
- 84 -
Disk Width (cm)
A
B
Weight(g) = 0.0554 x Length(cm) 2.8085(n = 194)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
Disk Width(cm)20 30 40 50 60
Figure 86. Width-weight regression for little skate, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.2536 x Length(cm) 2.3443(n = 149)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.0695 x Length(cm) 2.7514(n = 45)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
Disk Width (cm)20 30 40 50 60
- 85 -
B
LoligoSquid
(Priority E)A
B
Figure 87. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for Loligo squid.
- 86 -
Figure 88. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for Loligo squid.N
umbe
r
0
100,000,000
200,000,000
300,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 435,880,830
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 8,546,121
Pct. S.E. = 16% (number) 14% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
Mantle Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25
Avg Wt:0.021kg
Avg Wt:0.015kg
Avg Wt:0.028kg
Avg Wt:0.018kg
Avg Wt:0.032kg
Avg Wt:0.025kg
Avg Wt:0.037kg
Figure 89. Length frequency histogram for Loligo squid.
Number Captured = 119,501
Number Measured = 9,614
- 87 -
NorthernSearobin
(Priority D)A
B
- 88 -
Figure 90. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for northern searobin.
Figure 91. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for northern searobin.N
umbe
r
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 3,978,887
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 456,313
Pct. S.E. = 21% (number) 28% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
Avg Wt:0.017kg
Avg Wt:0.104kg
Avg Wt:0.124kg
Avg Wt:0.086kg
Avg Wt:0.059kg
Avg Wt:0.034kg
Avg Wt:0.034kg
Figure 92. Length frequency histogram for northern searobin.
Number Captured = 881
Number Measured = 782
- 89 -
Pinfish(Priority D)A
- 90 -
B
Figure 93. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for pinfish.
Num
ber
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
8,000,000
9,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 8,245,445
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 323,903
Pct. S.E. = 85% (number) 83% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1,000
1,100
1,200
1,300
1,400
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20
Figure 94. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for pinfish.
Figure 95. Length frequency histogram for pinfish.
Number Captured = 2,744
Number Measured = 331
Avg Wt:0.097kg
Avg Wt:0.039kg
- 91 -
Scup(Priority A)A
B
Figure 96. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for scup.
- 92 -
Figure 97. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for scup.N
umbe
r
0
100,000,000
200,000,000
300,000,000
400,000,000
500,000,000
600,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 943,933,018
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 15,083,844
Pct. S.E. = 23% (number) 13% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.014kg
Avg Wt:0.005kg
Avg Wt:0.036kg
Avg Wt:0.062kg
Avg Wt:0.048kg
Avg Wt:0.050kg
Avg Wt:0.047kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Figure 98. Length frequency histogram for scup.
Number Captured = 276,234
Number Measured = 13,718
Number of Otoliths = 808
Number of Stomachs = 797
- 93 -
Figure 99. Sex ratios for scup by state (A) and length group (B).
A
Sex
UMF
5.7
92.7100.0
99.9100.0
20.8
18.3
60.9100.0
35.4
26.9
37.8100.1
40.8
49.0
10.3100.1
49.9
36.1
14.0100.0
48.9
21.1
29.999.9
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 219 142 149 77 40 128 40
Sex
UMF
100100.0
100100.0
99100.0
30
23
4699.9
52
36
13100.1
55
41
100.0
35
66100.0
89
11100.0
67
33100.0
97100.0
67
33100.0
100100.0
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
02.5-
05.0
05.0-
07.5
07.5-
10.0
10.0-
12.5
12.5-
15.0
15.0-
17.5
17.5-
20.0
20.0-
22.5
22.5-
25.0
25.0-
27.5
30.0-
32.5
32.5-
35.0
n = 1 95 159 107 205 170 24 18 9 3 3 1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 12 13 Inch-class
- 94 -
B
Figure 100. Maturity logistic regression for scup, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Fork Length (cm)0 10 20 30 40
2007
241790
284761027 108 3 0
0
100000
200000
300000
Age (Year Class)
0 (200
7)
1 (200
6)
2 (200
5)
3 (200
4)
4 (200
3)
5 (200
2)
Figure 101. Expanded age frequency histogram for scup.
Catch curve Z ages 0-4 = -2.82
- 95 -
Figure 102. Age-specific length-frequency histograms for scup for ages 0 through 3.
AG E =0
0
1 ,0 0 0
2 ,0 0 0
3 ,0 0 0
4 ,0 0 0
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0
AG E =1
0
1 0 0
2 0 0
3 0 0
4 0 0
5 0 0
6 0 0
7 0 0
8 0 0
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0
AG E =2
0
1 0
2 0
3 0
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0
AG E =3
0
1 0
2 0
3 0
F o r k Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0
- 96 -
Figure 103. von Bertalanffy growth curves for scup, by sex.
Fem ales : L(m ax) = 70.5 T(zero) = 0.263 K = 0.232M ales: L(m ax) = 46.2 T(zero) = 0.401 K = 0.453
Leng
th (c
m)
0
10
20
30
40
Age
0 1 2 3 4 5
- 97 -
Weight(g) = 0.0144 x Length(cm)3.1465(n = 806)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
Fork Length(cm)0 10 20 30 40
Figure 104. Length-weight regression for little skate, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.015 x Length(cm) 3.1337(n = 305)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.013 x Length(cm) 3.1791(n = 174)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
Fork Length(cm)0 10 20 30 40
- 98 -
B
Figure 105. Diets of scup by percent weight (A) and percent number (B).
A
B
- 99 -
SilverHake
(Whiting)(Priority A)
A
B
Figure 106. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for silver hake.
- 100 -
Figure 107. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for silver hake.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
100,000
110,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 1,480,829
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 107,251
Pct. S.E. = 60% (number) 66% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.078kg
Avg Wt:0.006kg
Avg Wt:0.005kg
Avg Wt:0.083kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30
Figure 108. Length frequency histogram for silver hake.
Number Captured = 346
Number Measured = 346
Number of Otoliths = 59
Number of Stomachs = 59
- 101 -
Figure 109. Sex ratios for silver hake by state (A) and length group (B).
Sex
UMF
63
33
100
20
80100
100100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ
n = 46 5 7
Sex
UMF
100100.0
100100.0
100100.0
68
13
20100.0
43
14
4399.9
64
36100.0
61
39100.0
100100.0
100100.0
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
05.0-
07.5
07.5-
10.0
10.0-
12.5
12.5-
15.0
15.0-
17.5
20.0-
22.5
22.5-
25.0
25.0-
27.5
27.5-
30.0
n = 3 10 4 7 5 6 14 8 1
2 3 4 5 6 8 9 10 11 Inch-class
- 102 -
A
B
Figure 110. Maturity logistic regression for silver hake, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Fork Length (cm)12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
- 103 -
Weight(g) = 0.0074 x Length(cm)2.9604(n = 59)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
140
Fork Length(cm)0 10 20 30
Figure 111. Length-weight regression for silver hake, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.0079 x Length(cm) 2.9399(n = 30)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.0195 x Length(cm) 2.6403(n = 8)
Wei
ght(g
)
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
140
Fork Length(cm)12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
- 104 -
B
SilverPerch
(Priority D)A
B
Figure 112. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for silver perch.
- 105 -
Figure 113. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for silver perch.N
umbe
r
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
100,000
110,000
120,000
130,000
140,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 6,971,143
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 189,861
Pct. S.E. = 38% (number) 30% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
400
500
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20
Avg Wt:0.052kg
Avg Wt:0.025kg
Avg Wt:0.032kg
Avg Wt:0.039kg
Figure 114. Length frequency histogram for silver perch.
Number Captured = 1,398
Number Measured = 141
- 106 -
SmoothButterfly
Ray(Priority B)
A
B
Figure 115. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for smooth butterfly ray.
- 107 -
Figure 116. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for smooth butterfly ray.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
1,700,000
1,800,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 1,090,128
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 2,182,600
Pct. S.E. = 21% (number) 19% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
Disk Width (cm)
0 5 10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
55
60
65
70
75
80
85
90
95
100
105
110
115
Avg Wt:3.032kg
Avg Wt:0.854kg
Figure 117. Width frequency histogram for smooth butterfly ray.
Number Captured = 292
Number Measured = 292
- 108 -
SmoothDogfish
(Priority B)A
B
Figure 118. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for smooth dogfish.
- 109 -
Figure 119. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for smooth dogfish.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
1,700,000
1,800,000
1,900,000
2,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 7,381,432
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 6,667,209
Pct. S.E. = 32% (number) 53% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
Precaudal Length (cm)30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100 105
Avg Wt:2.821kg
Avg Wt:1.995kg
Avg Wt:0.592kg
Avg Wt:0.240kg Avg Wt:
0.551kg
Avg Wt:0.516kg
Figure 120. Length frequency histogram for smooth dogfish.
Number Captured = 1,690
Number Measured = 765
Number of Vertebrae = 202
Number of Stomachs = 200
- 110 -
Sex
UMF
11.5
88.5100
63.0
37.0100
12.4
87.6100
60.6
39.4100
29.4
70.6100
23.3
76.7100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA
n = 11 36 52 28 37 38
Sex
UMF
23
77100
33
67100
39
61100
6
94100
71
29100
21
79100
100100
32
68100
65
35100
63
37100
72
28100
76
24100
100100
67
33100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
30-35
35-40
40-45
45-50
50-55
55-60
60-65
65-70
70-75
75-80
80-85
85-90
90-95 95
+
n = 2 33 91 8 5 7 4 8 14 12 9 5 1 3
12-14 14-16 16-18 18-20 20-22 22-24 24-26 26-28 28-30 30-32 32-34 34-36 36-38 38+ Inch-class
Figure 121. Sex ratios for smooth dogfish by state (A) and length group (B).
- 111 -
A
B
Figure 122. Maturity logistic regression for smooth dogfish, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Precaudal Length (cm)30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130
- 112 -
Weight(g) = 0.0871 x Length(cm) 2.3552(n = 202)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
Precaudal Length(cm)30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
Figure 123. Length-weight regression for smooth dogfish, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.0312 x Length(cm) 2.6113(n = 90)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.3867 x Length(cm) 1.9733(n = 112)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
Precaudal Length(cm)30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
- 113 -
B
SpanishMackerel
(Priority D)A
B
Figure 124. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for Spanish mackerel.
- 114 -
Figure 125. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for Spanish mackerel.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 618,880
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 167,037
Pct. S.E. = 25% (number) 21% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Avg Wt:0.660kg
Avg Wt:0.010kg
Avg Wt:0.409kg
Avg Wt:0.296kg
Avg Wt:0.231kg
Figure 126. Length frequency histogram for Spanish mackerel.
Number Captured = 161
Number Measured = 161
- 115 -
Spot(Priority B)A
B
Figure 127. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for spot.
- 116 -
Figure 128. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for spot.N
umbe
r
0
10,000,000
20,000,000
30,000,000
40,000,000
50,000,000
60,000,000
70,000,000
80,000,000
90,000,000
100,000,000
110,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
8,000,000
9,000,000
10,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 174,432,892
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 15,589,723
Pct. S.E. = 31% (number) 31% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
8,000
9,000
10,000
11,000
12,000
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25
Avg Wt:0.111kg
Avg Wt:0.109kg
Avg Wt:0.105kg
Avg Wt:0.090kg
Avg Wt:0.080kg
Figure 129. Length frequency histogram for spot.
Number Captured = 44,437
Number Measured = 2,507
Number of Otoliths = 160
Number of Stomachs = 9
- 117 -
Figure 130. Sex ratios for spot by state (A) and length group (B).
Sex
UMF
56.2
43.8100.0
50.7
40.8
8.6100.1
34.1
65.9100.0
95.7100.0
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
12.5-
15.0
15.0-
17.5
17.5-
20.0
20.0-
22.5
n = 4 70 82 3
5 6 7 8 Inch-class
Sex
UMF
100100
64
33
100
67
33100
63
37100
40
56
100
25
75100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 2 38 3 29 57 30
A
B
- 118 -
Figure 131. Maturity logistic regression for spot, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Fork Length (cm)13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23
- 119 -
Weight(g) = 0.0126 x Length(cm)3.1211(n = 159)
Wei
ght(g
)
30405060708090
100110120130140150160170180190200210220
Fork Length(cm)
13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
Figure 132. Length-weight regression for spot, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: Weight(g) = 0.007 x Length(cm) 3.3293(n = 94)
Males: Weight(g) = 0.0295 x Length(cm)2.819(n = 62)
Wei
ght(
g)
30405060708090
100110120130140150160170180190200210220
Fork Length(cm)
13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
- 120 -
B
StripedAnchovy
(Priority D)A
B
- 121 -
Figure 133. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for striped anchovy.
Figure 134. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for striped anchovy.N
umbe
r
0
100,000,000
200,000,000
300,000,000
400,000,000
500,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 878,956,591
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 9,935,140
Pct. S.E. = 41% (number) 40% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
Fork Length (cm)0 5 10 15
Avg Wt:0.020kg
Avg Wt:0.008kg
Avg Wt:0.015kg
Avg Wt:0.013kg
Avg Wt:0.015kg
Avg Wt:0.011kg
Avg Wt:0.011kg
Figure 135. Length frequency histogram for striped anchovy.
Number Captured = 224,369
Number Measured = 4,990
- 122 -
StripedSearobin
(Priority D)A
B
Figure 136. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for striped searobin.
- 123 -
Figure 137. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for striped searobin.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
1,700,000
1,800,000
1,900,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 2,709,314
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 659,547
Pct. S.E. = 38% (number) 57% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Figure 138. Length frequency histogram for striped searobin.
Number Captured = 760
Number Measured = 546
- 124 -
Avg Wt:0.200kg Avg Wt:
0.278kgAvg Wt:0.151kg
Avg Wt:0. 190kg
Avg Wt:0. 032kg
Avg Wt:0. 054kg
Avg Wt:0. 016kg
SummerFlounder
(Priority A)A
B
Figure 139. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for summer flounder.
- 125 -
Figure 140. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for summer flounder.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
Minimum TrawlableNumber = 3,600,065
Minimum TrawlableBiomass (kg)= 2,283,875
Pct. S.E. = 9% (number)10% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80
Avg Wt:1.113kg
Avg Wt:0.865kg
Avg Wt:0.607kg
Avg Wt:0.686kg
Avg Wt:0.579kg
Avg Wt:0.333kg
Avg Wt:0.325kg
Figure 141. Length frequency histogram for summer flounder.
Number Captured = 960
Number Measured = 926
Number of Otoliths = 716
Number of Stomachs = 448
- 126 -
Sex
UMF
33
33
3399.9
62
39100.0
28
657
100.0
39
60
100.1
58
42
100.0
46
53
100.1
68
32100.0
87
13100.0
100100.0
100100.0
100100.0
100100.0
100100.0
100100.0
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
10-15
15-20
20-25
25-30
30-35
35-40
40-45
45-50
50-55
55-60
60-65
65-70
70-75
75-80
Sex
UMF
70.0
29.2
100.0
58.2
41.8100.0
62.7
33.7
99.9
74.9
25.1100.0
55.7
44.3100.0
52.2
45.5
100.0
73.7
21.15.3
100.1
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 110 180 78 50 47 231 19
n = 3 2 70 106 132 118 97 90 56 24 11 4 1 1
4-6 6-8 8-10 10-12 12-14 14-16 16-18 18-20 20-22 22-24 24-26 26-28 28-30 30-32 Inch-class
Figure 142. Sex ratios for summer flounder by state (A) and length group (B).
A
B
- 127 -
Figure 143. Maturity logistic regression for summer flounder, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Total Length (cm)10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Females: L(max) = 70.5 T(zero) = 0.263 K = 0.232Males: L(max) = 46.2 T(zero) = 0.401 K = 0.453
Leng
th (c
m)
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Age0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
Figure 144. von Bertalanffy growth curves for summer flounder, by sex.
- 128 -
Figure 145. Age frequency histogram for summer flounder for 2006 (A) and 2007 (B).
245
70
94
18 175 4 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
Age (Year Class)
0 (20
06)
1 (20
05)
2 (20
04)
3 (20
03)
4 (20
02)
5 (20
01)
6 (20
00)
7 (199
9)
8 (199
8)
9 (19
97)
10 (1
996)
11 (1
995)
12 (1
994)
13 (1
993)
14 (1
992)
15 (19
91)
16 (19
90)
A
209
243
149
215
5236
7 3 3 2 3 2 0 1 0 0 0
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
Age (Year Class)
0 (20
07)
1 (20
06)
2 (20
05)
3 (20
04)
4 (20
03)
5 (20
02)
6 (20
01)
7 (200
0)
8 (199
9)
9 (19
98)
10 (1
997)
11 (1
996)
12 (1
995)
13 (1
994)
14 (1
993)
15 (19
92)
16 (19
91)
B
Catch curve Z ages 1-14 = -0.51
- 129 -
Figure 146. Age-specific length-frequency histograms for summer flounder for ages 0 through 6.A G E = 0
0
1 0
2 0
3 0
4 0
T o t a l L e n g t h ( c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0 6 5 7 0 7 5 8 0
A G E = 1 4 0
0
1 0
2 0
3 0
T o t a l L e n g t h ( c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0 6 5 7 0 7 5 8 0
A G E = 2 1 4
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
1 0
1 1
1 2
1 3
T o t a l L e n g t h ( c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0 6 5 7 0 7 5 8 0
A G E = 3 1 8
0
1 2
3 4
5 6
7
8 9
1 0 1 1
1 2
1 3 1 4
1 5 1 6
1 7
T o t a l L e n g t h ( c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0 6 5 7 0 7 5 8 0
A G E = 4
0
1
2
3
4
T o t a l L e n g t h ( c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0 6 5 7 0 7 5 8 0
A G E = 5 3
0
1
2
T o t a l L e n g t h ( c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0 6 5 7 0 7 5 8 0
A G E = 6
0
1
2
T o t a l L e n g t h ( c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0 6 5 7 0 7 5 8 0
- 130 -
Weight(g) = 0.0033 x Length(cm)3.3013(n = 716)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
Total Length(cm)10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Figure 147. Length-weight regression for summer flounder, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
A
Females: W eight(g) = 0.003 x Length(cm) 3.3221(n = 448)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.006 x Length(cm) 3.1409(n = 256)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
Total Length(cm)10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
- 131 -
B
Figure 148. Diets of summer flounder by percent weight (A) and percent number (B).
A
B
- 132 -
Weakfish(Priority A)A
B
Figure 149. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for weakfish.
- 133 -
Figure 150. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for summer weakfish.N
umbe
r
0
10,000,000
20,000,000
30,000,000
40,000,000
50,000,000
60,000,000
70,000,000
80,000,000
90,000,000
100,000,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
7,000,000
8,000,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 230,584,843
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 16,269,075
Pct. S.E. = 20% (number) 20% (biomass)
Avg Wt:0.031kg
Avg Wt:0.061kg
Avg Wt:0.112kg
Avg Wt:0.109kg
Avg Wt:0.074kg
Avg Wt:0.078kg
Avg Wt:0.081kg
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
8,000
9,000
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60
Figure 151. Length frequency histogram for weakfish.
Number Captured = 60,990
Number Measured = 5,747
Number of Otoliths = 572
Number of Stomachs = 471
- 134 -
Sex
UMF42.0
31.6
26.5100.1
87.4
12.6100.0
47.3
52.6100.1
25.4
74.6100.0
50.7
49.3100.0
48.0
40.9
11.1100.0
46.8
53.1100.0
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ 4-DE 5-MD 6-VA 7-NC
n = 77 50 161 16 72 129 67
Sex
UMF
100100
30
40
30100
50
38
13100
56
45100
69
31100
80
21100
84
16100
76
24100
100100
100100
100100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
05-10
10-15
15-20
20-25
25-30
30-35
35-40
40-45
45-50
50-55
55-60
n = 2 45 171 192 116 29 9 5 1 1 1
2-4 4-6 6-8 8-10 10-12 12-14 14-16 16-18 18-20 20-22 22-24 Inch-class
Figure 152. Sex ratios for weakfish by state (A) and length group (B).
A
B
- 135 -
Figure 153. Maturity logistic regression for weakfish, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Total Length (cm)10 20 30 40 50 60 70
34312
17622
6017
342 0 00
10000
20000
30000
40000
Age (Year Class)
0 (20
07)
1 (20
06)
2 (20
05)
3 (20
04)
4 (20
03)
5 (20
02)
Figure 154. Age frequency histogram for weakfish.
- 136 -
Catch curve Z ages 0-3 = -1.49
Figure 155. Age-specific length-frequency histograms for weakfish for ages 0 through 3.
AG E =0
0
1 0 0
2 0 0
3 0 0
4 0 0
5 0 0
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
AG E =1
0
1 0 0
2 0 0
3 0 0
4 0 0
5 0 0
6 0 0
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
AG E =2
0
2 0
4 0
6 0
8 0
1 0 0
1 2 0
1 4 0
1 6 0
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
AG E =3
0
2
4
6
8
1 0
1 2
1 4
1 6
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5 5 0 5 5 6 0
- 137 -
Figure 156. von Bertalanffy growth curves for weakfish, by sex.
Fem ales : L(m ax) = 70.5 T(zero) = 0.263 K = 0.232M ales: L(m ax) = 46.2 T(zero) = 0.401 K = 0.453
Leng
th (c
m)
10
20
30
40
50
60
Age
0 1 2 3 4
- 138 -
Weight(g) = 0.0099 x Length(cm)2.9942(n = 571)
Wei
ght(g
)
0100200300400500600700800900
100011001200130014001500160017001800
Total Length(cm)
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Figure 157. Length-weight regression for weakfish, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B)..
A
Females: Weight(g) = 0.0098 x Length(cm)2.9949(n = 280)
Males: Weight(g) = 0.0103 x Length(cm)2.9844(n = 257)
Wei
ght(
g)
0100200300400500600700800900
100011001200130014001500160017001800
Total Length(cm)
10 20 30 40 50 60
- 139 -
B
Figure 158. Diets of weakfish by percent weight (A) and percent number (B).
A
B
- 140 -
WinterFlounder
(Priority A)A
B
- 141 -
Figure 159. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for winter flounder.
Figure 160. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for winter flounder.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
1,700,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 1,639,213
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 413,370
Pct. S.E. = 32% (number) 27% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
Total Length (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
Avg Wt:0.252kg
Figure 161. Length frequency histogram for winter flounder.
Number Captured = 391
Number Measured = 391
Number of Otoliths = 118
Number of Stomachs = 114
- 142 -
Figure 162. Sex ratios for winter flounder by state (A) and length group (B).
Sex
UMF
69
27
100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI
n = 118
Sex
UMF
100100
33
63
100
40
46
14100
96
100
76
22
100
95
100
78
22100
92
100100100
100100
100100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
15.0-
17.5
17.5-
20.0
20.0-
22.5
22.5-
25.0
25.0-
27.5
27.5-
30.0
30.0-
32.5
32.5-
35.0
35.0-
37.5
37.5-
40.0
42.5-
45.0
n = 1 8 15 15 17 11 16 19 8 7 1
6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 17 Inch-class
- 143 -
A
B
Figure 163. Maturity logistic regression for winter flounder, by sex.
50% maturity
99% maturity
SEX FM
Prob
abili
ty o
f Mat
urity
0.0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
Total Length (cm)10 20 30 40 50
0
235
87
62
4 2 0 1 0 0 0
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
100
200
300
Age (Year Class)
0 (20
07)
1 (20
06)
2 (20
05)
3 (20
04)
4 (20
03)
5 (20
02)
6 (20
01)
7 (20
00)
8 (19
99)
9 (19
98)
10 (1
997)
Figure 164. Age frequency histogram for winter flounder.
Catch curve Z ages 1-7 = -1.01
- 144 -
Figure 165. Age-specific length-frequency histograms for winter flounder for ages 1 through 3.
AG E =1
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5
AG E =2
0
1
2
3
4
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5
AG E =3
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
To ta l Le n g th (c m )0 5 1 0 1 5 2 0 2 5 3 0 3 5 4 0 4 5
- 145 -
Figure 166. von Bertalanffy growth curves for winter flounder, by sex.
Fem ales : L(m ax) = 70.5 T(zero) = 0.263 K = 0.232M ales: L(m ax) = 46.2 T(zero) = 0.401 K = 0.453
Leng
th (c
m)
10
20
30
40
50
Age
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
- 146 -
Weight(g) = 0.0115 x Length(cm) 3.0331(n = 118)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1100
Total Length(cm)10 20 30 40 50
Figure 167. Length-weight regression for winter flounder, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
Females: W eight(g) = 0.0126 x Length(cm) 3.0084(n = 95)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.0079 x Length(cm) 3.1393(n = 18)
Wei
ght(g
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1100
Total Length(cm)10 20 30 40 50
- 147 -
Figure 168. Diets of winter flounder by percent weight (A) and percent number (B).
A
B
- 148 -
WinterSkate
(Priority B)A
B
Figure 169. Number (A) and biomass (B) of specimens captured at each station for winter skate.
- 149 -
Figure 170. Minimum trawlable number and biomass by state for winter skate.N
umbe
r
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
1,500,000
1,600,000
1,700,000
1,800,000
1,900,000
StateRI NY NJ DE MD VA NC
Biom
ass (kg)
0
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
1,100,000
1,200,000
1,300,000
1,400,000
Minimum Trawlable Number = 3,048,125
Minimum Trawlable Biomass (kg)= 2,756,000
Pct. S.E. = 29% (number) 18% (biomass)
Expa
nded
Num
ber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Disk Width (cm)0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60
Avg Wt:0.752kg
Avg Wt:1.127kg
Avg Wt:1.270kg
Figure 171. Width frequency histogram for winter skate.
Number Captured = 951
Number Measured = 735
Number of Vertebrae = 171
Number of Stomachs = 160
- 150 -
Figure 172. Sex ratios for winter skate by state (A) and width group (B).
Sex
UMF
44.3
55.7100
76.7
22.5
100
25.0
75.0100
Perc
ent
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
STATE
1-RI 2-NY 3-NJ
n = 81 84 4
Sex
UMF
100100
81
19100
40
60100
77
23100
72
28100
85
12
100
49
51100
38
62100
100100
Percent SUM
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Length (cm)
10-15
15-20
20-25
25-30
30-35
35-40
40-45
45-50
55-60
n = 1 6 21 28 34 37 30 11 1
4-6 6-8 8-10 10-12 12-14 14-16 16-18 18-20 22-24 Inch-class
Disk Width (cm)
A
B
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Weight(g) = 0.0269 x Length(cm) 3.0104(n = 171)
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)
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Disk Width (cm)10 20 30 40 50 60
Figure 173. Width-weight regression for winter skate, sexes combined (A) and by sex (B).
Females: W eight(g) = 0.0161 x Length(cm) 3.1552(n = 109)
Males: W eight(g) = 0.0314 x Length(cm) 2.9603(n = 59)
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ght(g
)
0
1000
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Disk Width (cm)10 20 30 40 50 60
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