TABLE 9. — Mean fork length (in millimeters) of fish at each age in samples from 

 purse -seine catches, by area and season, 1955-57 



[Numerically dominant year class underscored] 



is not significant. Fish comprising 

 the oldest age groups (ages 7-9). in 

 general, were smaller in the sum- 

 mer catches than in the previous year, 

 but this nnay be due to the relatively 

 small numbers of fish represented 

 in these age classes. Compared with 

 the previous 2 seasons, fish taken in 

 the North Carolina fall fishery were 

 larger, on the average, at most ages 

 in 1957. 



As was found in previous years 

 (June and Reintjes, 1959 and I960), 

 the data in tables 9 and 10 also show 

 that in the summer fishery there was a 



progressive increase in the average 

 length and weight of fish of the same 

 age from south to north, and, except 

 for the two youngest age-classes, fish 

 taken in the fall fishery off North 

 Carolina were larger and heavier than 

 those taken in the summer catches. 

 The snnaller and lighter fish of age 1 

 in the North Carolina fall catches 

 could have been the remains of the 

 local, summer stock, since they oc- 

 curred only in the early fall catches 

 and were most similar in length and 

 weight to age-1 fish taken in the final 

 weeks of the summer season at Beau- 

 fort. 



16 



