﻿176 
  

  

  SOUTH 
  ATLANTIC 
  FISHERIES 
  

  

  Hard 
  blue 
  crabs 
  . 
  The 
  4 
  2. 
  7 
  -million-pound 
  landings 
  were 
  3 
  percent 
  more 
  than 
  in 
  1969 
  and 
  the 
  best 
  

   production 
  since 
  1965. 
  Fishermen 
  in 
  both 
  North 
  and 
  South 
  Carolina 
  made 
  unusually 
  good 
  catches 
  

   during 
  the 
  first 
  quarter 
  of 
  the 
  year, 
  but, 
  as 
  the 
  season 
  progressed, 
  catches 
  declined 
  below 
  the 
  

   comparable 
  periods 
  of 
  1969. 
  North 
  Carolina 
  landings 
  of 
  20.9 
  million 
  pounds 
  and 
  South 
  Carolina 
  

   landings 
  of 
  7.0 
  million 
  were 
  both 
  1.3 
  million 
  pounds 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  the 
  previous 
  year. 
  Offsetting 
  

   this 
  decline, 
  Georgia 
  landings 
  of 
  7 
  . 
  1 
  million 
  pounds 
  increased 
  38 
  percent 
  and 
  Florida, 
  East 
  Coast 
  

   landings 
  (7.8 
  million) 
  increased 
  36 
  percent 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  In 
  Georgia, 
  officials 
  closed 
  St. 
  

   Simons 
  Sound 
  to 
  fishing 
  because 
  mercury 
  contamination 
  was 
  discovered 
  there. 
  A 
  considerable 
  

   number 
  of 
  crab 
  fishermen 
  were 
  affected 
  adversely 
  by 
  the 
  closure. 
  

  

  Shrimp 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  20 
  . 
  6 
  million 
  pounds 
  (heads 
  -on) 
  worth 
  $11 
  .4 
  milliondeclined 
  6.7 
  million 
  pounds 
  

   (25 
  percent) 
  and 
  $4.8 
  million 
  (30 
  percent) 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  Exvessel 
  prices 
  were 
  generally 
  

   lower 
  than 
  in 
  the 
  previous 
  year. 
  The 
  average 
  price 
  per 
  pound 
  was 
  55 
  cents--4 
  cents 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  

   1969. 
  Jumbo 
  and 
  large 
  shrimp 
  (under 
  15 
  to 
  30 
  tails 
  per 
  pound) 
  were 
  46 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  land- 
  

   ings 
  — 
  compared 
  with 
  31 
  percent 
  in 
  1969. 
  The 
  decline 
  in 
  the 
  average 
  exvessel 
  price 
  paid 
  for 
  each 
  

   size 
  ranged 
  from 
  7 
  to 
  14 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  

  

  North 
  Carolina 
  landings 
  of 
  5.1 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  2.8 
  million 
  less 
  than 
  the 
  exceptionally 
  

   good 
  production 
  of 
  the 
  previous 
  year. 
  Landings 
  of 
  brown 
  shrimp 
  declined 
  35 
  percent 
  and 
  pink 
  

   shrimp, 
  50 
  percent 
  compared 
  with 
  1969. 
  White 
  shrimp 
  landings, 
  however, 
  were 
  36 
  percent 
  great- 
  

   er 
  than 
  in 
  1969 
  and 
  the 
  best 
  production 
  since 
  1966. 
  In 
  September, 
  white 
  shrimp 
  appeared 
  in 
  the 
  

   waters 
  of 
  Pamlico 
  Sound 
  for 
  the 
  first 
  time 
  since 
  1953. 
  

  

  Compared 
  with 
  1969, 
  South 
  Carolina 
  landings 
  of 
  5 
  million 
  pounds 
  declined 
  15 
  percent 
  and 
  

   Georgia 
  landings 
  of 
  6 
  million 
  declined 
  29 
  percent. 
  The 
  fall 
  white 
  shrimp 
  season 
  was 
  poor, 
  and 
  

   production 
  was 
  down 
  33 
  percent 
  in 
  South 
  Carolina 
  and 
  34 
  percent 
  in 
  Georgia. 
  Brown 
  shrimp 
  land- 
  

   ings, 
  however, 
  increased 
  52 
  percent 
  in 
  South 
  Carolina 
  and 
  13 
  percent 
  in 
  Georgia 
  — 
  probably 
  because 
  

   of 
  a 
  good 
  spring 
  and 
  summer 
  run 
  in 
  both 
  States. 
  Florida, 
  East 
  Coast 
  landings 
  (4.6 
  million 
  pounds) 
  

   were 
  11 
  percent 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  As 
  in 
  South 
  Carolina 
  and 
  Georgia, 
  a 
  poor 
  white 
  shrimp 
  season 
  

   in 
  the 
  fall 
  was 
  a 
  major 
  factor 
  in 
  the 
  decline. 
  In 
  North 
  Carolina, 
  the 
  average 
  price 
  per 
  pound 
  de- 
  

   clined 
  sharply 
  from 
  57 
  cents 
  in 
  1969 
  to 
  49 
  cents 
  in 
  1970. 
  In 
  both 
  South 
  Carolina 
  and 
  Georgia, 
  

   fishermen 
  received 
  an 
  average 
  price 
  of 
  59 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  in 
  1969; 
  but 
  in 
  1970 
  the 
  average 
  price 
  

   in 
  South 
  Carolina 
  was 
  58 
  cents 
  per 
  pound 
  and 
  in 
  Georgia, 
  56 
  cents. 
  In 
  Florida, 
  East 
  Coast, 
  the 
  

   average 
  price 
  per 
  pound 
  was 
  57 
  cents--7 
  cents 
  less 
  than 
  in 
  1969. 
  

  

  Spiny 
  lobsters 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  3 
  . 
  1 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  760,000 
  pounds 
  (20 
  percent) 
  less 
  than 
  the 
  

   record 
  production 
  of 
  1969. 
  In 
  that 
  year, 
  United 
  States 
  fishermen 
  made 
  catches 
  in 
  waters 
  off 
  the 
  

   Bahama 
  Islands 
  that 
  contributed 
  substantially 
  to 
  the 
  record 
  landings. 
  In 
  1970, 
  however, 
  the 
  Ba- 
  

   hamian 
  Government 
  had 
  established 
  a 
  12-mile 
  territorial 
  sea 
  limit 
  before 
  the 
  fishing 
  season 
  began. 
  

   The 
  restriction 
  kept 
  some 
  U.S. 
  fishermen 
  from 
  their 
  accustomed 
  fishing 
  areas 
  and 
  accordingly 
  cur- 
  

   tailed 
  production. 
  In 
  addition, 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  Georgia, 
  acting 
  to 
  assist 
  Florida 
  in 
  the 
  management 
  of 
  

   its 
  spiny 
  lobster 
  fishery, 
  prohibited 
  lobster 
  landings 
  in 
  Georgia 
  from 
  April 
  1 
  to 
  August 
  31. 
  Florida 
  

   legislation 
  already 
  prohibited 
  landings, 
  regardless 
  of 
  origin 
  of 
  the 
  catches, 
  during 
  the 
  closed 
  sea- 
  

   son. 
  

  

  With 
  landings 
  prohibited 
  in 
  both 
  Georgia 
  and 
  Florida 
  ports 
  during 
  the 
  closed 
  season, 
  a 
  few 
  

   vessels 
  made 
  small 
  landings 
  of 
  spiny 
  lobsters 
  at 
  South 
  Carolina 
  ports 
  . 
  In 
  1970, 
  fishermen 
  received 
  

   an 
  average 
  price 
  of 
  61 
  cents 
  per 
  pound--compared 
  with 
  69 
  cents 
  in 
  1969. 
  

  

  Calico 
  scallops 
  . 
  Landings 
  of 
  1 
  . 
  8 
  million 
  pounds 
  of 
  meats 
  worth 
  $7 
  29,000 
  increased 
  1.6 
  million 
  

   pounds 
  and 
  $556,000 
  compared 
  with 
  1969 
  . 
  North 
  Carolina 
  accounted 
  for 
  86 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  landings 
  . 
  

   It 
  was 
  the 
  first 
  time 
  in 
  2 
  years 
  that 
  fishermen 
  had 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  locate 
  calico 
  scallops 
  insufficient 
  

   quantities 
  in 
  North 
  Carolina 
  waters 
  to 
  provide 
  good 
  fishing. 
  Catches 
  were 
  consistently 
  good 
  

   throughout 
  the 
  year. 
  Landings 
  might 
  have 
  increased 
  if 
  enough 
  workers 
  (principally 
  shuckers) 
  had 
  

   been 
  available 
  in 
  the 
  processing 
  plants 
  to 
  handle 
  the 
  greater 
  volume. 
  The 
  two 
  new 
  vessels 
  that 
  

   were 
  completely 
  mechanized 
  for 
  processing 
  their 
  catches 
  of 
  calico 
  scallops 
  at 
  sea 
  fished 
  off 
  both 
  

   North 
  Carolina 
  and 
  Florida. 
  

  

  