RELATIVE CONTRIBUTION OF HUDSON, CHESAPEAKE, AND 



ROANOKE STRIPED BASS, MORONE SAXATILIS, 



STOCKS TO THE ATLANTIC COAST FISHERY 



Thomas J. Berggren' and Joel T. Lieberman^ 



ABSTRACT 



Morphological characters were used in discriminant analysis to quantitatively estimate the relative 

 contribution of striped bass, Morone saxatilis, stocks from various estuaries to the striped bass fishery 

 along the Atlantic coast. Representative samples of the spawning stocks of the Hudson River, 

 Chesapeake Bay system, and Roanoke River were collected and counts and measurements were taken 

 on each specimen. Discriminant functions based on five morphological characters correctly classified 

 approximately TS^c of the specimens. The effectiveness of three types of estimates based on these 

 functions in accurately estimating stock proportions was investigated in a simulation study. Results of 

 the simulation study indicated which type of estimate was least biased. A sampling design using 

 geographical and temporal strata was then employed to sample the Atlantic coastal fishery from Cape 

 Hatteras, N.C., to Maine. Observations for the morphological characters were taken on collected fish 

 and the resulting data entered into discriminant functions obtained from spawning-stock collections. 

 The specimens were classified by area of origin and the three types of estimates of relative contribution 

 of the Hudson, Chesapeake, and Roanoke stocks were obtained. Results indicated that the Chesapeake 

 stock was the major contributor to the Atlantic coastal striped bass fishery and the Hudson and 

 Roanoke stocks were minor contributors. 



The striped bass, Morone saxatilis, is an important 

 sport and commercial fish in the estuaries and 

 coastal waters of the Atlantic seaboard from 

 Maine to North Carolina (Koo 1970). Recruitment 

 to the striped bass fishery is from various stocks of 

 striped bass spawned and developed in rivers and 

 estuaries along the Atlantic coast. Recapture loca- 

 tions of tagged striped bass indicate that individu- 

 als from all spawning areas north of Cape Hat- 

 teras, N.C., utilize much of the Atlantic coast 

 north of their respective spawning areas during a 

 northward migration in the spring and a south- 

 ward migration in the fall (Merriman 1941; Raney 

 et al. 1954; Alperin 1966; Schaefer 1968; Flor- 

 ence^; Texas Instruments^). The major spawning 

 areas which potentially contribute individuals to 

 the fisheries operating during the northward and 

 southward migrations are the tributaries of 



'Texas Instruments Inc., Buchanan, N.Y.; present address: 

 Biometrics Unit, 337 Warren Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, 

 NY 14853. 



^Texas Instruments Inc., P.O. Box 237, Buchanan, NY 1051 1. 



^Florence, B. 1974. Tag returns from 1375 large striped bass 

 tagged in two Maryland spawning rivers. Outdoor Message. 

 Organized Sportsmen of Mass. Oct. 1974. 



■•Texas Instruments Inc. 1976. Report on relative contribution 

 of Hudson River striped bass to the Atlantic coastal fishery. 

 Prepared for Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc., 

 101 p. 



Chesapeake Bay and the Roanoke and Hudson 

 Rivers. 



Although tagging data have not led to quantita- 

 tive estimates of relative contribution, they have 

 led to conflicting ideas as to which major stock of 

 striped bass predominates in the fishery: the Hud- 

 son stock or the Chesapeake stock. Most published 

 works have generally concluded that the striped 

 bass stock from the Chesapeake Bay system is the 

 major contributor to the fisheries north of 

 Chesapeake Bay (Merriman 1941; Vladykov and 

 Wallace 1952; Alperin 1966; Schaefer 1968; Porter 

 and Saila^; Raney^). However, Clark'' and 

 Goodyear^ concluded that the striped bass stock 



Manuscript accepted August 1977. 

 FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 76, NO. 2. 1978. 



^Porter, J., and S. B. Saila. 1969. Final report for the coopera- 

 tive striped bass migration study. U.S. Fish. Wildl. Serv. Con- 

 tract no. 14-16-005, 33 p. 



"Raney, E. C. 1972. The striped bass, Morone saxatilis, of the 

 Atlantic coast of the United States with particular reference to 

 the population found in the Hudson River. Testimony before 

 USAEC Safety and Licensing Board for Indian Point, Unit no. 2. 

 Docket no. 50-247, Oct. 30, 105 p. 



'Clark, J. 1972. Effects of Indian Point Units 1 and 2 on the 

 Hudson River aquatic life. Testimony before USAEC Safety and 

 Licensing Board for Indian Point, Unit no. 2. Docket no. 50-247, 

 Oct. 30, 63 p. 



^Goodyear, C. P. 1974. Origin of the striped bass of the middle 

 Atlantic coast. Testimony presented to the Committee on Mer- 

 chant Marine and Fisheries of the U.S. House of Representa- 

 tives. Feb. 19, 40 p. 



335 



