SPRING AND SUMMER DISTRIBUTION OF HADDOCK 

 ON GEORGES BANK 



INTRODUCTION 



Systematic surveys of the populations of bottom fish in the Georges Bank area 

 were made by the Fish and Wildlife Service vessel Albatross III during the summers 

 of 1948 and 1949 and in the spring and summer of 1950. These surveys were con- 

 ducted to estimate the size and composition of the populations of haddock and other 

 species of demersal fish and to obtain information on distribution, movements, year 

 class strength, and growth rates in relation to environmental conditions . This paper 

 presents an analysis of the distribuHoE of haddock (Meianogrammus aeglifinus ) by 

 area, depth, bottom type, season, and year . 



The basic assumptions underlying this program were as follows: 



1 . The efficiency of any fishing gear remains constant, although it may 

 vary with different species. Thus the catches of the net from different places and at 

 different times are comparable . 



2. The size and distribution of the population sampled does not change 

 significantly during a short period, and thus all samples taken during this period are 

 samples of the same area. 



TTie distribution of the commercial catch in the Georges Bank area in time 

 and space is well established from records collected over a number of years. These 

 records show that the distribution varies somewhat with age of the fish and season of 

 the year and that the population is not evenly distributed by area or depth. (Schuck 

 1952). Since the commercial fishermen concentrate their efforts in particular 

 localities and depths and on certain sizes and species of fish (notably haddock), and 

 since there is little uniformity in the size and the efficiency of the boats and gear used, 

 these catch records do not give an accurate record of the distribution of the population 

 over the bank. It was necessary, then, to establish a sampling program which insured 

 the following: 



1 . Standardization of gear and methods . 



2. A complete coverage of the bank in as short a time as possible. 



3 . Uniform sampling of all areas and depths of the bank . 



