50 



The data gathered by SMND is the only national data on marine recrea- 

 tional fishing which provides any detail by species. However, the National 

 Hunting and Fishing Survey of 1970 does give data on the general category 

 of marine recreational fishing. This survey was a population-specific 

 survey conducted for the Bureau of Sports Fishing and Wildlife by the 

 Bureau of the Census. It provides some data on expenditures per trip and 

 number of trips for saltwater angling. However, because the data cannot be 

 disaggregated to refer to individual regions or species, it is not likely to 

 be of value in formulating national policy for the management of marine 

 recreational fishing. 



It is conceivable that state governments in New England would take an 

 interest in gathering marine recreational fishing data, at least on an 

 occasional basis. However, a survey of the appropriate agencies in New 

 England and New York failed to locate any data on fishing participation by 

 species, catch by species, or other data elements of the six items listed 

 above as potentially important in determining OSY for recreational fisheries. 

 However, in 1975, the state of Massachusetts conducted a massive site-specific 

 survey, conducting about 12,000 interviews, of marine recreational fishing. 

 The data from this survey have not yet been made public, but the survey 

 approach was well planned, and it promises to provide considerable guidance 

 to future site-specific surveys. The Massachusetts survey gathered data on 

 the total number of participants, total number of days fished, total catch 

 (by number) by species, and some detailed expenditure data. Hence, the 

 Massachusetts suirvey gathers the data for items (1) , (2) , and (3) necessary 

 for OSY. Although the Massachusetts survey gathers some information on 

 expenditures, there is not enough data to permit estimation of demand 

 curves. Such data might easily be gathered in a small supplementary survey. 



