UNIT 3 



ATLANTIC ANADROMOUS FISHERIES 



29 



INTRODUCTION 



The anadromous species of the Atlantic 

 seaboard are a diverse group, including 

 river herrings (alewife, blueback herring, 

 hickory shad), American shad, striped 

 bass, Atlantic salmon, sturgeons (Atlantic 

 and shortnose), and rainbow smelt. Regu- 

 lation of their stocks is likewise diverse: 

 The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Com- 

 mission (ASMFC) has implemented a Fish- 

 ery Management Plan (FMP) for river 

 herrings and American shad, while 

 shortnose sturgeon is managed under an 

 Endangered Species Act (ESA) recovery 

 plan. Atlantic salmon are regulated by a 



New England Council FMP and are also 

 under North Atlantic Salmon Conservation 

 Organization (NASCO) auspices. Striped 

 bass are regulated under an ASMFC FMP 

 and by special Federal authority under the 

 Atlantic Striped Bass Act (implemented by 

 NMFS and USFWS). Current commercial 

 landings of Atlantic anadromous species 

 (Table 3-1; Fig. 3-1, 3-2) are only about 

 4,000 t, far below historic levels. Several 

 are or were of major recreational import- 

 ance to the region (including American 

 shad, striped bass, and Atlantic salmon). 



Table 3-1.— Recent average, 

 current potential, and long-term 

 potential yields in metric tons (t), 

 and status of utilization of 

 Atlantic anadromous fisheries. 

 The LTPY, CPY, and RAY for the 

 unit equals the sum of the 

 species' LTPY's, CPY's, and RAY's. 

 Where the species' LTPY is 

 unknown, the species' CPY is 

 substituted in the sum. If the 

 species' CPY is unknown, the 

 species' RAY is substituted. 



Long-term potential yield (LTPY) = 3.954 t 



Current potential yield (CPY) = 3.954 t 



Recent average yield (RAY) 1 = 3,954 t 



1 1 988-90 average, including foreign and recreational catches 

 includes significant recreational landings 



Atlantic salmon RAY in numbers of fish, primarily intercepted in distant water commercial fisheries 

 d Atlantic salmon CPY in numbers for U.S. waters only 



SPECIES AND STATUS 



Atlantic salmon historically spawned in 

 many large New England river systems, 

 but dams, pollution, and industrial and 

 agricultural development combined to 

 eliminate most native runs long ago. 

 Today, the only self-supporting U.S. 

 salmon runs are in Maine. Restoration 

 efforts, in the form of stocking and fish 

 passage construction, are underway in the 

 Connecticut, Pawcatuck, Merrimack, and 

 Penobscot Rivers. After 2-3 years of river 

 life, U.S. Atlantic salmon migrate to sea 

 and through Canadian and Greenland 

 waters. 



Atlantic salmon spawning-run sizes in 

 Maine rivers, plus estimated U.S. and dis- 

 tant-water catches, are listed in Figure 3-1 . 

 U.S. angler harvests averaged 430 fish in 

 Maine rivers in recent years, about 10% of 

 the runs. Foreign distant-water catches 



(Canadian and Greenland high-seas com- 

 mercial gill netting) of U.S. salmon are 

 estimated at 60-80% of the run. Those 

 salmon fisheries are regulated by NASCO. 

 Three main striped bass stocks range 

 along the Atlantic coast: Hudson River, 

 Chesapeake Bay, and Roanoke River 

 (N.C.). Historically, striped bass have sup- 

 ported important commercial and sport 

 fisheries, and recreational catches have 

 often equaled or exceeded commercial 

 landings (Fig. 3-2). Commercial fishermen 

 use a variety of gears, including haul 

 seines, trawls, pound and gill nets, and 

 hook-and-line. Commercial landings 

 peaked in 1973, and then began a precip- 

 itous decline. The declining landings, cou- 

 pled with consistently poor recruitment in 

 the Chesapeake Bay, spurred restrictive 

 regulations by the ASMFC in the mid- 



