UNIT 9 



SOUTHEAST DRUM AND CROAKER FISHERIES 



47 



INTRODUCTION 



The drum family includes several commer- 

 cially and recreationally important fishes 

 that have been fished since at least the late 

 1800's when commercial landings were 

 first estimated. Thus, some of the fisheries 



are over a century old, while others have 

 become more popular in recent years, as 

 with the recent popularity of "blackened 

 redfish" which stimulated demand for red 

 drum. 



SPECIES AND STATUS 



Important species in this group are Atlantic 

 croaker, spot, red drum, black drum, 

 kingfishes (whiting), and spotted and other 

 seatrouts. Commercial drum landings 

 peaked in 1 956 at over 32,000 1, more than 

 20,000 t above the 1953 level. That great 

 increase was stimulated by development 

 of the pet food industry in the northern Gulf 

 of Mexico. Atlantic croaker was sought for 

 pet food as well, and about 76% of the 

 associated landings were croaker and sand 

 and silver seatrout. This pet food catch was 

 reported with the "industrial fishery" data 

 after 1956, and estimates of its size and 

 value have since been unavailable. Status 

 and potential yields for these species are 

 given in Table 9-1. 



The catch value of this group for human 

 consumption was about $10 million in 

 1978. This increased to about $22 million 

 in 1986, largely as a result of an increase 

 in the price of the fish. 



The overall sport catch of these species 

 has been about equal to the commercial 

 harvest for human consumption (Fig. 9-1 ). 

 Most are harvested in state waters and are 

 therefore under state management. In re- 

 cent years, several states have set regula- 

 tions favoring recreational use of some 

 species, such as the red drum. 



Commercial adult red drum purse sein- 

 ing in Federal Gulf of Mexico waters devel- 

 oped rapidly in the middle 1980's as 

 demand grew for "blackened redfish." Be- 

 fore that, nearly all red drum were har- 

 vested near shore (in state waters) as 

 juveniles. But as the offshore fishery devel- 

 oped, it became clear that the schooling 

 adult redfish were extremely vulnerable to 

 heavy harvests. Analyses showed that 

 long-term potential yields for this fishery 

 required limiting the harvest to the larger 

 adult fish. In addition, greater inshore red- 

 fish catches by recreational and commer- 

 cial fishermen, complicated by other 

 factors, had cut the number of young fish 

 that could have replenished offshore adult 

 stocks. 



Eventually a Red Drum Fishery Manage- 

 ment Plan was developed for Gulf and, 

 later, Atlantic waters. Both plans ban red 

 drum fishing in Federal waters until the 

 adult population increases in size. This ef- 

 fectively bars a significant adult red drum 

 fishery in Federal waters as long as state 

 rules favor substantial inshore fishing for 

 young red drum. State actions so far have 

 preserved inshore harvests and allocated 

 most or all of the catch to sport fishermen. 



Long-term potential yield (LTPY) 1 

 Current potential yield (CPY)' = 

 Recent average yield (RAY) 2 = 



Table 9-1— Recent average, 

 current potential, and long-term 

 potential yields in metric tons (t), 

 and status of utilization of drum, 

 croaker, and related species. 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. 



75,934 t 

 25,808 t 

 25,808 t 



'LTPY is probably underestimated and CPY overestimated, although potential production estimates are not available for some 

 speaes groups, it is expected that they may be overutilized 

 2 1 988-90 average. 



