TABLE OF CONTENTS 



Page 



Introduction 1 



The 1956 commercial fishery 2 



South Atlcmtic Area 2 



Chesapeake Bay Area 3 



Middle Atlantic Area 3 



North Atlantic Area 3 



North Carolina fall fishery 4 



Catch statistics of the purse-seine fishery 4 



Saunpling of the commercial catches 6 



Age composition 6 



Length and weight composition 9 



Summciry 11 



Appendix 12-38 



ILLUSTRATIONS 



Figure Page 



Frontpiece: Part of the menhaden purse-seine fleet moored 



at Beaufort, N. C. during the fall fishing season 



1. Chart showing areas used in summarizing Atlantic 



menhaden catch data 2 



2. Distribution of fishing effort in the South Atlantic 



Area, 1956 5 



3. Distribution of fishing effort in the Chesapeake Bay 



and Middle Atlantic Areas, 1956 5 



4. Distribution of fishing effort in the North Atlantic 



Area, 1956 6 



5. Age composition of saimples from purse-seine catches, 



1956 7 



6. Length con^josition of samples from purse-seine 



catches, 1955-56 9 



iii 



