composition that could be attributed to the operation of Millstone Units 

 1 and 2. 



LOBSTER POPULATION DYNAMICS 



The American lobster is the most valuable commercial species in 

 Connecticut waters and record landings were reported for 1983. The 

 lobster population in the Millstone Point area was sampled from May 

 through October 1983 using wire traps set at three locations; lobsters 

 were later tagged and released at the site of capture. Size 

 frequencies, sex ratios, growth rates, molting and movement patterns, 

 and population size were estimated to evaluate the potential impacts of 

 the operation of the Millstone Nuclear Power Station. 



The 1983 total catch and catch per unit effort (CPUE) were within 

 the range of values reported since 1978, when wire pots were first used. 

 Catch per 100 pots was 146 for all sizes of lobsters and 15 for 

 legal-sized lobsters( 2:81 mm carapace length) . The percentage of 

 legal-sized lobsters (10.1%) during 1983 was greater than that of all 

 previous years when wire pots were used. The higher percentage of 

 legal-sized lobsters in our catch, and the record lobster landings 

 reported for Connecticut waters in 1983, was the result of a strong 

 prerecruit size class (one molt from legal-size) observed in the 1982 

 catch. Several factors were found to cause variability in the catch 

 over the sampling period. These factors include the seasonal change in 

 water temperature, the variability among pots (within and among 

 stations) , the amount of time between pot hauls (soaktime) , and the 

 abundance of crabs and fish in the pots. 



The 1983 values for size structure, sex ratios, growth per molt, 

 and percentage of culls were within the range reported in previous years 

 and within the ranges reported along the northeast coast of North 

 America. A higher percentage of egg-bearing females was found in 1983 

 than in any year since wire pots were first used. A peak molting period 

 occurred in early summer at water temperatures between 13-16°C and a 

 smaller secondary peak occurred in autumn at water temperatures of about 

 16°C. 



