A study designed specifically to determine movements and exploitation by the sport and commercial 

 fisheries was undertaken from December 1980 through September 1983. Each of 4,978 specimens larger 

 than 20 cm was tagged with a Petersen disc (Table 18). Most were released in the Niantic River (46%) 

 and Bay (31%). About 61% were females, 29% were males, and 10% were fish whose sex was not 

 determined, mostly because of their smaller size. 



More than half (57%) of the 1,227 recaptures were made within 6 mo of release (Table 19). Larger 

 percentages of fish were taken more quickly by NUSCo sampling than by the fisheries because sampling 

 was concentrated in the Niantic River shortly after most were released. Also, tagged fish set free in special 

 studies near the MNPS intakes tended to be impinged quickly, if at all. Recaptures dropped off rapidly 

 after 1984 with only 20 returns for 1985 and 2 in 1986. None of the latter fish were tagged in 1980 or 

 1981; about 40% were released in 1982 and 60% in 1983. 



The overall rate of return through 1986 was 25%, with 40% of the recaptures made by sport fishermen, 

 33% from NUSCo sampling activities, 24% from the commercial fishery, 2% from fish impinged on the 

 MNPS traveling screens, and 1% from miscellaneous sources. This suggested that the sport fishery is a 

 significant source of mortality for the Niantic River winter flounder, also noted by Sampson (1981) and 

 Blake and Smith (1984). However, judging by the number of tags received from fish markets and processing 

 plants, cooperation by commercial fishermen in returning tags was most likely less than for sport fishermen. 

 The rates of return for each tagging area (ignoring NUSCo recaptures because of the disproportionate 

 effort in the Niantic River) were similar and ranged from 1 1 % for fish released at Bartlett Reef and the 

 MNPS intakes to 16-17% for Niantic River and Bay and Twotree, and 26% for .Jordan Cove. 



The returns from the sport and commercial fisheries varied by location of release. The sport fishery 

 took about three-quarters of the recaptured fish that were released in the Niantic River and .Jordan Cove 

 embayments. The return from the Niantic Bay and Twotree releases was neariy equal between the two 

 fisheries, but about twice as many fish were caught by the commercial as the sport fishery from the deeper 

 water Bartlett Reef station. 



Sixty-five percent of the recaptures were female, 31% were male, and 4% were fish of undetermined 

 sex. Similar (27%) proportions of all males and females released were caught again, but only 10% of the 

 undetermined fish were recaptured. It was suggested in NUSCo (1985) that because the latter fish were 



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