In Chesapeake Bay, the 1958 catch was 

 greater than in 1957 and only 4,000 tons below 

 the recent record catch produced in 1955. Un- 

 adjusted effort data indicated that schools were 

 about average in size, but more numerous 

 than in the previous 3 seasons. Although the 

 contribution to the catch of the 1957 year class 

 (age-1 fish) was below average, the contri- 

 bution of the 1956 year class (age-2 fish) was 

 greater than that of any of the previous three 

 year classes. The contribution of the 1955 

 year class at age 3 was exceeded only by that 

 of the 1952 year class in 1955. Thus it would 

 appear that the large catch in the area in 1958 

 resulted mainly from the combined contribu- 

 tions of three successive year classes 1955-57. 

 The increase in the mean length and weight of 

 fish in the catch over that of the previous 2 

 seasons was due to the greater proportion of 

 age-2 fish, although the mean length and weight 

 of this age group was the least in 4 seasons. 



In the Middle Atlantic Area, the catch de- 

 clined for the third successive year and was the 

 smallest since 1952. The total number of sets 

 declined, but the catch per set was above 

 average. The contribution to the catch by the 

 1956 year class (age-2 fish) was above average, 

 while those of all other year classes were below 

 average. For the first time in the recent 

 history of the fishery, large, older fish failed 

 to congregate in quantity off the southern shore 

 of Long Island in September and October. 

 Schools were reported in increased abundance 

 in Long Island Sound and off the eastern end of 

 Long Island during the first 2 weeks in 

 September, and heavy catches were made in 

 these localities by the fleet from Amagansett, 

 N. Y., during a 2-week period beginning 

 September 15, but apparently the fish did not 

 follow the "usual" seasonal migration pattern. 

 The failure of the older age groups to congre- 

 gate in large schools off southern Long Island 

 is inexplicable. It would appear that the de- 

 crease in the 1958 catch was mainly attributable 

 to the reduced quantities of fish of age 3 and 

 older ages which in prior years contributed 

 substantially to the late summer fishery in the 

 northern part of the area. The mean length and 

 weight of fish in the catch decreased in 1958 

 primarily because of the reduced contributions 

 of older age groups; however, the mean length 



and weight of age-2 fish which dominated the 

 catch also was below average. 



The catch in the North Atlantic Area de- 

 creased for the third consecutive season. It 

 was less than half that produced in 1957 and 

 the smallest since 1953. Both the number of 

 sets and the average catch per set were greatly 

 reduced in 1958. The catch was supported 

 primarily by the strong 1955 (age- 3 fish) and 



1956 (age-2 fish) year classes. The contribu- 

 tions of all older year classes, except that of 

 1951, were below average. The 1951 year class 

 at age 7, however, was too few in numbers to 

 have an important influence on the catch, A 

 decrease in the mean length and weight of fish 

 in 1958 reflected both a reduction in the con- 

 tributions of older age groups and the smaller 

 size of age-2 fish which dominated the catch. 



The catch in the fall fishery off North 

 Carolina increased over that in 1957 and ex- 

 ceeded the average for the past 5 years. 

 Availability of fish on the grounds was good 

 through most of the season, and fair weather 

 enabled the fleet to fish a greather-than- 

 average number of days. The contribution to the 

 catch by the strong 1956 year class (age-2 

 fish) was greater than that of any of the 

 previous three year classes at the same age. 

 This, along with average contributions by the 



1957 (age-1 fish) and 1955 (age-3 fish) year 

 classes and the sustained contribution by the 

 1951 year class (age-7 fish), resulted in a 

 near-record catch. Mean length and weight 

 of fish in the catch was average; however, 

 the mean size of age-2 fish was below the 

 average for the previous 3 seasons. 



As in previous years, there was remarkable 

 similarity between the summer catch in the 

 North Atlantic Area and the fall catch off 

 North Carolina in the contributions of all age 

 groups beyond age 2. There also was close 

 agreement in the average lengths and weights 

 of fish at each age caught in the two fisheries. 

 These findings have been consistent for the 

 past 4 seasons and, combined with the length- 

 age data discussed earlier in this section, 

 offer convincing evidence that at least a portion 

 of the summer stock in the North Atlantic 

 Area was represented in the North Carolina 



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