94 MARINE FISHERIES OF NORTH CAROLINA 



(1928), they are sometimes found in winter by trawlers in deep waters. From 

 Wimble Shoals to the South Carolina line and in Florida waters, menhaden 

 are year-round inhabitants and are present in North Carolina in sufficient 

 abundance to support a fishery ten months of the year, February and March 

 are normally shut-down and overhaul periods in North Carolina plants, 

 although there is some evidence to indicate that fish are present in sufficient 

 amount off the North Carolina coast to be landed in commercial quantities. 

 Large schools have been reported in February as far north as Wimble Shoals. 



The weather, however, during February and March is so uncertain that 

 it would make for a costly discontinuous plant operation and would also 

 make fishing for menhaden by purse seines a hazardous occupation. The 

 result is that there are no definitive data to indicate the abundance of fish 

 off the coast of North Carolina during February and March. There is little 

 information concerning the presence of fish off the South Carolina and Geor- 

 gia coasts, but it is known that in Florida they are present the year around. 



Along the Virginia coast and northward to Maine, menhaden make their 

 first appearance after the ocean water has warmed up to a temperature of 

 around 50° F. The first of the fish to arrive are only a few scattered in- 

 dividuals. These are the vanguard of the main invasion which does not 

 appear until the water has reached the temperature in excess of 50° F. The 

 fish first appear along the coast as follows: The Chesapeake Bay regibn, 

 March and April; the New Jersey, New York, and southern New England 

 region, April and May; Cape Ann, in Massachusetts Bay, middle May; and 

 the Maine coast, the latter part of May and in June (if they appear at 

 all). The fish disappear from these regions in reverse order, beginning their 

 departure from the Maine coast the latter part of September and completely 

 disappearing by the middle of October. By the middle of November the fish 

 have all left the Massachusetts Bay region. Along the southern New England 

 coast some strays remain until late November and December, but very few 

 fish are found after October. The same is true of the New York and New 

 Jersey coasts. 



In North Carolina the migration pattern is an interesting one. The spring 

 fishery usually starts in May, although sometimes in April. This fishery 

 depends principally upon individuals which run from 6 to 8 inches in length 

 and which are believed locally to come up from Florida. Usually these fish 

 strike shoreward about the latitude of Fernandina, moving north and paral- 

 leling the coast, supplying a good fishery at Mayport, Florida. For the past 

 four years, however, they have scarcely touched Mayport, and snapper 

 fishermen working 30 miles out have reported great schools moving north. 

 In these recent years they have struck first off the South Carolina coast about 

 Georgetown and are called in North Carolina the '^Georgetown-flats" 'fish. 



