﻿130 
  

  

  MIDDLE 
  ATLANTIC 
  FISHERIES 
  

  

  Striped 
  bass 
  . 
  Landings 
  were 
  1.6 
  million 
  pounds 
  worth 
  $423,000 
  — 
  a 
  decline 
  of 
  14 
  percent 
  in 
  vol- 
  

   ume 
  and 
  7 
  percent 
  in 
  value 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  New 
  York 
  with 
  1.3 
  million 
  pounds 
  accounted 
  for 
  

   83 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  landings. 
  Most 
  of 
  the 
  New 
  York 
  landings 
  were 
  made 
  by 
  haul 
  seines. 
  New 
  Jersey 
  

   landings 
  of 
  223,000 
  pounds 
  were 
  taken 
  principally 
  by 
  otter 
  trawls 
  . 
  

  

  Butterfish 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  1.5 
  million 
  pounds 
  worth 
  $262,000 
  declined 
  39 
  percent 
  in 
  volume 
  and 
  5 
  

   percent 
  in 
  value 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  Fishermen 
  found 
  that 
  the 
  fish 
  were 
  about 
  as 
  plentiful 
  as 
  u- 
  

   sual 
  but 
  were 
  considerably 
  smaller 
  than 
  in 
  previous 
  years 
  . 
  Otter 
  trawl 
  fishermen 
  were 
  discouraged 
  

   by 
  the 
  loss 
  entailed 
  in 
  culling 
  unmarketable 
  small 
  butterfish 
  from 
  the 
  catch. 
  Losses 
  were 
  some- 
  

   times 
  as 
  much 
  as 
  50 
  percent 
  per 
  trip. 
  

  

  Oysters 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  1.4 
  million 
  pounds 
  of 
  oyster 
  meats 
  worth 
  $1.8 
  million 
  increased 
  7 
  percent 
  in 
  

   volume 
  and 
  31 
  percent 
  in 
  value 
  compared 
  with 
  1969 
  . 
  Landings 
  were 
  the 
  best 
  in 
  New 
  York 
  (520 
  ,000 
  

   pounds) 
  since 
  1962 
  and 
  in 
  Delaware 
  (216 
  ,000 
  pounds) 
  since 
  1959. 
  However, 
  New 
  Jersey 
  landings 
  

   (677,000 
  pounds) 
  were 
  the 
  smallest 
  since 
  1965. 
  In 
  New 
  York, 
  efforts 
  made 
  by 
  the 
  industry 
  to 
  grow 
  

   seed 
  and 
  transplant 
  it 
  to 
  areas 
  for 
  oyster 
  growing 
  began 
  to 
  show 
  favorable 
  results 
  . 
  Most 
  of 
  these 
  

   oysters 
  were 
  sold 
  on 
  the 
  market 
  as 
  half-shell 
  trade 
  and 
  brought 
  good 
  prices 
  to 
  fishermen. 
  In 
  1970, 
  

   the 
  average 
  price 
  per 
  pound 
  was 
  $2.07. 
  Delaware 
  landings 
  were 
  more 
  than 
  four 
  times 
  the 
  produc- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  previous 
  year. 
  Most 
  of 
  the 
  oysters 
  were 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  Delaware 
  Bay. 
  In 
  New 
  Jersey, 
  

   the 
  sharp 
  decline 
  in 
  landings 
  resulted 
  from 
  high 
  mortalities 
  caused 
  by 
  borers 
  and 
  the 
  MSX 
  disease 
  , 
  

   unfavorable 
  weather 
  at 
  times 
  of 
  peak 
  demand, 
  poor 
  recovery 
  of 
  meats, 
  and 
  lack 
  of 
  shuckers 
  at 
  fish 
  

   processing 
  plants. 
  

  

  Hard 
  blue 
  crabs 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  1.4 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  worth 
  $220,000 
  — 
  an 
  increase 
  of 
  20 
  percent 
  

   in 
  quantity 
  and 
  52 
  percent 
  in 
  value 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  In 
  1970, 
  the 
  average 
  price 
  per 
  pound 
  was 
  

   16 
  cents--about 
  3 
  cents 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  fishery 
  is 
  confined 
  to 
  New 
  Jersey 
  and 
  Delaware. 
  

   Delaware 
  Bay 
  is 
  the 
  principal 
  area 
  for 
  hard 
  blue 
  crab 
  production. 
  In 
  1970, 
  92 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  land- 
  

   ings 
  were 
  taken 
  there 
  by 
  pot 
  fishermen 
  from 
  both 
  States 
  . 
  

  

  Sea 
  scallops 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  635, 
  000 
  pounds 
  of 
  sea 
  scallop 
  meats 
  worth 
  $835,000 
  decreased 
  30 
  per- 
  

   cent 
  in 
  volume 
  and 
  15 
  percent 
  in 
  value 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  Landings 
  were 
  the 
  smallest 
  since 
  

   1944. 
  Fishing 
  effort 
  declined 
  as 
  the 
  available 
  stock 
  of 
  sea 
  scallops 
  dwindled. 
  Exvessel 
  prices 
  

   averaged 
  $1.31 
  per 
  pound 
  — 
  a 
  gain 
  of 
  23 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  

  

  Bay 
  scallops 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  365,000 
  pounds 
  of 
  bay 
  scallop 
  meats 
  worth 
  $470,000 
  were 
  47 
  percent 
  

   greater 
  in 
  quantity 
  and 
  25 
  percent 
  greater 
  in 
  value 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  bay 
  scallop 
  fishery 
  is 
  con- 
  

   fined 
  to 
  New 
  York. 
  Most 
  of 
  the 
  production 
  came 
  from 
  bays 
  on 
  the 
  eastern 
  end 
  of 
  Long 
  Island. 
  An 
  

   abundance 
  of 
  grass 
  in 
  Great 
  South 
  Bay 
  made 
  dredging 
  difficult, 
  and 
  most 
  fishermen 
  left 
  it 
  to 
  enter 
  

   the 
  high-priced 
  hard 
  clam 
  fishery. 
  

  

  Other 
  information 
  . 
  Additional 
  data 
  may 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  New 
  York 
  and 
  New 
  Jersey 
  monthly 
  and 
  an- 
  

   nual 
  landings 
  bulletins 
  published 
  in 
  the 
  Current 
  Fishery 
  Statistics 
  Series 
  by 
  the 
  Statistics 
  and 
  Mar- 
  

   ket 
  News 
  Division 
  in 
  cooperation 
  with 
  the 
  respective 
  States. 
  Information 
  on 
  daily, 
  monthly, 
  and 
  

   annual 
  productionof 
  fishery 
  products 
  in 
  selected 
  areas 
  of 
  these 
  States 
  is 
  available 
  in 
  reports 
  pub- 
  

   lished 
  by 
  NMFS's 
  Fishery 
  Market 
  News 
  Service 
  in 
  New 
  York 
  City. 
  

  

  Acknowledgments 
  . 
  The 
  following 
  organizations 
  helped 
  collect 
  the 
  data 
  appearing 
  in 
  this 
  section: 
  

   New 
  York 
  Conservation 
  Department, 
  Marine 
  Fisheries 
  Division 
  and 
  Division 
  of 
  Fish 
  and 
  Game; 
  

   New 
  Jersey 
  Conservation 
  Department, 
  Division 
  of 
  Fish 
  and 
  Game, 
  and 
  New 
  Jersey 
  Shellfish 
  Com- 
  

   mission; 
  and 
  State 
  of 
  Delaware 
  Commission 
  of 
  Shellfisheries 
  . 
  

  

  