surveys should commence as early as possible to' estimate the acnjlt 

 spawning population. Efforts should focus only on fish 150 mm/ or larger 

 (fish age 2 and older). The relationship between the population estimates 

 and the trawl cat ch-per -unit-effort (CPUE) was examined as the latter 

 measure is more easily obtained and may be used in models which only 

 require relative rather than absolute measures of abundance. No satisfac- 

 tory relationship was found as of yet and further efforts should be made 

 in this area. 



Life history information gathered as part of the winter flounder 

 population surveys were examined and parameters such as age structure, 

 fecundity, and mortality have also been used in the impact assessment 

 model. Efforts should be made to improve the classification of sex and 

 reproductive condition of adults. The size at which 50% of the females 

 are mature should be determined to improve estimates of egg production; 

 the geometric mean regression of log length - log fecundity should also 

 be used in these calculations. Additional measurements of winter flounder 

 during the surveys and a stratified subsample selected for aging may 

 improve estimates of age structure. The cohort - specific methods of 

 calculating mortality were examined and were found to produce higher 

 estimates of survival than previously reported. A disc tagging program 

 has been underway since 1980 and is providing information concerning 

 movements and estimates of fishing mortality. 



The larvae of winter flounder have formed an important component of 

 the winter-spring ichthyoplankton and their entrainment is the largest 

 source of impact at Millstone. The entrainment sampling program has 

 remained relatively stable over the years, and at a probability of 0.61 

 can detect a mean annual difference in density of 0.15 (log _ transformed 



