Able et al.: Larval abundance of Paralichthys dentatus as a measure of recruitment and stock status 
73 
2008 
2007 
2006 
2005 
2004 
2003 
2002 
2001 
2000 
1399 
1998 
1997 
1996 
1995 
1994 
1993 
1992 
1991 
1990 
1989 
1988 
1987 
1986 
Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina (1986-2004) 
I i i i ii i -t "T" , ..,|.- r . T .. r . Tr - rrr ,-. T - T t 
Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sept 
Month 
140/ 1000m* 
70/ 1000m* 
o 
35/ 1000m* 
o 
15/ 1000m 2 
O 
7/ 1000m* 
0/ 1000m* 
Figure 4 
Mean weekly abundance of summer flounder ( Paralichthys dentatus) larvae ingressing into (A) 
Little Egg Inlet, New Jersey, and (B) Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina. Data for overlapping years 
and months are denoted by the gray rectangles. Summer flounder abundance is proportional to the 
size of the circle area. Small open circles indicate a sample was taken, but no larvae were caught. 
The bold vertical line indicates average date of 50% ingress for each series. Data for a given year 
class began in October of the previous year. 
spring only (Smith, 1973; Weinstein, 1979; Bozeman 
and Dean, 1980; Hettler and Chester, 1990; Burke et 
al., 2000; this study). 
Although there are clear differences between Little 
Egg Inlet and Beaufort Inlet with respect to timing and 
abundance at ingress, size and developmental stage at 
ingress are similar (Keefe and Able, 1993; Forward et 
al., 1999; this study). The present analysis indicates 
that these trends are consistent over time and space 
and likely occur at other inlets along the east coast 
of the United States (e.g., Hare et al., 2005). These 
findings do not counter the multiple stock hypothesis, 
rather they suggest a narrow biological window (optimal 
length and stage) exists for successful entry of summer 
flounder larvae into estuarine nursery habitats. 
The possible existence of multiple summer flounder 
stocks is not new and has been frequently discussed 
and debated in the literature (see Burke et al., 2000; 
Kraus and Musick, 2001; Terceiro, 2002; Collette and 
Klein-McPhee, 2002, for reviews). The Beaufort In- 
let site likely represents a winter spawning “southern 
stock” (or stocks) — also termed a coastal North Carolina 
stock. The Little Egg Inlet site likely represents a fall 
spawning “northern stock” — also termed a Mid-Atlantic 
stock. This interpretation is consistent with the stock 
hypothesis of Burke et al. (2000) and Kraus and Musick 
