Fishery Bulletin 91 (4). 1993 



Massachusetts averaged 38 cm south and east of Cape 

 Cod, versus 36 cm north of Cape Cod, 21 cm in Long 

 Pond, Newfoundland (Kennedy and Steele, 1971), and 

 35cm in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island (Berry et al., 

 1965). On Long Island, New York, Poole (1966a) found 

 that growth rates of winter flounder increased from 

 south to north; age-5 females ranged from an average 

 of 31cm in Great South Bay to 36cm in Peconic Bay. 



Only the offshore population on Georges Bank is known 

 to have faster growth rates than winter flounder in 

 Massachusetts waters south and east of Cape Cod (Lux, 

 1973; Howe and Coates, 1975). The area south of Cape 

 Cod is the center of the species geographical range 

 (ASMFC, 1992) and may provide better environmental 

 conditions for growth of winter flounder than other 

 coastal areas. 



For both stocks of winter flounder in Massachu- 

 setts, growth was apparently not affected by changes 

 in exploitation or biomass. Biomass of these stocks 

 declined over 50% from 1983 to 1990 owing to high 

 fishing mortality (Howe et al., 1990). However, no 

 trends in mean lengths at age were observed for the 

 1983-91 period, and growth rates were similar to those 

 observed by Howe and Coates (1975) for the 1964-68 

 period (Table 1), when winter flounder were more abun- 

 dant and exploitation rates were lower 1 . Under high 

 levels of exploitation, faster growing fish are differen- 



' Foster, K. L. 1987. Status of winter flounder iPseudopleuronectes 

 americanus) stocks in the Gulf of Maine, southern New England, 

 and middle Atlantic areas. Dep. Commer., NOAA. Natl. Mar. Fish. 

 Serv.. Northeast Fish. Sci. Cent. Ref. Doc. 87-06. 



Age 



North of Cape Cod 



South of Cape Cod 



88 848frmam 



26 30 



Length (cm) 



Age 



Figure 3 



Variability in maturity and mean length at age for winter flounder, ages 2-5, observed from 

 1983-91 bottom trawl surveys. Percent mature at length of age-3 and age-4 fish are plotted by 

 year of collection (age-4 fish shown in italics I. Data for age-2 and age-5 fish are plotted by stars 

 and squares, respectively; outliers are identified by year of collection in parenthesis. 



