Comyns and Grant Urophyas and Phyas larvae and pelagic juveniles 



219 



39°2l-26' 



NJ 

 38°42-39°2l 



OCTOBER 1975 

 Dn=IIO 

 Qn = 



VA 

 S7*0S-37"S|' 



NOVEMBER 1976 



O 

 O 



o 



□ n = i42 ] Qn = 2i 



K 



□ n=eo3i 

 E3 n = 15 



FEBRUARY 1976 



Dn=563 



0n = o 



,On=0 

 E3 n = o 



CI Dl N3 E3 F2 



Station 



, On = 2 

 Qn=o 



=1=1 



LI L2 L4 L6 



Figure 7 



Mean abundance of Urophycis regia in neuston and bongo 

 collections at stations off Virginia and New Jersey, October 

 1975-May 1977. n = actual number of larvae collected. Neus- 

 ton catches denoted by clear histograms, bongo catches de- 

 noted by stippled histograms. NS = no samples taken. 



ing by U. tenuis in deep water of the MAB; in May 

 1977 U. tenuis larvae as small as 3-4 mm were found 

 over the continental break and slope off both New Jer- 

 sey and Virginia. In June 1976 U. tenuis found at 

 offshore stations were 16-38 mm in length. Based on 

 estimated larval and pelagic juvenile growth rates of 

 10-22 mm/mo (Markle et al. 1982) and demersal juve- 

 nile growth rates of =30 mm/mo (Fahay & Able 1989), 

 these fish were probably spawned in late April and 

 May. 



Fahay & Able (1989), studying young U. tenuis in 

 the Georges Bank area, found a shoreward migration 

 with growth. Recruitment to nearshore areas was also 

 indicated in the present study by the increasing size of 

 U. tenuis as collections proceeded shoreward. Neustonic 

 juveniles (35-53 mm) were captured in water as shal- 

 low as 32 m off the coast of New Jersey. 



Urophycis floridana and U. cirrata, two southern 

 species of hake, were found off New Jersey and Vir- 

 ginia only in offshore winter collections. The large size 



NJ 

 39°2l'-2s' 



D n = 57 

 □ n = 



□ n = 294 



ran=i 



D n = 33 



oa n=o 



Dl N3 E3 F2 



Station 



1 1 1 1 



LI L2 L4 L6 



Figure 8 



Mean abundance of Urophycis tenuis in neuston and bongo 

 collections at stations off Virginia and New Jersey, June 1976 

 and May 1977. n = actual number of larvae collected. Neus- 

 ton catches denoted by clear histograms, bongo catches de- 

 noted by stippled histograms. NS = no samples taken. 



and offshore distribution observed for both species sug- 

 gest that these pelagic juveniles may have been trans- 

 ported northward into the study area. Larvae of U. 

 earlli, another species found south of the MAB, are 

 rare and remain undescribed, but this species may 

 also occur occasionally in offshore waters of the MAB 

 during winter. Hildebrand & Cable (1938) expected U. 

 earlli to be a winter spawner after collecting three 

 juveniles (37, 75, 103 mm) in March and April off North 

 Carolina, and Fahay (1975) collected a few neustonic 

 U. earlli in winter in the South Atlantic Bight. 



Phycis chesteri larvae and pelagic juveniles appeared 

 at offshore stations in fall and winter off Virginia and 

 New Jersey. This larval distribution concurs with 

 Wenner ( 1983) who found adult P. chesteri generally at 

 depths >183m on the continental slope from 36°N to 

 47°N in the western North Atlantic, and noted that 

 spawning off Virginia took place between late Septem- 

 ber and April, with peak spawning occurring in De- 

 cember and January. Methven & McKelvie (1986) col- 

 lected 51 P. chesteri larvae and pelagic juveniles along 

 the edge of the continental shelf in the MAB, Grand 

 Bank, and Labrador Shelf, and based on estimated 

 growth rates suggested that most spawning occurs in 

 October. 



This study has shown the spatial and temporal dis- 

 tribution of hake larvae in the MAB to be more com- 

 plex than previously thought. Additional taxonomic 

 characters, particularly ontogenetic pigment patterns, 

 are still needed in order to routinely identify small 

 hake larvae, and more research is needed to explain 

 the observed patterns of larval distribution. Of par- 

 ticular interest is an understanding of the processes 

 that result in the northward transport of larvae and 



