﻿STATISTICAL 
  SURVEY 
  PROCEDURE 
  

  

  Data 
  on 
  over 
  96 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  catch 
  are 
  available 
  from 
  summaries 
  of 
  monthly 
  landings 
  bul- 
  

   letins 
  and 
  other 
  current 
  records 
  assembled 
  by 
  NMFS 
  or 
  the 
  various 
  States. 
  If 
  complete 
  catch 
  data 
  

   are 
  not 
  available 
  from 
  central 
  sources, 
  wholesale 
  dealers 
  and 
  manufacturers 
  of 
  fishery 
  products 
  

   are 
  visited, 
  and 
  data 
  are 
  obtained 
  from 
  them 
  on 
  their 
  purchases 
  of 
  fish 
  and 
  shellfish. 
  It 
  is 
  im- 
  

   possible 
  for 
  the 
  few 
  Service 
  representatives 
  available 
  for 
  this 
  work 
  to 
  interview 
  each 
  fisherman 
  

   in 
  a 
  given 
  locality. 
  However, 
  the 
  more 
  important 
  areas 
  and 
  a 
  sufficient 
  number 
  of 
  areas 
  of 
  les- 
  

   ser 
  importance 
  are 
  visited 
  to 
  obtain 
  reliable 
  information 
  on 
  production, 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  fishing 
  

   craft 
  engaged, 
  the 
  quantity 
  of 
  gear 
  operated, 
  catch 
  by 
  gear 
  and 
  waters, 
  and 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  per- 
  

   sons 
  employed 
  as 
  fishermen. 
  

  

  The 
  Service's 
  role 
  with 
  regard 
  to 
  fishery 
  statistics 
  is 
  principally 
  that 
  of 
  coordinating 
  the 
  col- 
  

   lection 
  of 
  information 
  and 
  assembling, 
  analyzing, 
  publishing, 
  and 
  disseminating 
  fishery 
  data. 
  

   The 
  State 
  fishery 
  agencies 
  in 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  States 
  have 
  developed 
  relatively 
  complete 
  statistical 
  

   systems 
  which 
  greatly 
  facilitate 
  the 
  Service's 
  surveys 
  in 
  these 
  States. 
  In 
  such 
  instances, 
  the 
  

   Service 
  conducts 
  only 
  such 
  surveys 
  as 
  may 
  be 
  necessary 
  to 
  make 
  the 
  data 
  comparable 
  with 
  those 
  

   of 
  other 
  States 
  . 
  

  

  NMFS 
  obtains 
  from 
  the 
  records 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  fishery 
  agencies 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  catch 
  statistics 
  for 
  

   the 
  fisheries 
  of 
  the 
  Great 
  Lakes, 
  the 
  northern 
  Mississippi 
  River 
  area, 
  and 
  the 
  International 
  Lakes 
  

   of 
  northern 
  Minnesota. 
  To 
  obtain 
  data 
  on 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  fishermen, 
  boats, 
  vessels, 
  and 
  gear, 
  the 
  

   Service 
  conducts 
  such 
  personal 
  surveys 
  among 
  the 
  fishermen 
  as 
  may 
  be 
  necessary 
  to 
  supplement 
  

   the 
  State 
  records 
  . 
  

  

  NMFS 
  statistical 
  personnel 
  are 
  stationed 
  at 
  Seattle, 
  Wash, 
  and 
  Terminal 
  Island, 
  Cal. 
  for 
  

   the 
  purpose 
  of 
  surveying 
  the 
  fisheries 
  of 
  Washington, 
  Oregon, 
  and 
  California. 
  They 
  obtain 
  from 
  

   the 
  records 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  fishery 
  departments 
  figures 
  on 
  the 
  volume 
  of 
  the 
  catch 
  and 
  operating 
  

   units. 
  The 
  value 
  of 
  the 
  catch 
  is 
  derived 
  from 
  State 
  and 
  dealers 
  records. 
  In 
  Washington 
  and 
  

   Oregon, 
  data 
  for 
  operating 
  units 
  in 
  the 
  offshore 
  fisheries 
  are 
  obtained 
  from 
  the 
  records 
  of 
  various 
  

   fishery 
  organizations 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  from 
  records 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  fishery 
  agencies. 
  Statistics 
  on 
  the 
  

   wholesale 
  fishery 
  industry 
  for 
  this 
  section 
  are 
  obtained 
  largely 
  by 
  personal 
  interviews. 
  

  

  In 
  many 
  States, 
  NMFS 
  and 
  the 
  fishery 
  agency 
  of 
  the 
  respective 
  StatesE 
  cooperate 
  in 
  the 
  collec- 
  

   tion 
  and 
  publication 
  of 
  current 
  monthly 
  and 
  annual 
  data 
  on 
  the 
  catch. 
  These 
  data 
  form 
  the 
  basis 
  

   of 
  the 
  annual 
  catch 
  figures 
  published 
  in 
  the 
  Digest 
  for 
  the 
  following 
  States: 
  Maine, 
  Massachu- 
  

   setts, 
  Rhodelsiand, 
  New 
  York, 
  New 
  Jersey, 
  Maryland, 
  Virginia, 
  North 
  Carolina, 
  South 
  Carolina, 
  

   Georgia, 
  Florida, 
  Alabama, 
  Mississippi, 
  Louisiana, 
  Texas, 
  Ohio, 
  Michigan, 
  and 
  Wisconsin. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  administration 
  of 
  the 
  Alaska 
  fisheries, 
  the 
  State 
  requires 
  that 
  copies 
  of 
  all 
  receipts 
  for 
  

   fish 
  and 
  shellfish 
  purchases 
  from 
  fishermen 
  be 
  furnished 
  to 
  the 
  Alaska 
  Department 
  of 
  Fish 
  and 
  

   Game. 
  The 
  data 
  on 
  these 
  tickets 
  are 
  compiled 
  and 
  made 
  available 
  to 
  NMFS. 
  The 
  summary 
  data, 
  

   by 
  districts, 
  are 
  reproduced 
  in 
  this 
  report. 
  

  

  Statistics 
  on 
  the 
  volume 
  of 
  the 
  catch 
  of 
  fish 
  in 
  the 
  Great 
  Lakes 
  States 
  usually 
  are 
  shown 
  in 
  

   weights 
  as 
  landed, 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  in 
  the 
  round 
  or 
  drawn 
  condition. 
  Statistics 
  on 
  the 
  volume 
  of 
  the 
  

   catch 
  of 
  fish 
  taken 
  in 
  the 
  remainder 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  are 
  usually 
  shown 
  in 
  round 
  weight. 
  

  

  The 
  figures 
  in 
  the 
  tables 
  for 
  shellfish 
  represent 
  the 
  weight 
  of 
  the 
  meats 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  uni- 
  

   valve 
  and 
  bivalve 
  moUusks, 
  and 
  round 
  weight 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  crustaceans 
  and 
  such 
  cephalopods 
  

   as 
  squid 
  and 
  octopus. 
  

  

  