Figure 3. --Mean number of seine sets 

 in the major areas, by month, 1955-59. 



North Atlantic Area ; The number of sets 

 was consistently least in this area and, in the 

 individual seasons, varied between 1,919 (1958) 

 and 4,094 (1955). The seasonal total averaged 

 about 11 percent of the total for all areas. In 

 contrast to other areas, there was noticeably 

 less fishing in May and June. In four of the 

 five seasons, maximum fishing occurred in 

 July. In 1959 fishing reached a maximum in 

 August. 



Geographical Distribution of Fishing 

 by Month 



The geographical distribution of the mean 

 number of purse seine sets in each unit area, 

 by month, for the five fishing seasons (figs. 4 

 and 5) furnished a measure of the distribution 

 of fish in the coastal waters. As noted in the 

 previous section (p, 4), there was no fishing 

 in February in any season; and in two of the 

 five seasons, some fishing took place in March 

 in the vicinity of Fernandina Beach, Fla. Fish- 

 ing in April was confined to southern waters. 

 Except for several localities along the Georgia, 

 South Carolina, North Carolina, and southern 

 New England coasts, fishing occurred in May 

 from Florida to Massachusetts, with moderate 

 fishing (100-199 sets) off Cape Fear and Cape 

 Lookout, N. C. The number of sets increased 

 in June concurrent with a northward extension 

 of fishing into the Gulf of Maine, and intense 

 fishing (200 sets or more) occurred in Chesa- 

 peake Bay and off Sandy Hook, N. J. Distribu- 

 tion of fishing was similar in July, but there 



was a marked increase in the number of sets, 

 particularly from Chesapeake Bay northward. 

 In August, there was a noticeable decrease in 

 fishing south of Cape Lookout, in Chesapeake 

 Bay, and north of Cape Cod, Mass. By Sep- 

 tember, fishing further diminished in southern 

 waters. It remained relatively intense in 

 Chesapeake Bay and diminished north of Dela- 

 ware Bay. The distribution of fishing north of 

 Cape Hatteras, N. C, in October resembled 

 that in May, but south of that location, there 

 was little fishing. Except for scattered sets 

 made in the vicinity of Chesapeake Bay, South 

 Carolina, and Florida, fishing during Novem- 

 ber, December, and January was confined to 

 the North Carolina coast. 



Variations in the geographical distribution 

 of the number of sets by month, April through 

 January, are shown in figures 6 through 15. 



April ; With the exception of 1958, when there 

 were no sets made along the entire coast 

 (fig. 6), fishing was generally limited to north- 

 ern Florida and southern Georgia. In 1955 and 

 1957, some fishing also occurred off Cape 

 Fear. 



May : The most noteworthy variations (fig. 7) 

 occurred in 1958, when fishing extended no 

 farther northward than Delaware Bay; and in 

 1959, when fishing was widespread and reached 

 northward to Narragansett Bay, R. I. Other 

 localities where fishing was inconsistent be- 

 tween seasons were off South Carolina and 

 New Jersey. 



June; South of Cape Hatteras, fishing (fig. 8) 

 was variable off the coast of South Carolina 

 and between Cape Fear and Cape Lookout. 

 With minor variations, the distribution of sets 

 was similar each season from Chesapeake 

 Bay northward to Cape Cod, although in 1959, 

 there was little fishing off the Eastern Shore 

 of Virginia and Maryland. From 1955 to 1958, 

 fishing diminished north of Cape Cod, and 

 there was only one year (1955) when fishing 

 occurred off Maine. 



July; The distribution of fishing (fig. 9) 

 shifted markedly between seasons south of 

 Cape Lookout. The greatest variations over 

 the entire coast, however, occurred in 1958 



