Northeast Pelagic Fisheries 



Unit 



2 



EMORY D ANDERSON 



KEVIN D FRIEDLAND 



WILLIAM J OVERHOLTZ 



NMFS Northeast Fisheries 

 Science Center 



Woods Hole 

 Massachusetts 



INTRODUCTION 



Northeast pelagic fisheries target small school- 

 ing species in the U.S. E.xclusive Economic Zone, 

 particularly Atlantic mackerel, Atlantic herring, 

 bluefish, and butterfish.' The fisheries on these 

 stocks are seasonal and reflect the migratory pat- 

 terns and availability ot these species. Generally, 

 these species overwinter in relatively warm oiTshore 

 waters of the Mid-Atlantic continental shell and 

 southward to avoid seasonal cooling of nearshore 

 northern waters. This is followed by a northward 

 and inshore migration during the spring and sum- 

 mer to feed and reproduce. 



Various fishing gears including bottom trawls, 

 midwater trawls, gillnets, and seines are employed 

 to harvest pelagics in the Northeast Region. Dur- 



'Long- and short-tinned squid are dcs^rilicd in Unit 4 for 

 taxonomic consistency. 



ing 1995-97, total landings averaged 158,500 

 metric tons (t) (Table 2-1), 77% by the United 

 States and 23% by Canada, including recreational 

 landings (primarilv bluefish and mackerel) ot 

 about 9,000 t. The ex-vessel value of the 1 997 U.S. 

 commercial landings was about S28 million. Rec- 

 reational landings ol bluefish and mackerel are also 

 important in the Northeast Region. For example, 

 over $300 million is spent annually by recreational 

 anglers fishing tor bltiettsh. 



The two principal Northeast pelagics, Atlan- 

 tic mackerel and Atlantic herring, were exploited 

 heavily by distant-water fleets during the early 

 1970's. As a result, stock sizes and yields declined 

 to very low levels by the late 1970's. Abundance 

 has since increased due to low harvest rates and 

 improved recruitment. Current stock sizes for these 

 species are at historically high levels. 



Northeast pelagic fisheries are managed un- 

 der three fishery management plans, the tlrst de- 

 veloped by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management 



Atlantic herring. 



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