li. It is estimated that 12-1/2 million haddock have been protected 

 by the large-mesh nets during the first year of regulation. It is too early 

 to measure the benefit to the fishery of the saving of these small fish, but 

 the long-term benefit of the large mesh is expected to be greater than orig- 

 inally estimated. The prediction of a 30-percent benefit was based on an aver- 

 age age composition for the 17-year period 1931 to 19lil (Graham 1952). How- 

 ever, the sizes of Georges Bank haddock are now significantly below this 

 average. In 19^0 the quantity of scrod (market category of haddock under 

 2.5 pounds) exceeded the quantity of large haddock landed, for the first 

 time in the history of the fishery. This situation has prevailed ever since. 

 The Georges Bank haddock fishery since that date has been supported largely 

 by 2- and 3-year-old fish in dominant year classes of alternate years, 19^8, 



1950, and 1952, with very weak intervening year classes (Schuck and Clark 



1951, Clark 1952). There are indications- that this pattern will continue 

 through 195U. Consequently, there is every reason to believe that the bene- 

 fit to be derived from saving the small fish Td.ll be greater than had been 

 predicted on the basis of the average year for the period before 1950. This 

 benefit will, of course, be added to that resulting from the increased 

 efficiency of the large mesh which was apparent immediately. 



REFERENCES 



Alexander, A. B., H. F. Moore, and W. C. Kendall 



1915. Otter-trawl fishery. Appendix VI, Rept. U. 3. Commissioner of 

 Fisheries for I91U. 97 pp. 



Clark, John R. 



1952. Georges Bank haddock fishery— 195l. U. S. Fish and Wildlife 

 Service, Comm. Fish. Rev., vol. lU, No. 8, pp. 1-U. 



Graham, Herbert W. 



1952. Mesh regulation to increase the yield of the Georges Bank 

 haddock fishery. International Comm. Northwest Atlantic 

 Fisheries, part 3, 2d. annual report, pp. 23-33. 



Herrington, W. C. 



1932. Conservation of immature fish in otter trawling. Trans. Araer. 

 Fish. Soc, vol. 62, pp. 57-63. 



