sustainable fishing levels in areas that have 

 lower exploitation rates. 



Craig and Scharf 's projects will provide 

 a direct comparison of the exploitation rates of 

 two North Carolina rivers. If the exploitation 

 rates are different, regional management 

 discussions would have new data. 



READING THE RINGS 



Tag returns from the two-year studies 

 will provide additional clues about the 

 migratory patterns of southern flounder in the 



LEFT: Smith secures an orange cinch-up tag 

 on a mature southern flounder. RIGHT: Bogey is 

 one of several commercial fishers involved in the 

 FRG-funded southern flounder studies. 



region. The numbered tags allow researchers 

 to track when and where the flounder move 

 over the course of the projects. 



Used in conjunction with Taylor's 

 otolith data, this will provide fishery managers 

 with a more complete understanding of 

 how flounder move into and out of estuaries 



throughout their lifetime. 



This detail is key — because what 

 southern flounder do offshore affects their 

 management in inshore areas, not only in North 

 Carolina, but other states as well. 



The information from each project adds 

 up, like layers or rings — it is only a matter of 

 finding people to interpret them. □ 



To access the full Southern Flounder 

 Fishery Management Plan, visit the N. C. 

 Division of Marine Fisheries Web site at 

 www.ncfisheries.net. 



FRG TAKES TEAM APPROACH 



Commercial fishers are an integral part of the 

 N.C. Fishery Resource Grant (FRG) program. The 

 basic principle of the program is that people in the 

 industry often have the best ideas for improving and 

 protecting fisheries but may lack the financial resources 

 or scientific backgrounds to conduct experiments, 

 collect data and analyze results. By participating in the 

 program, fishers have a direct impact on the resources 

 they depend upon for their livelihood. 



North Carolina Sea Grant works to pair 

 people and ideas from the industry with academic 

 researchers and students to carry out the projects. It 

 takes the cooperation of all these parties to produce 

 the high-quality results for which the FRG program is 

 recognized. 



Fred Scharf would like to acknowledge the following participants: 



• Howard Bogey, commercial fisherman, Swansboro 



• Billy Ray Sanderford, commercial fisherman, Jacksonville 



• William Smith, graduate student, University of North Carolina at Wilmington 



• Kyle Rommel, undergraduate, University of North Carolina at Wilmington 



Kevin Craig would like to acknowledge the following participants: 



• Steve Notargiacomo, commercial fisherman, Havelock 



• Pete Darna, commercial fisherman, Merritt 



• Tommy McArthur, commercial fisherman, Beaufort 



• Zac Tait, undergraduate, North Carolina State University 



• Matt Kenworthy, undergraduate, North Carolina State University 



• David Heithaus, summer research technician 



Chris Taylor would like to acknowledge the following participant: 



• David Hilton, commercial fisherman, Ocracoke 



Coastwatch I Spring 2006 I www.ncseagrant.org 25 



