Martini et al.: Population profile of Gulf of Maine Myxine glutinosa 
319 
surface waters of the Gulf of Maine (Bigelow, 1914). 
This combination of factors suggests that hagfish 
released at the surface or escaping from a trap within 
superficial water layers are unlikely to reach the 
bottom alive. 6 
On some commercial hagfishing trips, up to 70% 
of the catch (by weight) was discarded as unmarket- 
able (Gryska 7 ; the average for late 1995 was esti- 
mated at 41.1% (Kuenstner, 1996). The number of 
escaping animals cannot be estimated. It is there- 
fore possible that the number of individuals removed 
from the environment may be twice the number 
landed onshore. Although the hagfish population 
present in the Gulf of Maine as a whole might well 
support such a harvest for a time, this level of fish- 
ing pressure could not be sustained. Because the fish- 
ing effort is not randomly distributed throughout the 
Gulf of Maine, the populations at sites targeted by 
this fishery can be expected to decline much more 
precipitously. There are already anecdotal reports 
suggesting that after only two years the catch per 
trap set has declined, and the average size of caught 
hagfish is decreasing (Hall-Arber, 1996). 
It is not known what effects a decline in hagfish 
abundance will have on benthic ecology. However, 
from a regulatory perspective it is obviously difficult 
to set politically viable quotas or guidelines for a fish- 
ery when virtually nothing definitive is known about 
1) the size of the population, 2) reproductive poten- 
tial, 3) individual growth rates, or 4) longevity. There 
is therefore an urgent need for increased research 
on the basic biology and ecology of this interesting 
species. 
Acknowledgments 
This study was funded in part by a grant from the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s 
National Undersea Research Center at the Univer- 
sity of Connecticutt, Avery Pt., CT. The authors would 
like to thank the crew and staff of the RV Seward 
Johnson and the Johnson SeaLink submersible for 
their assistance with this project. Time aboard the 
research vessel John M. Kingsbury and logistical 
support at sea and ashore were generously provided 
by the Shoals Marine Laboratory, Cornell Univer- 
sity, Ithaca, NY. The collection of animals at 
Stellwagen Bank was performed by Ed Lyman and 
6 For release of live hagfish, the Shoals Marine Laboratory uses 
special gear that holds the animals in a volume of chilled, full- 
salinity sea water until the apparatus contacts the bottom. 
7 Gryska, A. 1994. New England Fish. Development Assoc., 
451 D St., Boston, MA. Personal obs. 
the staff and students on the research vessel West- 
ward , operated by the Sea Education Association of 
Woods Hole, MA. Alexander Gryska and Susan 
Kuenstner of the New England Fisheries Develop- 
ment Association provided statistics and other tech- 
nical information concerning the hagfish fishery, in- 
cluding the length data presented in Figure 5. 
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