NOAA Technical Report NMFS SSRF- 684 l^&'i ^^4rEs o^ ^^ Age and Size Composition of tlie Atlantic Menhaden, Brevoortia tyrannus, Purse Seine Catch, 1963-71, with a Bnef Discussion of the Fishery WILLIAM R.NICHOLSON SEATTLE, WA June 1975 NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION National Marine Fisheries Service NOAA TECHNICAL REPORTS National Marine Fisheries Service, Special Scientific Report— Fisheries Series The major responsibilities of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) are to monitor and assess the abundance and geographic distribution of fishery resources, to understand and predict fluctuations in the quantity and distribution of these resources, and to establish levels for optimum use of the resources- NMFS is also charged with the development and implementation of policies for managing national fishing grounds, development and enforcement of domestic fisheries regulations, surveillance of foreign fishing off United States coastal waters, and the development and enforcement of international fishery agreements and policies. NMFS also assists the fishing industry through marketing service and economic analysis programs, and mortgage insurance and vessel construction subsidies. It collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on various phases of the industry. The Special Scientific Report — Fisheries series was established in 1949. The series carries reports on scientific investigations that document long-term continuing programs of NMFS. or intensive scientific reports on studies of restricted scope. The reports may deal with applied fishery problems. The series is also used as a medium for the publica- tion of bibliographies of a specialized scientific nature. NOAA Technical Reports NMFS SSRF are available free in limited numbers to governmental agencies, both Federal and State. They are also available in exchange for other scientific and technical publications in the marine sciences. Individual copies may be obtained {unless otherwise noted) from D83. Technical Information Division. Environmental Science Information Center, NOAA. Washington. D.C. 20235. Recent SSRF's are: 619. Macrozooplankton and small nekton in the coastal waters off Vancouver Island (Canada) and Washington, spring and fall of 1963. By Donald S. Day, January 1971, iii + 94 pp., 19 figs., 13 Ubles. 635. A bibliography of the blackfin tuna. Thunnus atlanticus (Lesson). By Grant L. Beardsley and David C. Simmons. August 1971. 10 pp. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents. U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, D.C. 20402. 620. The Trade Wind Zone Oceanography Pilot Study. Part DC; The sea-level wind field and wind stress values, July 1963 to June 1965. By Gunter R. Seckel. June 1970, iii + 66 pp., 5 figs. 636. Oil pollution on Wake Island from the tanker R. C. Stoner. By Reginald M. Gooding. May 1971, iii + 12 pp., 8 figs., 2 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of DocumenU, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington. DC. 20402. 621. Predation by sculpins on fall chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha. fry of hatchery origin. By Benjamin G. Patten. February 1971, iii + 14 pp., 6 figs., 9 tables. 622. Number and lengths, by season, of fishes caught with an otter trawl near Woods Hole, Massachusetts, September 1961 to December 1962. By F. E. Lux and F. E. Nichy. February 1971, iii ■¥ 15 pp., 3 figs., 19 tables. 623. Apparent abundance, distribution, and migrations of albacore, Thunnus alalunga. on the North Pacific longline grounds. By Brian J. Rothschild and Marian Y. Y. Yong. September 1970, v + 37 pp., 19 figs.. 5 tables. 624. Influence of mechanical processing on the quality and yield of bay scallop meets. By N. B. Webb and F. B. Thomas. April 1971, iii + 11 pp., 9 figs.. 3 tables. 625. Distribution of salmon and related oceanographic features in the North Pacific Ocean, spring 1968. By Robert R. French, Richard G. Bakkala, Masanao Osako. and Jun Ito. March 1971. iii + 22 pp.. 19 figs., 3 tables. 626. Commercial fishery and biology of the freshwater shrimp, Macrobrachium, in the Lower St. Paul River, Liberia. 1952-53. By George C. Miller. February 1971. iii + 13 pp., 8 figs.. 7 tables. 627. Calico scallops of the Southeastern United States, 1959-69. By Robert Cummins. Jr. June 1971, iii + 22 pp.. 23 figs.. 3 tables. 628. Fur Seal Investigations, 1969. By NMFS, Marine Mammal Biological Laboratory. August 1971, 82 pp., 20 figs., 44 tables, 23 appendix A tables, 10 appendix B tables. 629. Analysis of the operations of seven Hawaiian skipjack tuna fishing vessels, June- August 1967. By Richard N, Uchida and Ray F. Sumida. March 1971. v + 25 pp.. 14 figs.. 21 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Of- fice. Washington. DC. 20402. 637. Occurrence of larval, juvenile, and mature crabs in the vicinity of Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina. By Donnie L. Dudley and Mayo H. Judy. August 1971, iii + 10 pp., 1 fig., 5 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. 638. Length-weight relations of haddock from commercial landings In New England, 1931-55. By Bradford E. Brown and Richard C. Hennemuth. August 1971, v + 13 pp., 16 figs.. 6 tables. 10 appendix A tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, DC. 20402. 639. A hydrographic survey of the Galveston Bay system. Texas 1963-66. By E. J. Putlen. W. L.Trent. andG. B. Adams October 1971. v + 13 pp., 15 figs.. 12 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. 640. Annotated bibliography on the fishing industry and biology of the blue crab, CalUnectes sapidus. By Marlin E. Tagatz and Ann Bowman Hall. August 1971. 94 pp. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC. 20402. 641. Use of threadfin shad. Dorosoma petenense, as live bait during experimental pole- and-line fishing for skipjack tuna, Katsuwonus pelamis, in Hawaii. By Robert T. B. Iversen. August 1971, iii + 10 pp., 3 figs., 7 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington. DC. 20402. 642. Atlantic menhaden Breuoortia tyrannus resource and fishery — analysis of decline. By Kenneth A. Henry. August 1971. v -t- 32 pp.. 40 figs.. 5 appendix figs., 3 tables. 2 appendix tables. For sale bv the Superintendent of Documents, U.S.-Govemment Printing Office. Washington. D.C. 20402. 643. Surface winds of the southeastern tropical Atlantic Ocean. By John M. Steigner and Merton C. Ingham. October 1971. iii + 20 pp., 17 figs. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, US, Government Printing Office, Washington. DC. 20402. 630. Blue crab meat. I. Preservation by freezing. July 1971, iii + 13 pp., 5 figs., 2 tables. n. Effect of chemical treatments on acceptability. By Jurgen H. Strasser, Jean S. Lennon. and Frederick J. King. July 1971. iii -t- 12 pp.. 1 fig.. 9 tables. 631. Occurrence of thiaminase in some common aquatic animals of the United States and Canada. By R. A. Greig and R. H. Gnaedinger. July 1971. iii + 7 pp., 2 tables. 632. An annotated bibliography of attempts to rear the larvae of marine fishes in the laboratory. By Robert C. May. August 1971. iii + 24 pp., 1 appendix I table, 1 appendix n table. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington. D.C. 20402 633. Blueing of processed crab meat. II. Identification of some factors involved in the blue discoloration of canned crab meat CatUnectes sapidus. By Melvin E. Waters. May 1971, iii + 7 pp.. 1 fig., 3 tables. 634. Age composition, weight, length, and sex of herring, Clupea pallasii, used for reduc- tion in Alaska, 1929-66. By Gerald M. Reid. July 1971, iii + 25 pp., 4 figs.. 18 Ubles. 644. Inhibition of flesh browning and skin color fading in frozen fillets of yelloweye snapper [Lutzanus vivanus). By Harold C. Thompson. Jr.. and Mary H, Thompson. February 1972, iii + 6 pp.. 3 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. 645. Traveling screen for removal of debris from rivers. By Daniel W. Bates. Ernest W. Murphey. and Martin G. Beam. October 1971, iii + 6 pp., 6 figs., 1 table. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. 646. Dissolved nitrogen concentrations in the Columbia and Snake Rivers in 1970 and their effect on chinook salmon and steelhead trout. By Wesley J. Ebel. August 1971, iij + 7 pp., 2 figs., 6 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington. D.C. 20402. 647. Revised annotated list of parasites from sea mammals caught off the west coast of North America. By L Margolis and M. D, Dailey. March 1972, iii + 23 pp. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. (Jovemment Printing Office, Washington. D.C. 20402. Continued on inside back cover. NOAA Technical Report NMFS SSRF- 684 Age and Size Composition of tlie Atlantic Menliaden, Brevoortia tyrannus, Purse Seine Catch, 1963-71, with a Brief Discussion of the Fishery WILLIAM R. NICHOLSON SEATTLE, WA June 1975 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE Rogers C. B. Morton, Secretary , NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION Robert M White, Administrator National Marine Fisheries Service Robert W Schoning, Director ■'"^'^sr^^'-' For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 The National Marine Fislieries Service (NMFS) does not approve, rec- ommend or endorse any proprietary product or proprietary material mentioned in this publication. No reference shall be made to NMFS, or to this publication furnished by NMFS, in any advertising or sales pro- motion which vi^ould indicate or imply that NMFS approves, recommends or endorses any proprietary product or proprietary material mentioned herein, or w^hich has as its purpose an intent to cause directly or indirectly the advertised product to be used or purchased because of this NMFS publication. CONTENTS Page Introduction 1 Changes in the fishery 2 Total catch 2 Fishing effort 3 Catch, effort, and catch per unit of effort 4 North and Middle Atlantic areas 4 Chesapeake Bay area 5 South Atlantic area 10 North Carolina fall fishery 11 Length and weight H Year class strength 12 Literature cited 13 Figure 1. Location of plants and fishing areas, Atlantic menhaden fishery 2 Tables 1. Percentage of Atlantic menhaden captured by purse seines in areas other than where ports were located 3 2. Atlantic menhaden purse seine catch by year and area 4 3. Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden caught by purse seine vessels, 1955-71 5 4. Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden caught by purse seine vessels fishing from North Atlantic plants 1955-71 6 5. Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden caught by purse seine vessels fishing from Middle Atlantic plants, 1955-71 7 6. Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden caught by purse seine vessels fishing from Chesapeake Bay plants, 1955-71 8 7. Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden caught by purse seine vessels fishing from South Atlantic plants, 1955-71 9 8. Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden caught by purse seine vessels fishing from N. C. plants during the fall fishery, 1955-71 10 9. Number of vessel weeks in the Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by area, 1955-71 .... 11 10. Catch per vessel week Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by area, 1955-71 11 11. Mean length of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port 12 12. Mean weight of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port 12 Appendix Tables 1. Length frequency distributions of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1963 14 2. Length frequency distributions of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1964 15 3. Length frequency distributions of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1965 16 4. Length frequency distribution of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1966 17 5. Length frequency distributions of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1967 18 6. Length frequency distributions of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1968 19 7. Length frequency distributions of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1969 20 8. Length frequency distribution of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1970 21 ill 9. Length frequency distributions of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port and age, 1971 22 10. Length frequency distributions of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches by age, port 10, 1963-1965 23 11. Mean length and number of fish at each age in samples from Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by month, port 1 24 12. Mean length and number of fish at each age in samples from Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by month, port 2 24 13. Mean length and number of fish at each age in samples from Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by month, port 3 25 14. Mean length and number of fish at each age in samples from Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by month, port 4 25 15. Mean length and number of fish at each age in samples from Atlantic purse seine fishery, by month, port 5, (1963-1966) and port 6, (1968-1969) 26 16. Mean length and number of fish at each age in samples from Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by month, port 7 27 17. Mean length and number of fish at each age in samples from Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by month, port 8 27 18. Mean length and number of fish at each age in samples from Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by month, port 10 28 IV Age and Size Composition of the Atlantic Menhaden, Brevoortia tyrannus, Purse Seine Catch, 1963-71, with a Brief Discussion of the Fishery WILLIAM R. NICHOLSON' ABSTRACT The catch of Atlantic menhaden, Brevoortia tyrannua, estimates of numbers offish caught by age. fishing effort, age and size distribution, and changes in the fishery are summarized and briefly discussed for the five areas of the Atlantic coast of the United States for 1963-71. Append- ed are tables of seasonal length frequency distributions and mean lengths by age and port and tables of monthly mean lengths by sex, age, and port. The purse seine fishery declined after 1962. North of Chesapeake Bay, plants closed or reduced fishing as fish became scarce. Of eight plants that processed menhaden in 1962 only two operated in 1971. The catch and catch per unit of effort in Chesapeake Bay declined as effort increased. South of Cape Hatteras, N.C. the fishery, which had been small compared to the fishery in other areas, showed little change. The average age and size of fish in the total catch declined as the fishery north of Chesapeake Bay, which mainly caught older and larger fish, declined. Age-1 and -2 fish, which constituted most of the catch from Florida to Chesapeake Bay, increased in average length and weight. INTRODUCTION In this report routine data collected from 1963 to 1971 on population dynamics of Atlantic menhaden, Brevoortia tyrannus, and major changes in the purse seine fishery are discussed. Included are length and weight statistics of individual age groups in samples taken at ports from Florida to New York, the annual catch, estimates of the number of fish caught at each age in the five divisions of the fishery, the number of vessel weeks (fishing effort), and catch per unit of ef- fort. Reports titled, "Age and size distribution of the Atlantic menhaden catch along the Atlantic coast of the United States, with a brief review of the fishery," have been published for the following years: 1952-55 (June and Reintjes 1959); 1956 (June and Reintjes 1960); 1957 (June 1961); 1958 (June and Nicholson 1964); 1959-62 (Nicholson and Higham 1964a, 1964b, 1965, 1966). In previous reports data were summarized and dis- cussed for five divisions of the fishery: the North, Middle, and South Atlantic areas; the Chesapeake Bay area; and the North Carolina fall fishery. These divisions described in the first report in the series (June and Reintjes 1959) have been retained, with one modification: the boundary between the Chesapeake Bay and South Atlantic areas has been changed from lat. 36°35'N to lat. 35°20'N because no vessels from South Atlantic ports fish above lat. 35°N (Fig. 1). Some major changes in the format have been made. 'Atlantic Estuarine Fisheries Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, Beaufort, NC 28516. Length frequencies of each age group are summarized by port rather than by division of the fishery; mean lengths and total number of males and females of each age are shown instead of frequencies for each sex; mean lengths are shown by port and month rather than by area and season; and only mean weights of all ages combined for each port are shown. Because there is no suitable method of determining the amount of effort expended in each area by vessels from a par- ticular port, the estimated numbers of fish of each age are summarized by port of landing rather than by area of capture, as in previous reports. The distribution and estimated numbers of purse seine sets have been omitted because this information has been discussed in another publication (Nicholson 1971). To facilitate some text table and all appendix table headings, the following numeric codes are used for the various ports: Fernandina Beach, Fla. 1 Southport, N.C. 2 Beaufort, N.C. summer fishery 3 Reedville and Cape Charles, Va. 4 Lewes, Del. 5 Wildwood, N.J. 6 Port Monmouth, N.J. 7 Amagansett, N.Y. 8 Point Judith, R.I. 9 North Carolina fall fishery 10 Plants at Yonges Island, S.C. and Portland, Maine did not operate and plants at Gloucester, Mass. and Tuckerton, N.J. were not sampled. In this report the North Carolina fall fishery, while technically not a port, is treated as one. *8°y vvr ^^&M. ^^r uV mX^^S ** \ -W 1 1 ^M •I ^3rA ^^m 32^ 30°N ^M T WS viWnv ' 82° ^^-^Ao° ^ 78° ^ 76° ^ 74° ^ CHANGES IN THE FISHERY Because landings in the North and Middle Atlantic areas after 1962 declined and many plants closed or reduced fishing, the fisheries are discussed as a single Figure 1. — Location of plants and fishing areas, Atlantic menhaden fishery. area rather than separately as in previous reports. In 1963 the 1958 year class, which had supported the fishery for 4 yr in the Middle Atlantic and for 3 yr in the North Atlantic, ceased to contribute substantially to the catch. Plants at Gloucester, Mass. and Pt. Judith, R.I. ceased processing menhaden from purse seiners in 1963 and 1964, respectively. By 1966 the number of vessels at Amagansett, N.Y. and Port Monmouth, N.J. had fallen to about 2% of the number in 1962. The Tuckerton, N.J. plant closed after the 1964 season. One plant at Lewes, Del. closed after the 1964 season and the other during the middle of the 1966 season. The plant at Wildwood, N.J. operated only a part of each season from 1964 to 1969 and closed in 1970. The Amagansett plant, which did not open in 1967, operated only two vessels in the following years and closed again in 1970. The Port Monmouth plant in 1970 processed only menhaden caught in pound nets or by small trawlers converted to purse seining until one regular purse seine vessel began fishing in early September. While plants in the North and Middle Atlantic areas either closed or reduced fishing in the years following 1962, plants in the Chesapeake Bay area in- creased fishing effort through 1966, despite a downward trend in catches that continued through 1969. Consolidation and acquisition reduced the number of companies from four to two, although three to five plants continued to operate. The fishing season, which formerly ceased by mid-October, ex- tended to late November by 1964 as larger and faster vessels, which could range farther from port, exploited migrating schools passing in ocean waters off the mouth of the bay. In many instances, fish which formerly would have been landed in the North Carolina fall fishery were transported to Virginia plants for processing. In the South Atlantic area, one plant which had operated at Femandina Beach, Fla. from 1948 to 1957 reopened in 1965 but fished only four seasons. A plant which operated at Southport, N.C. from 1952 to 1961 was sold in 1963. It processed only during the 1963 fall fishery, the 1964 summer and fall fishery, and May 1964. A large refrigerated vessel fished from the other plant at Southport, but otherwise the size and number of vessels operating from South Atlantic plants changed little from previous years. TOTAL CATCH In previous reports the estimated numbers of fish landed were broken down by areas of capture on the basis of the percentage of catch samples from different areas. Because of minor changes in es- timating the number of fish caught, some of the numbers published in previous reports for 1955-62 have been revised and are included. Table 1. — Percentages of Atlantic menhaden captured by purse seines in areas other than where ports were located. Year Chesapeake Bay Middle Atlantic North Atlantic Year Chesapeake Bay Middle Atlantic North Atlantic 1955 0.00 1.18 3.06 I96U 0.00 7.16 2i+.Ul 1956 0.00 0.00 2U.i|6 1965 0.00 2.67 55. 2U 1957 0.00 2.16 18.77 1966 0.00 7.27 0.00 1958 0.00 1.67 9.02 1967 2.75 10.37 — 1959 2.79 1.03 11.i+0 1968 0.01+ 0.00 15.83 i960 0.00 1.68 18. §9 1969 0.00 17.56 0.00 1961 0.07 2.60 12.25 1970 6.55 U2.23 0.00 1962 0.09 3.5^ 2I4.68 1971 9.U3 81.70 0.00 1963 0.00 5.71 13.59 In this report the catch, in metric tons and in es- timated milHons of fish, is credited to the area in which the plants are located, even though the fish may have been caught in another area. The catch is reported this way because: 1) except for some years when catches for ports in the North and Middle Atlantic were exceptionally small, fish caught outside an area in which a plant is located constitute only a small percentage of the total catch (Table 1); 2) the area in which catches are made cannot always be identified; and 3) the units of fishing effort (vessel weeks) can be associated only with the total catch landed at a plant. Vessels fished mainly in the area in which the plant was located, occasionally in adjacent areas, but never in areas not adjacent. Chesapeake Bay vessels oc- casionally fished in the Middle Atlantic; Wildwood and Lewes vessels sometimes fished in a portion of the coast included in the Chesapeake Bay area. Port Monmouth vessels often fished in the western end of Long Island Sound. Amagansett vessels fishing off the northern New Jersey coast accounted for the fish caught outside the North Atlantic. In some years after 1963, the catch landed at Chesapeake Bay plants in November included migrating fish caught either off the mouth of the bay or in North Carolina waters. Although these catches were more closely associated with the North Carolina fall fishery, there was no way of identifying them. No fish landed in the South Atlantic or North Carolina fall fishery were taken in other areas. Total landings dropped sharply in 1963 as the strong 1958 year class phased out of the fishery, and plants in the North and Middle Atlantic closed or reduced their amount of fishing (Table 2). After another sharp drop in 1964 to 269,000 metric tons, landings in the following years fluctuated between 162,000 and 273,000 metric tons. The estimated total number of actual fish landed is shown for all areas combined and for each area, in- dividually (Tables 3-8). For all areas combined, it continued to decline after 1962, reaching a low of 868.16 million in 1969 (Table 3). It increased to 1,399.87 million in 1970, partly as a result of a fairly strong 1969 year class, but declined again in 1971. Fish older than age 2 continued to decrease after 1962 as the strong 1958 year class phased out of the fishery and as the catches from the North and Middle Atlan- tic and the North Carolina fall fishery dwindled. FISHING EFFORT Because observed effort and effective effort are often confused, I wish to stress that in this report observed effort is the basis for all discussions of catch, effort, and catch per unit of effort. In the Atlantic menhaden fishery the observed unit of effort, the Table 2. — Atlantic menhaden purse seine catch, in thousands of metric tons by year and area. North Middle Chesapeake South North Carolina Year Atlantic Atlantic Bay Atlantic Fall fishery Total 1940 16.8 91.1 35.3 37.9 36.6 217.7 1941 33.5 104.1 60.2 45.2 34.9 277.9 1942 14.6 77.7 21.9 32.9 20.1 167.2 1943 9.8 96.8 42.1 59.7 28.8 237.2 1944 27.5 122.6 32.2 46.9 28.7 257.9 1945 34.0 136.4 35.1 58.5 31.9 295.9 1946 42.9 183.8 57.6 40.8 37.3 362.4 1947 44.2 185.8 81.2 34.2 32.9 378.3 1948 44.4 137.4 68.3 55.8 40.6 346.5 1949 52.2 149.8 62.8 59.3 39.7 363.8 1950 49.3 143.0 63.1 20.0 21.8 297.2 1951 51.0 168.6 56.1 54.6 31.1 361.4 1952 58.1 193.7 45.7 86.0 26.4 409.9 1953 59.7 363.2 77.8 52.8 39.7 593.2 1954 64.9 335.7 126.0 39.6 41.9 608.1 1955 83.3 317.6 132.7 43.4 64.4 641.4 1956 98.5 378.3 94.0 68.6 72.7 712.1 1957 83.5 304.5 126.4 36.4 52.0 602.8 1958 36.0 211.1 151.3 41.3 70.3 510.0 1959 66.0 250.9 196.8 63.1 82.3 659.1 1960 66.4 256.0 108.5 36.7 62.7 529.8 1961 58.6 274.6 128.7 44.1 69.9 575.9 1962 64.7 249.9 155.1 42.2 25.8 537.7 1963 35.2 111.7 104.0 34.2 62.8 346.9 1964 15.0 35.2 134.1 46.5 38.4 269.2 1965 11.9 45.8 126.1 36.7 52.9 273.4 1966 1.8 6.0 115.6 24.5 71.7 219.6 1967 0 17.1 91.1 34.1 51.2 193.5 1968 6.7 26.2 115.5 33.6 52.8 234.8 1969 2.9 12.5 72.0 32.9 41.3 161.6 1970 4.3 11.4 182.9 42.4 18.3 259.3 1971 10.4 23.0 170.7 38.3 7.9 250.3 vessel week,^ cannot be adjusted directly to units of effective effort. Why it cannot are discussed in detail by Schaaf and Huntsman (1972), who estimated changes in effective effort indirectly. 'A vessel week is 1 vessel fishing for 1 wk. CATCH, EFFORT, AND CATCH PER UNIT OF EFFORT North and Middle Atlantic Areas The annual catch in these areas prior to 1963 constituted up to 65% of the total catch, but by 1966 it Table 3. — Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden (in millions) caught by purse seine vessels, 1955-71 Age Year Total 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8-10 1955 761.01 674.15 1,057.68 267.31 307.21 38.07 10.53 1.84 .64 3,118.44 1956 36.37 2,073.26 902.7 2 319.60 44.78 150.68 28.70 6.72 1.99 3,564.82 1957 299.58 1,599.98 1,361.77 96.73 70.80 40.52 36.93 4.26 1.10 3,511.67 1958 106.06 858.16 1,635.35 72.05 17.25 15.94 9.09 4.88 .43 2,719.21 1959 11.40 4,038.72 851.29 388.27 33.41 11.87 12.36 4.55 1.77 5,353.64 1960 72.17 281.01 2,208.63 76.37 102.20 23.77 7.95 2.36 .65 2,775.11 1961 0.25 832.42 503.60 1,209.57 19.18 29.38 2.86 .81 .24 2,598.31 1962 51.58 514.11 834.52 217.25 423.37 30.75 24.60 2.98 .70 2,099.86 1963 96.89 7 24.23 709.20 122.53 44.97 52.38 10.42 3.33 .56 1,764.51 1964 302.59 703.95 604.98 83.50 17.94 7.85 6.62 1.31 .32 1,729.06 1965 249.12 739.28 417.55 77.75 12.17 1.81 1.22 .74 .07 1,499.71 1966 349.46 550.83 404.11 31.70 3.88 .37 .11 .11 .04 1,340.61 1967 6.95 633.20 265.68 72.76 5.09 .49 .01 — — 984.18 1968 154.61 376.28 535.52 65.68 10.67 .98 .06 — — 1,143.80 1969 158.08 372.37 284.31 47.81 5.44 .14 .01 — — 868.16 1970 24.19 861.67 468.58 38.14 6.77 .52 — — — 1,399.87 1971 73.97 258.80 525.82 89.33 16.77 2.70 ~~ — — 967.39 accounted for less than 4%. The decline reflected a decrease in the population of older fish which normal- ly accounted for the major portion of the catch in both areas. The estimated number of fish caught dropped sharply in 1964 and remained low thereafter (Tables 4, 5). Age-1 fish supplied a relatively large percentage of the catch in the Middle Atlantic up to 1965, and a relatively small percentage after 1965 as the Lewes and Wildwood plants, which landed mostly age-1 and -2 fish, closed or reduced fishing. Age-2 and -3 fish, which usually compose most of the Port Monmouth catches, accounted for a larger percentage as the Lewes and Wildwood catches declined. Fishing effort was 961 to 1,254 vessel weeks per year prior to 1963. It had dropped to 166 by 1966 and reached a low of 19 in 1970 (Table 9). The largest reduc- tion— 551 vessel weeks — was in 1964 as the plant operators cut back in the numbers of vessels following the extremely low catch in 1963. Also, fish were so scarce in 1964 that those vessels which did not stop fishing in August quit by the beginning of October. In 1965 one plant at Lewes and the Tuckerton plant remained closed, while most Wildwood vessels shifted to plants in Chesapeake Bay. In 1966 the Port Mon- mouth plant, and the remaining Lewes plant, which has never reopened, closed in late July, and Wildwood vessels fished a total of only 12 calendar weeks in Mid- dle Atlantic waters. Since 1966 three to five vessels have fished at Port Monmouth, except in 1970 when only one regular purse seiner operated a few weeks in September, and two to five vessels have fished at Wildwood for short periods each year as fish became available, except in 1970 and 1971 when the plant remained closed. The CPUE (catch per unit of effort) from 1963 to 1970 was generally about 50% or less of the CPUE in years prior to 1963 (Table 10). Both effort and CPUE were exceptionally low in 1966, indicating the extreme scarcity of older fish that year. The increase in the CPUE in following years probably reflected a decrease in vessel competition rather than any significant in- crease in menhaden abundance. One or two vessels at Amagansett and three to four vessels at Port Mon- mouth divided the available fish between them, and two to three vessels operated at Wildwood only when fish became locally abundant. Chesapeake Bay Area Except for 1959, when the large 1958 year class entered the fishery, catches from 1954 to 1968 re- mained fairly steady, fluctuating between 91,000 and 155,000 metric tons. By contrast, catches from 1945 to 1953 fluctuated between 35,000 and 81,000 metric tons. The relatively large catches from 1954 to 1968 resulted primarily from an increase in fishing effort caused by increased fishing efficiency, more vessels, and a longer season. Following the poor season in 1969, catches in 1970 rose sharply as the relatively large 1969 year class entered the fishery. Although age-1 and -2 fish continued to constitute the major part of the catch after 1962, age-0 and -3 fish provided a greater proportion of it than in Table 4 — Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden (in millions) caught by purse seine vessels fishing from North Atlantic plants, 1955-71 • Year Age 8-10 Total 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 — .42 23.74 — 11.79 69.51 2.01 83.87 35.03 .13 44.18 20.59 8.37 37.13 95.97 — 88.64 34.87 — 5.11 107.15 — 3.04 29.25 — 1.34 10.58 — 1.92 5.86 — 2.89 10.72 ^^ .10 1.28 114.62 21.94 7.94 .93 15.89 81.25 12.91 2.50 29.42 16.15 17.13 2.83 7.08 5.76 4.36 2.00 10.59 4.06 4.27 2.08 40.53 6.52 2.39 .60 6.76 12.27 1.35 .49 77.72 9.88 8.94 1.25 14.48 23.54 5.94 1.64 4.12 5.17 4.59 3.34 1.40 1.02 1.09 .15 .11 ,02 2.43 6.42 2.41 .28 .26 2.38 1.63 .06 .69 5.95 2.87 .40 1.92 12.78 2.95 .99 99 58 11 .38 .72 .46 .09 .90 .11 .14 .62 .30 .17 .07 .04 169.97 194.57 186.90 84.19 163.37 173.66 133.27 130.70 57.82 22.82 20.02 2.88 11.56 4.33 9.91 18.64 previous years (Table 6). In some years age-0 fish began entering the fishery in July. The reasons for these age classes providing a greater share of the catch are not clear. Increased growth rate of juveniles, resulting from a decrease in numbers and a conse- quent decrease in competition for food, is one probable explanation for the increased catch of juveniles. The increase in age-3 fish is more difficult to explain. Although fishing increased on migrating schools passing the mouth of the bay as the season was extended into November, age-3 fish did not com- pose a larger percentage of the catch than during the summer. A probable explanation is that greater numbers of age-3 remained in the bay as the total number of fish decreased and competition for food diminished. Table 5. — Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden (in millions) caught by purse seine vessels fishing from North Atlantic plants, 1955-71 • Year Age 6 Total 8-10 1955 16.31 510.22 211.26 1956 190.59 786.15 211.23 1957 410.30 846.46 42.46 1958 22.61 795.94 18.33 1959 875.53 448.11 168.08 1960 12.27 1,140.56 16.23 1961 3.47 164.16 741.82 1962 11.77 193.37 145.80 1963 157.90 232.62 39.94 1964 3.74 37.91 32.64 1965 22.89 50.16 42.69 1966 4.53 10.43 3.50 1967 1.78 9.51 18.22 1968 .43 29.25 19.27 1969 .03 6.35 13.28 1970 — 25.17 1.30 1971 __ 6.29 21.85 159.33 12.96 2.20 .91 .16 913.35 19.53 22.93 8.31 3.19 1.27 1,243.20 20.44 9.55 8.73 .48 .56 1,338.98 1.81 1.19 .69 .40 .34 841.31 4.38 2.06 2.00 1.69 .33 1,502.18 26.50 6.35 1.53 .44 .12 1,204.00 6.04 6.95 .89 .32 .10 923.75 288.26 16.45 13.84 1.23 .08 670.80 21.56 19.41 2.95 1.24 .15 475.77 10.15 2.04 1.86 .23 .15 88.72 6.89 .41 .12 .16 — 123.32 1.16 .05 — — — 19.67 2.31 .29 .01 — — 32.12 5.29 .29 .04 — — 54.57 2.29 .08 .01 — — 22.04 .19 — — — — 26.66 8.61 .80 — — — 37.55 Fishing effort, while dechning in the Middle and North Atlantic areas after 1962, increased substan- tially in Chesapeake Bay. Increases resulted not only from increases in the number of vessels, but also from increases in the length of the season. From 1963 to 1967 effort fluctuated between 666 and 803 vessel weeks compared to 410 to 668 from 1955 to 1962. It then dropped to about 500 vessel weeks in 1969-71, by which time larger, faster vessels had replaced nearly all of the older, smaller vessels, and the number of spotter planes was about double the number prior to 1963 (Nicholson 1971). In 1962 the CPUE dropped sharply and until 1970 remained at the levels prevailing from 1945 to 1952 Table 6. — Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden (in millions) caught by purse seine vessels fishing from North Atlantic plants, 1955-71. Year Age 8-10 Total 1955 12.18 334.24 382.92 11.52 1956 — 674.37 66.90 0.49 1957 1.92 1,057.35 176.58 3.22 1958 0.48 490.88 561.76 5.25 1959 10.71 2,124.56 281.10 19.57 1960 — 142.58 666.94 2.64 1961 — 327.80 214.20 204.34 1962 42.40 204 . 08 370.64 32.78 1963 51.54 318.64 192.83 45.43 1964 227.28 170.58 314.05 27.90 1965 71.96 504.57 108.11 13.84 1966 214.15 267.33 231.06 11.16 1967 6.62 228.65 155.81 18.42 1968 41.55 150.39 235.42 26.24 1969 46.39 66.19 125.96 15.87 1970 2.74 503.62 259.18 24.27 1971 39.75 100.90 312.32 53.30 5.17 0.43 — — — 746.46 741.76 0.22 0.08 — — — 1,239.37 0.90 0.39 — — — 1,059.66 — — — — 2,435.94 812.16 0.32 0.16 — — — 746.82 35.29 0.27 -- — — 685.46 .75 — — — — 609.19 .64 — — — — 740.45 .37 — .08 — — 698.93 .65 .17 — — — 724.52 .27 — — — — 409.77 .38 .09 — — — 454.07 .97 — — — — 255.38 1.42 .08 — — — 791.31 4.83 .88 — — -- 511.98 (Nicholson 1971). Although part of the decrease probably was due to a decrease in menhaden abun- dance, part also was due to the increase in the number of vessels and the concomitant increase in fishing ef- fort and vessel competition. From 1955 to 1961 the number of vessels generally was less than 25 each year, but from 1962 to 1968 the number ranged from 25 to 38 and generally was greater than 31 (Nicholson 1971). Since vessel competition from 1963 to 1969 was intense (Nicholson 1972), fewer fish were apportioned among a greater number of vessels, and a drop in the catch per vessel week was inevitable. The low CPUE in 1969, following a decline in effort to 500 vessel weeks, probably reflects a scarcity offish, Table 7. — Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden (in millions) caught by purse seine vessels fishing from North Atlantic plants, 1955-71- Age Year Total 8-10 1955 6.51 292.84 113 . 04 13.47 1956 — 1,147.88 10.91 .89 1957 13.27 117.91 231.56 .42 1958 1.A7 315.20 135.39 8.25 1959 — 1,023.39 48.96 .84 1960 13.86 111.84 273.73 — 1961 — 490.44 74.96 54.36 1962 2.21 297.55 250.30 1.81 1963 — 178.22 220.55 .33 1964 1.66 510.22 184.55 — 1965 — 172.50 186.43 — 1966 — 206.97 46.49 — 1967 .33 319.61 54.27 .03 1968 .26 210.55 203 . 28 .09 1969 — 257.37 112.94 .32 1970 — 337.13 165.55 — 1971 1.54 143.48 195.60 .17 11.38 — — — — 437.24 1,159.68 363.16 .26 — — — — 460.57 1,073.19 399.43 .30 — — — — 620.06 551.87 399.10 696.43 358.93 253.46 374.24 414.18 370.63 502.68 340.79 while the high CPUE in 1970, with about the same amount of effort, reflects the relatively strong 1969 year class, which entered the fishery at age-1. Part of the large increase in the CPUE in 1970 may have resulted from an increase in the number of age-2 fish (1968 year class). Usually a year class contributes the greatest number of fish at age-1, but the 1968 year class contributed 66 million fish to the Chesapeake Bay catch in 1969 and over 259 million in 1970. A large number of this 1968 year class, caught as age-2 fish in 1970, probably spent the 1969 season in the South Atlantic, where the catch of age-1 fish in 1969 was much greater than the catch of age-2 fish in 1970. Table 8. — Calculated numbers of Atlantic menhaden (in millions) caught by purse seine vessels fishing from North Carolina plants during fall fishery, 1955-71. Year Age 8-10 Total 1955 742.32 30.76 51.08 7.32 1956 36.37 60.42 26.97 37.48 1957 284.39 12.41 23.30 15.60 1958 104.11 29.34 98.08 19.63 1959 0.69 6.87 35.99 103.81 1960 58.31 14.32 38.76 22.63 1961 0.25 10.71 45.17 101.90 1962 6.97 0.71 17.17 7.61 1963 45.35 69.47 61.86 26.25 1964 73.65 19.41 66.55 17.10 1965 177.16 39.32 69.96 10.50 1966 135.31 72.00 116.03 15.76 1967 — 83.16 46.09 36.09 1968 112.80 14.91 65.14 13.66 1969 111.69 48.78 38.80 15.96 1970 21.45 20.92 17.99 6.62 1971 32.68 14.42 9.69 1.23 16.71 2.74 0.39 — 0.10 851.42 9.36 46,50 7.48 1.03 — 225.61 20.72 14.74 11.07 0.95 0.08 383.26 7.20 8.60 4.04 2.48 — 273.48 18.44 5.75 6.09 0.78 0.54- 178.96 35.17 10.90 4.03 1.32 0.42 185.86 5.76 10.00 0.62 — — 174.41 22.10 4.15 1.82 0.50 — 61-03 8.18 9.43 1.53 .45 .11 222.63 3.03 .64 .17 .09 — 180.64 1.57 — — — — 298.51 .98 — — — — 340.08 2.51 .20 — — — 168.05 2.59 .32 — — — 209.42 .55 — — — — 215.78 2.29 .04 — — — 69.31 .38 .03 — — — 58.43 South Atlantic Area The annual catch in metric tons from 1963 to 1971 was of about the same magnitude as in previous years and age-1 and -2 fish continued to supply over 99% of the catch (Table 7). The number of vessel weeks, while fluctuating over the years, showed no substantial change. Although vessel size did not increase, efficiency probably did, as more fish pumps, power blocks, aluminum purse boats, and nylon nets were employed after 1962 (Nicholson 1971). With the exception of 1965 and 1966 the CPUE was greater from 1963 to 1971 than in previous years, and 10 Table 9. — Number of vessel weeks in the Atlantic menhaden purse seine fishery, by area, 1955-71- Table 10. — Catch per vessel week, in metric tons. Atlantic menhaden purae aeine fishery, by area, 1955-71. Vear North Atlantic Middle Atlantic Chesapeake Bay South Atlantic N.C. fall fishery Year North Atlantic Middle Atlantic Chesapeake Bay South Atlantic N.C. fall fishery 1955 334 890 451 475 342 2.49; 1955 249 357 294 91 188 1956 298 888 466 530 391 ',573 1956 330 426 201 130 186 1957 262 949 527 412 311 2,461 1957 319 320 239 88 167 1958 227 734 559 354 380 2,254 1958 159 288 270 117 185 1959 301 897 668 474 312 2,652 1959 219 279 295 133 263 1960 280 854 410 292 163 1.999 1960 237 299 265 126 381 1961 249 946 482 395 224 2,296 1961 235 290 267 111 312 1962 264 990 582 327 97 2,260 1962 245 253 267 129 266 1963 238 823 666 264 286 2,-277 1963 148 135 156 130 220 1964 134 376 803 277 249 1.839 1964 112 93 167 168 154 1965 96 300 786 359 259 1.800 1965 124 152 161 102 203 1966 79 87 795 254 220 1,435 1966 23 69 145 96 326 1967 0 124 757 253 212 1,346 1967 0 138 121 135 241 1968 23 113 601 245 246 1,228 1968 292 323 192 137 215 1969 39 119 519 173 160 1,010 1969 74 105 139 180 269 1970 5 14 501 174 140 834 1970 860 814 365 244 131 1971 20 43 507 175 120 865 1971 520 535 337 219 66 reached a record 244 metric tons per vessel week in 1970. Much of the increase probably was due to fewer vessels and greater efficiency rather than any increase in the abundance of fish. North Carolina Fall Fishery Landings from 1963 to 1968, while slightly smaller than landings from 1955 to 1962, were generally over 50,000 metric tons, but from 1969 to 1971 they dropped sharply, amounting to only 7,900 in 1971. The age composition of the catches also changed, with fish younger than age-3 composing an increasingly higher percentage after 1963. Age-4 and older fish practically disappeared from catch samples after 1964 (Table 8). From 1964 to 1968 effort fluctuated between 212 and 259 vessel weeks, somewhat less than from 1955 to 1963, but greater than from 1969 to 1971. In recent years poor prospects for fish abundance have con- tributed to the decline in the number of vessels, and the failure of fish to appear until late November has contributed to a shortening of the season. Because the amount of time a vessel can fish during the fall season is dependent on weather, which can be quite variable from year to year, the vessel week is not a particularly good measure of effort and the catch per vessel week is not as sensitive an index of abundance as it is in the major areas of the "summer" fishery. Nevertheless, the low CPUE in 1970 and 1971 reflects an unusual scarcity offish. Weather during both years was ideal for fishing; yet on many days spotter pilots reported no concentrations of fish and vessels never left the dock. Some vessel operators declined to fish on small age-0 fish that were temporarily abundant at various times. LENGTH AND WEIGHT Length statistics are presented for the years 1963-71 in Appendix tables 1-18. In Appendix tables 1-10 fre- quency distributions are omitted for ages that contain less than 20 fish, or less than 1% of the number of fish in the annual sample. The mean lengths and the number of fish in the monthly samples at each port are shown in Appendix tables 11-18. Several significant changes indicate an increased growth rate since 1963. Age-0 fish that began appear- ing in Chesapeake Bay catches in 1964 have been larger than age-0 fish caught in previous years in the North Carolina fall fishery. Age-0 fish caught in the North Carolina fall fishery since 1964, while not averaging as large as those caught in Chesapeake Bay, have been larger than those caught in previous years. Age-1 and -2 fish, although showing no appreciable change in mean length in samples from South Atlan- tic ports, have shown an increase in mean length in samples from Chesapeake Bay and Middle Atlantic ports. Mean lengths of age-3 fish from Chesapeake Bay samples since 1963 have been 30-50 mm greater than they were prior to 1963. Mean length of age-3 and -4 fish from samples at Port Monmouth and Amagan- sett also have been greater since 1963. Fish older than 11 Table 11.— Mean length (nm) of Atlantic menhaden In samples from purse seine catches, by port. Table 12. — Mean weight (g) of Atlantic menhaden in samples from purse seine catches, by port. Port Year Pore Year 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 10 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 10 1955 173 172 186 219 260 286 297 215 1955 95 89 113 185 319 443 475 256 1956 157 157 167 191 240 285 300 253 1956 64 60 80 125 264 447 484 373 1957 186 183 174 186 217 260 287 269 1957 110 101 96 108 185 340 443 450 1958 159 170 182 202 233 251 280 244 1958 65 88 109 142 23 5 313 440 344 1959 149 165 156 168 207 216 273 281 1959 55 82 68 81 167 201 389 449 1960 17 2 174 170 199 224 252 275 280 I960 92 97 89 135 202 321 405 489 1961 168 162 187 218 251 266 290 261 1961 84 76 115 181 286 372 475 383 1962 161 173 174 224 266 286 305 277 1962 77 98 97 221 360 431 531 436 1963 155 175 171 208 216 292 315 239 1963 69 90 91 169 209 503 620 301 1964 141 153 170 215 229 293 324 222 1964 50 64 82 196 247 519 700 263 1965 172 17 3 188 221 245 284 312 195 1965 90 98 126 185 281 463 623 215 1966 192 163 174 227 227 288 315 220 1966 120 85 96 192 247 47 5 639 243 1967 170 195 194 238 - 293 - 245 1967 86 128 137 259 -- 523 -- 303 1968 150 177 189 233 - 292 300 244 1968 62 97 122 272 - 538 552 334 1969 — 179 191 226 - 310 317 205 1969 -- 108 126 274 - 607 667 229 197 0 155 171 182 234 - - - 248 1970 72 94 107 254 -- 451 -- 339 1971 175 195 193 263 - - - 218 1971 97 111 125 353 ~ 641 — 232 age-4 have been too scarce to permit meaningful con- clusions to be drawn. Mean lengths for all ages combined also reflect the increased growth rates (Tables 11, 12). There are slight increases for fish in samples at South Atlantic ports, but large increases for fish at Chesapeake Bay, Middle Atlantic, and North Atlantic ports. The largest in- crease in mean lengths is for fish in Chesapeake Bay samples. Mean length offish from North Carolina fall fishery samples generally were smaller from 1965 to 1971 than from 1955 to 1962. This change has resulted from the decrease in the average age of fish in the catch. Since weight increases at a much greater rate than length for fish over 200 mm, the length increases for fish caught during the summer north of Cape Hatteras represent a relatively large increase in biomass. YEAR CLASS STRENGTH Relative strength of year classes can be inferred by following the catch of each year class as it passes through the fishery. Because of the age and size dis- tribution of Atlantic menhaden, variation in fishing effort in different areas can distort the relative impor- tance of different age groups in the catch and make assessments difficult. If only the Chesapeake Bay catch, which has accounted for the major share of the catch since 1964, and the combined catch of ages 0-4 from all areas are considered, some meaningful in- ferrences can be drawn. The 1951, 1953, 1955, 1956, and 1958 year classes appear to have been strong. Whether they were un- usually stronger than year classes prior to 1951 is not certain. The 1958 year class, however, was certainly the most abundant since 1951 and may have been one of the largest ever produced, although there is no way of knowing. Evidence of the strength of the 1959 year class is conflicting. Although the catch of age- 1 fish was poor, the catch of ages 2 to 4 was relatively good. Perhaps the 1959 year class did not appear as abundant at age- 1 because the catches were dominated by the age-2 fish of the super abundant 1958 year class. Also, 1960 was a year of poor market conditions, and Chesapeake Bay plants, which account for most of the age-1 catch, established quota restrictions on the catch. All of the year classes from 1960 to 1970 appear to have been smaller than any from 1951 to 1958. Although the total number of fish from the first three age groups after 1959 was not much less than the total number from these age groups prior to 1960, the effort against these age groups was much greater. In Chesapeake Bay, effort nearly doubled from 1955 to 1964. The 1964, 1966, and 1969 year classes appear to have been the largest produced between 1959 and 1970. Since fishing effort in Chesapeake Bay was ex- ceptionally high, particularly from 1964 to 1968, these year classes were smaller than the catches indicate and probably did not equal the abundance of any of the year classes from 1951 to 1959. 12 The 1969 year class, while apparently stronger than any year class since 1958 did not appear nearly as strong as those prior to 1958. It provided enough age-1 fish in 1970 to sustain only the South Atlantic and Chesapeake Bay fisheries, and not nearly enough to sustain also a fishery from the Virginia Capes to Delaware Bay, where age-1 fish from strong year classes prior to 1959 were usually abundant. In 1971, where age-1 fish from the 1970 year class were not abundant, the 1969 year class supplied barely enough fish to sustain the Chesapeake Bay fishery, and not enough to support even a small fishery from Delaware Bay to northern New Jersey, where age-2 fish are usually the most important age group. LITERATURE CITED JUNE, F. C. 1961. Age and size composition of the menhaden catch along the Atlantic coast of the United States, 1957, with a brief review of the commercial fishery. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 373, 39 p. JUNE, F. C, and W. R. NICHOLSON. 1964. Age and size composition of the menhaden catch along the Atlantic coast of the United States, 1958, with a brief re- view of the commercial fishery. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 446, 40 p. JUNE, F. C, and J. W. REINTJES. 1959. Age and size composition of the menhaden catch along the Atlantic coast of the United States, 1952-55, with a brief review of the commercial fishery. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 317, 65 p. 1960. Age and size composition of the menhaden catch along the Atlantic coast of the United States, 1966, with a brief re- view of the commercial fishery. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 336, 38 p. NICHOLSON, W. R. 1971. Changes in catch and effort in the Atlantic menhaden purse-seine fishery 1940-68. Fish. Bull., U.S. 69:765-781. 1972. Fishing pressure and its influence on Monday catches of Atlantic menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay purse-seine fishery. Chesapeake Sci. 13:215-218. NICHOLSON, W. R., and J. R. HICHAM, JR. 1964a. Age and size composition of the menhaden catch along the Atlantic coast of the United States, 1959, with a brief review of the commercial fishery. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 478, 34 p. 1964b. Age and size composition of the 1960 menhaden catch along the U.S. Atlantic coast, with a brief review of the com- mercial fishery. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 479, 41 p. 1965. Age and size composition of the menhaden catch along the Atlantic coast of the United States, 1961, with a brief re- view of the commercial fishery. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 495, 28 p. 1966. Age and size composition of the menhaden catch along the Atlantic coast of the United States, 1962, with a brief review of the commercial fishery. U.S. Fish Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Fish. 527, 24 p. SCHAAF, W. E., and G. R. HUNTSMAN. 1972. Effects of fishing on Atlantic menhaden stock:1955- 1969. Trans. Am. Fish. Soc. 101:290-297. 13 Appendix T«bl« 1. --Length frequency dlBtributlons of Atlantic menhaden in saaplea from purae aeine catches, by port and age, 1963. Fork Length Ag t Ag e Ag e Age Arc Arc Age (m) 1 2 1 2 1 2 0 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 2 3 4 5 6 2 3 4 5 6 90-94 4 _ . _ . . 95-99 14 - - - - - _ - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 100-104 22 - - - 1 - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 105-109 39 - _ _ _ _ 1 _ 110-114 58 _ - _ _ _ 6 _ 115-119 60 - - - 1 _ 3 _ _ _ _ 120-124 38 - 1 - 1 _ 12 _ 125-129 22 - 1 - 7 _ 14 2 _ _ _ _ 130-134 20 - 2 - 21 _ 6 1 2 _ _ _ 135-139 20 2 6 - 20 _ 24 7 _ _ _ 140-144 13 3 - - 32 _ 55 19 _ _ _ _ _ 145-149 11 9 3 - 43 _ 66 26 _ _ _ _ 150-154 17 13 2 - 64 _ 65 41 _ _ 2 155-159 13 11 2 1 91 1 44 39 _ _ 2 160-164 16 26 3 6 89 6 26 55 5 _ 7 _ _ . _ 165-169 10 19 7 17 70 19 19 74 3 _ 7 170-174 9 48 5 29 47 A8 10 75 9 _ 18 _ _ _ _ _ . _ . . _ . 175-179 7 50 3 29 24 40 9 84 26 _ 23 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 180-184 7 56 2 16 22 38 2 110 35 _ 25 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 185-189 6 61 - 8 13 35 1 107 44 _ 55 76 _ _ _ _ 190-194 2 58 - 14 5 40 1 117 45 _ 67 47 _ _ _ _ _ _ 195-199 2 32 2 12 7 33 1 117 53 _ 102 76 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 200-204 - 26 - 7 2 40 _ 136 59 _ 119 106 _ _ _ 2 205-209 - 3 - - 2 20 _ 104 50 _ 85 177 _ . 2 210-214 - 1 - - 1 11 _ 119 53 2 71 133 _ _ _ 9 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 215-219 - - - - 1 10 - 111 43 2 44 100 _ _ _ 9 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 220-224 - - - - - 4 - 86 55 - 47 75 _ _ _ 15 _ . _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 225-229 - - - - - 5 _ 79 43 1 41 50 _ _ _ 20 _ _ _ _ 2 _ _ _ _ 230-234 - - - - - 2 - 62 42 2 33 54 _ _ _ 18 1 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 235-239 - - - - - - _ 61 54 1 23 37 _ _ _ _ . . _ _ 240-244 - - - - . _ _ 31 35 3 8 15 . _ _ _ _ . 245-249 - - - - - - - 19 36 2 3 12 _ _ _ 7 _ _ _ 1 _ _ _ _ 250-254 - - - - - - - 14 43 7 1 12 _ _ _ 6 _ _ _ 2 _ _ _ _ 255-259 - - - - - - _ 8 34 9 _ 11 - . 6 _ _ _ 1 1 _ _ _ 260-264 - - - - - - - 3 39 18 - 13 _ _ 17 _ _ _ 6 R _ _ _ 265-269 • - - - - - - - 3 48 25 - . . 20 _ _ _ 3 6 7 _ _ 270-274 - - - - - - - - 48 37 _ _ _ 49 2 1 _ 9 11 _ _ _ 275-279 - - - - - - - 1 44 32 - 1 - 56 5 2 _ 10 19 2 1 _ 280-284 - - - - - - - - 32 29 - _ - 63 8 5 - 4 23 14 1 _ 285-289 - - - - - - - 1 27 29 - - - 69 12 3 _ 5 41 4 74 _ 290-294 - - - - - - - - 17 13 - - - 56 19 8 2 3 48 20 8 _ 295-299 - - - - - - - - 2 8 - - 2 36 17 11 - 3 49 29 13 1 300-304 - - - - - - - - 1 5 - - - 31 51 20 _ 1 31 43 46 1 305-309 - - - - - - - - - 3 - - - - 11 26 19 - 1 24 45 78 7 310-314 - - - - - - - - - 4 - 1 - 17 40 31 2 1 28 95 115 20 315-319 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 13 34 33 6 1 34 94 172 30 320-324 - - - - - - - - - _ - - - 9 30 41 6 2 17 80 177 53 325-329 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 3 24 46 16 2 5 75 149 66 330-334 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 20 30 10 - 5 37 111 62 335-339 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 8 22 13 - 2 12 64 53 340-344 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 10 11 - - 6 19 32 345-349 - - - - - - - - _ _ _ - _ - _ . - 5 6 _ _ _ 5 14 350-354 - - - - - - - - - _ - - _ _ _ _ _ _ 3 _ _ _ _ 2 355-359 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - 1 360-364 - - - - - - - - - _ - - - - - - - _ - 1 - _ - - - 365-369 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 Total 410 418 39 139 564 352 365 1.712 1.027 232 783 930 51 28 22 371 467 266 287 77 57 352 558 963 343 Mean 129 180 159 179 160 189 149 198 230 275 204 215 288 315 327 257 286 311 319 332 280 297 314 320 329 Hale 220 230 21 61 27 9 b60 139 812 4 58 92 394 475 31 13 5 188 240 114 118 26 28 185 271 435 160 Mean 129 180 152 177 158 188 146 195 225 269 203 213 282 312 322 257 283 306 311 322 276 293 311 316 323 Female 190 188 18 78 285 192 226 900 569 140 389 455 20 15 17 183 227 152 169 51 29 167 287 528 183 Mean 128 181 167 181 161 190 151 200 234 279 205 217 299 317 329 258 290 315 324 338 284 301 318 324 334 14 Appendix table I. — Length frequency dlstrlbutlone of Atlantic menhaden In samplea from purse seine catches, by port and age. 1964. Port 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 Fork Length Ag« Ag« Age Age Ag« Age Age (mm) 1 2 1 2 1 2 0 1 2 3 1 2 3 2 3 4 5 6 2 3 4 5 6 105-109 2 110-114 6 - 2 _ _ _ 2 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 115-119 7 - _ _ _ _ 5 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ^ _ _ _ _ 120-124 25 - 2 - - _ 16 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . . _ _ _ _ 125-129 23 - 5 1 _ _ 35 1 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 130-134 18 - 5 1 1 _ 36 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 135-139 15 1 18 - 4 - 52 2 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ 140-144 11 1 36 1 18 - 75 2 - - - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ . 145-149 10 - 43 2 29 2 95 3 1 - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ „ _ _ _ _ _ 150-154 8 1 31 1 49 6 104 2 - _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 155-159 2 7 24 5 54 11 80 6 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 160-164 4 6 9 3 37 24 62 7 - - - - _ _ _ . _ _ _ _ _ - - 165-169 6 9 2 4 41 20 46 9 5 _ - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - 170-174 - 6 2 4 27 29 30 15 9 - - - - - - - - _ _ - - - - 175-179 - 5 2 2 13 24 12 18 9 - 1 5 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - _ _ 180-184 1 2 1 6 17 37 3 34 22 - 9 15 _ - - _ _ _ _ _ _ - - 185-189 - 1 1 7 15 34 2 70 28 - 19 15 _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ - _ _ 190-194 - - 1 6 7 30 1 75 47 - 10 26 - - - - - - - - - - - 195-199 - - 1 3 4 19 - 76 64 - 15 27 _ - - _ _ - _ _ - _ _ 200-204 - - - 1 1 11 - 72 66 - 14 38 - - - - - _ _ _ - - - 205-209 - - - - - 5 - 62 61 - 10 43 - - - _ _ - _ _ _ - - 210-214 - - - - - 1 - 83 75 - 7 52 - - - - - - - - - - - 215-219 - - - - - - - 65 43 - - - - - - - - _ _ _ _ - _ 220-224 - - - - - - - 73 64 - 4 28 _ 4 - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 225-229 - - - - - - - 53 48 - 4 34 - 6 1 - - - - - - - - 230-234 - - - - - 1 - 51 73 2 29 - 4 1 - - - 3 - - - - 235-239 - - - - - - - 47 55 1 19 _ 10 4 - - - 1 _ - - - 240-244 - - - - - - - 52 63 - 14 - 9 6 - - - 4 - - - - 245-249 - - - - - - - 34 69 - 22 - 8 4 1 - - 3 - - - - 250-254 - - - - - - - 18 75 - 24 4 14 12 - - - 1 - - - - 255-259 - - - - - - - 9 69 - 24 15 26 12 2 - - 1 - 1 - 260-264 - - - - - - - 6 92 10 - 23 13 36 9 1 - - 9 1 - - - 265-269 - - - - - - - 4 96 - 28 7 43 31 2 - - 7 6 - - - 270-274 - - - - - - - 3 88 11 - 21 17 64 42 4 - - 9 8 - - - 275-279 - - - - - - - 2 84 18 - 14 12 68 66 10 - - 16 9 3 1 - 280-284 - - - - - - - 3 70 21 - 8 14 89 104 10 - - 15 26 5 - - 285-289 - - - - - - - 1 72 - 1 11 73 101 13 - 1 14 20 8 1 - 290-294 - - - - - - - 1 24 13 - 2 10 65 93 23 - 7 27 7 1 - 295-299 - - - - - - - - 8 - - 2 34 82 14 2 3 28 8 1 - 300-304 - - - - - - . . 4 - _ 2 11 60 30 1 - 42 13 4 - 305-309 - - - - - - - 1 - - - - 14 65 25 2 2 31 12 2 1 310-314 - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 5 38 25 1 2 34 14 1 3 315-319 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 5 29 15 1 1 24 22 - 8 320-324 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 22 14 - 1 35 27 18 12 325-329 - - - - - - - - - _ - - - 2 17 12 12 4 1 35 49 38 27 330-334 _ _ _ _ _ _ - _ - - - _ - I 16 15 16 1 38 38 54 45 335-339 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 4 16 25 21 - 25 48 70 54 340-344 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 12 14 23 29 - 14 38 82 79 345-349 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 4 14 23 28 - 8 35 67 99 350-354 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 3 5 24 30 - 1 17 70 64 355-359 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 21 15 - - 10 30 41 360-364 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 13 - - 3 10 28 365-369 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 3 - - 2 2 9 370-374 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - 2 1 Total 138 39 185 47 317 254 656 960 1 ,485 110 96 512 108 594 839 269 149 169 101 412 357 454 471 Mean 134 166 148 174 162 180 149 211 241 276 199 225 269 272 287 306 337 339 272 305 324 336 339 Male 89 26 94 23 158 122 362 518 787 57 43 268 60 319 411 124 55 80 62 208 152 191 193 Mean 135 166 148 176 1&2 179 149 211 240 274 196 226 268 269 283 302 334 336 269 300 316 329 332 Female 49 13 91 24 159 132 294 442 698 53 53 244 48 275 428 145 94 89 39 204 205 263 278 Mean 133 165 148 172 163 181 149 212 242 277 201 225 270 276 291 310 339 343 276 311 330 341 343 15 A|ip*o r- a. 3 CT* r^ ^ CT> f-- 3 -H 0> ^ ^ -H 00 ' J2 C X)C J3C XiC B«i g« e r^ ■—) Q^ f*i O^ •— < CO 00 O r- c r ON o »o f c 3 41 Z £ ^ C J3C X>C .CC XiC J3C En En En em En En 3 o II r I t \D tno c^^O rHOO 0 r«-t-« p>iff> -jr-- for 9>n iA(^ ^m otn oo>9 ^Oln rvi/% u^« ^(M CltM i-HOi •»<»* CM CM » ^ •* iD -»oo >C(o mr^ ^"C 1*1 (N fl £l «0»a 0«» r»(^ cO>o oo-j mm ni'^ __. — -| tMCN 0A0> t-lO^ kAO C0<<0 r~>i— I OcN aO( -»rH i C XC s ZE ZZ ZE ZE SS ZE ZE ZE ZE 25 O "^ CT^ II II I I I I ^-ff \Or~. >OCO "-"lO i-in 100 fcO^ tH^ c*^co r^^D vO -3- II ■> \0 ^ « I ■< 00 II ) n II joo mCT> i-im o^-- OO OP (A OJ a op a% I I •O F-i^ fnCT> r--0> r-JO o o o o 00 CD m (• r-l ^O ■« CO -^ O -JO O .-I X C M c Z E Z E Z X AC Ji c B 19 en 3 ai 3 0) z E Z E 3 < ^O 00 -4 00 o <■ .-( 00 ^ O CO (^ m cy> ?N a> CO O -a- in CD XlC XIC M C XlC J3C Effl en E O O -- O vO so •£ -J ^ . >Oo moN ^>.lj^ r>ON t~t 0\ 100 ^m <£0 >0^ 0^0^ Or II II I II It 1 I I II t I II I t I It II II II Ji C .ac ^C J3C J3C AC Ba Bg 341 34( 301 311 ZX Zi: ZE ZE AC AC 3 01 3 0> 9 0> 3 01 3 OJ : E z i: Z E A 0} O Dp 3 I — rl -J O 00 01 0) C QD- 3 < om OO 0*£> QO-J J oo O O* en m O JJC XIC XiC XlC J3C JiC Etq Sfl] Qd) Q4 E lAiH coo^ -ao ocM U10 oo a> o CT> O e CO e « E 5! 3 0) 3 0) 3 « Z E Z E Z E E « 3 0) Z E XI c ja c J c E (D B « B « 3 01 3 41 3 0) Z E Z E Z E 28 ft U.S. GOVERNMENT POINTING OFFICE 1975-698-699 ;35 REGION 10 648. Weight \cm» of pond-raised channel catfish Uctalurus punctatut) during holding in procesaing plant vats. By Donald C. Greenland and Robert L. Gilt. December 1971. iii + 7 pp.. 3 figs,. 2 tables. For aale by the Superintendent of Documents. U.S. Government Frintmg Office. Washington. D.C 20402, 649. Distribution of forage of skipjack tuna (EuthynnuM petamis) in the eastam tropical Pacific By Maurice Blackburn and Michael Laurs. January 1972. iii + 16 pp.. 7 figs., 3 tables For sale bv the Superintendent of Documenta, U.S. Government Printing Office. Washmglon, D.C, 20402. 650. Effects of some antioxidants and EDTA on the development of rancidity in Spanish msi-kerel ( Scorn beromoms maculatus) during frozen storage. By Robert N. Farragut. February 1972. iv + 12 pp.. 6 figs.. 12 tables For sale by the Superintendent o( D*Kumenta. US Government Printing Office. Washington. DC. 20402 651. The effect of premortem stress, holding temperatures, and freezing on the biochemistrv and quality of skipjack tuna. By Ladell Crawford. April 1972. iii + 23 pp.. 3 figs.. 4 tables For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta. U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington. DC. 20402 653. The use of electricity in conjunction with a 12.S-meter (Headrope) Gulf-of- Mexico shrimp trawl in Lake Michigan. By James E. Ellis. March 1972, iv + 10 pp., II figs., 4 tables For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta, U,S. Government Printing Office, Washmgton. DC. 20402. 654. An electric detector system for recovering internally tagged menhaden, genus Breuoortia. By R 0, Parker. Jr, February 1972, iii + 7 pp.. 3 figs,. I appendix table. For sale bv the Superintendent of Documents. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washmgton. DC. 20402. 655. Immobilization of fingerling salmon and trout by decompression. By Doyle F. Sutherland. March 1972, iii + 7 pp.. 3 figs., 2 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC. 20402. 662. Seasonal distribution of tunas and billfishes in the Atlantic. By John P. Wise and CharleaW Davis. January 1973. iv + 24 pp., 13 figs. 4 tables For sale by the Superinten- dent of Documenta. US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. 663. Fish larvae collected from the northeastern Pacific Ocean and Puget Sound during April and May 1967. By Kenneth D Waldron. December 1972. iii + 16pp . 2figs . 1 table, 4 appendix tables For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta. U.S. Government Print ing Office. Washington. DC '20402, 664 Tagging and tag-recovery experiments with Atlantic menhaden. Brevoortta tyran- nua. By Richard I, Kroger and Robert L. Dryfoos. December 1972. iv + II pp.. 4 figs., 12 Ubles, For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington. DC 20402. 666 Larval fish survey of Humbolt Bay, California. By Maxwell B Eldridge and Charles F Bryan. December 1972, iii + 8 pp., 8 figs,, 1 table. For sale by the Superintendent ol Documenta. US. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. 666. Distribution and relative abundance of fishes in Newport River, North Carolina. By William R. Turner and George N. Johnson, September 1973. iv + 23 pp.. 1 fig.. 13 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta, U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington. DC. 20402. 667. An analysis of the commercial lobster (Homarus ar.iericanus) fishery along the coast of Maine. August 1966 through December 1970. By James C. Thomas. June 1973. v + 57 pp., 18 figs.. 11 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington. DC. 20402. 668. An annotated bibliography of the cunner. Tautogotabrus adsperttus (Walbaum), By Fredric M. Serchuk and David W Frame. May 1973, ii + 43 pp. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents. U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington. DC. 20402, 656. The calico scallop. Argopecten gibbus- By Donald M Allen and T J. Costello, May 1972. iii + 19 pp.. 9 figs.. 1 table. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC. 20402. 657 Making fish protein concentrates by enzymatic hydrolysis. A status report on research and some processes and products studied by NMFS. By Malcolm B. Hale. November 1972. v -f 32 pp., 15 figs., 17 tables, 1 appendix table. For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. 658. List of fishes of Alaska and adjacent waters with a guide to some of their literature. By Jay C. Quast and Elizabeth L. Hall. July 1972. iv + 47 pp. For sale by the Superinten- dent of DocumenU, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington. D.C. 20402. 669, Subpoint prediction for direct readout meteorological satellites. By L. E. Eber. August 1973, iii + 7 pp., 2 figs.. 1 table. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. 670, Unharvested fishes in the U.S. commercial fishery of western Lake Erie in 1969. By Harry D, Van Meter. July 1973, iii + 11 pp., 6 figs.. 6 tables. For sale by the Superinten- dent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, DC. 20402. 671, Coastal upwelling indices, west coast of North America. 1946-71. By Andrew Bakun, June 1973, iv -f 103 pp., 6 figs., 3 tables. 45 appendix figs. For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta. U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, D.C. 20402, 659. The Southeast Fisheries Center bionumeric code. Part I: Fishes. By Harvey R. Bullis, Jr., Richard B. Roe. and Judith C, Gatlin, July 1972, xl + 95 pp,, 2 figs. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington, D.C. 20402 672. Seasonal occurrence of young Gulf menhaden and other fishes in a northwestern Florida estuary. By Marlin E. Tagatz and E. Peter H, Wilkins. August 1973. iii + 14 pp,. 1 fig., 4 tables. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents. U.S. Government Printing Of- fice. Washington. DC 20402. 660, A freshwater fish electro-motivator (FFEM)-ita characteristics and operation. By James E. Ellis and Charles C. Hoopes. November 1972. iii + 11 pp., 9 figs. 661, A review of the literature on the development of skipjack tuna fisheries in the cen- tral and western Pacific Ocean. By Frank J. Hester and Tamio Otsu. January 1973. iii + 13 pp,. 1 fig. For sale by the Superintendent of Documenta, U.S. Government Printing Of- fice, Washington. DC. 20402. 673. Abundance and distribution of inshore benthic fauna off southwestern Long Island. N,Y, By Frank W Steimle, Jr. and Richard B. Stone. December 1973. iii -t- 50 pp.. 2 figs.. 5 appendix tables. 674, Lake Erie bottom trawl explorations, 1962-66. By Edgar W. Bowman. January 1974. iv + 21 pp.. 9 figs., 1 table. 7 appendix tables. MBL WHOI Library - Serials 5 WH SE 04493 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS STAFF ROOM 450 1107 N E 45TH ST SEATTLE WA 98105 FOURTH CLASS POSTAGE AND FEES PAID U S DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE COM JIO OFFICIAL BUSINESS "-^e, Ma 02^if.j I / '•'?e-i9i*'