148 DESCRIPTION OF IMPORTANT FISHERIES AND THEIR PRODUCTS 



stances also result in changes in the size of fish caught each year in the 

 same locality^ 



Although the effect of oceanographic factors on the availability of 

 menhaden has not yet been clearly demonstrated, fishery scientists believe 

 that the varying seasonal and geographical distribution of the schools 

 depends upon prevailing hydrographic conditions. As a possible result, 

 the fish may, in some seasons, change their habits or migratory pattern 

 and thus may not be available on their customary grounds®. 



The Fishery 



Since the inception of the large-scale menhaden reduction industry in 

 about 1850, purse seines have been the principal means of supplying the 

 huge quantities of fish required by the plants. This gear accounts for 

 over 98 per cent of the total annual catch. The remainder is taken by 

 pound nets in several localities along the Atlantic Coast^-^. 



The purse seine fishery is governed by the seasonal occurrence of 

 schools in the surface waters along the shore. Over most of the range, 

 the schools appear regularly from year to year so that preparations for 

 fishing usually are made with reasonable assurance of a successful season. 

 As noted previously, however, because of variations in abundance or 

 changes in their migratory pattern the schools may not be available in 

 their usual numbers and seasonal landings in a given locality may be 

 substantially reduced. 



Fishing Seasons and Areas. Along the Atlantic Coast, the purse seine 

 fishery is conducted during two separate periods. The ''summer" fishery 

 begins in waters south of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina in April or 

 early May and by late May or early June, extends from the central east 

 coast of Florida northward to Cape Ann, Massachusetts. South of Cape 

 Hatteras, the summer fishery is most productive in May or June, while 

 from Chesapeake Bay northward, catches reach a peak in July or August. 

 The summer fishery terminates in September or October when the schools 

 disappear from the inshore waters. Their disappearance occurs earliest 

 in northern waters and progressively later farther southward. The ''fall" 

 fishery is conducted on aggregations of spawning fish which appear along 

 the North Carolina coast in November and December^. Approximately 

 50 per cent of the annual catch along the Atlantic Coast is landed in 

 Delaware and New Jersey. Landings during the North Carolina fall 

 fishery account for about 10 per cent of the total. 



In 19G1 there were 18 reduction plants along the Atlantic Coast which 

 handled menhaden exclusively. These were distributed as follows: Florida, 

 1; North Carolina, 8; Virginia, 4; Delaware, 2; New Jersey, 3; and New 

 York, 1. Reduction plants located in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and 

 Maine also utilize menhaden during seasons when the schools are abun- 



