University of Massachusetts Amherst I B R R ^^5, eAv.. ^: N<^l^/'>hq, V . • • V . ■ . -^ . ^ ■■■ i ■ ^ : ■ .; M jr i 7, >i ■"■ f: 'i'-i ASSACHUSETTS DIVISION OF MARINE FISHERIES,' ■•"iB »»* Publication No. 16,992-24-150-11-91 r'i^%«%'* ^f'^q ''^ '-'r|--'§ ■ s ,> Approved by State Purchasing Agent . . *r ^ - 1990 MASSACHUSETTS LOBSTER FISHERY STATISTICS by Thomas B. Hoopes Assistant Marine Fisheries Biologist Statistics and Data Processing Project Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries Cat Cove Marine Laboratory 92 Fort Avenue Salem, Massachusetts 01970 (508) 745-3113 Technical Series 25 A contribution of Commercial Fisheries Research and Development (P.L. 99-659) Project NA90AA-D-IJ453 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs Susan F. Tierney, Secretary Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Environmental Law Enforcement John C. Phillips, Commissioner Division of Marine Fisheries Philip G. Coates, Director INTRODUCTION The commercial lobster fishery of Massachusetts is, economically, the most important fishery conducted within the territorial waters of the Commonwealth. The overall economic importance of the fishery both in New England and, in recent years, the Mid-Atlantic states, has focused the attention of Federal, Regional and State fishery managers on this species. Initially, in an attempt to standardize management of the fishery, the Federal and State Governments developed an overall lobster fishery management plan under the auspices of the State-Federal Partnership Program. However, with the passage of the Fisheries Management and Conservation Act, the New England Fisheries Management Council, in cooperation with the Mid-Atlantic Council, has developed and implemented a management plan for the entire east coast lobster fishery. The basis and success of any such plan is an accurate statistical data base. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, with joint funding from the National Marine Fisheries Service, has been collecting annual reports from licensed lobster fishermen for many years. Historically, the data collected was used primarily for descriptive and informational purposes, and occasionally for management. However, with the recent emphasis on Federal management, these data take on added importance in terms of providing the respective management agencies with adequate information to insure that the interests of Massachusetts' lobstermen are protected. During the period 1975 - 1980, the number of coastal commercial lobster permits was limited, by law, to 1300, with an additional ten percent issued to proven hardship cases. In 1981, a statutory change provided for the establishment of a permanent waiting list from which 100 new permits were issued. In addition, 30 special additional permits were awarded to full time commercial fishermen who met certain criteria. In subsequent years 80 list permits and 20 special additional permits have been issued until 1988, when the issuance of new coastal permits was suspended. Permits which are not renewed are retired. This report is the twenty - fourth annual publication of data summarized from catch reports submitted by licensed lobster fishermen. Data were presented in a standardized format through 1979. In 1980, presentation was changed to reflect a more thorough collection and evaluation of the submitted information. This publication represents the fifth year in which data processing and evaluation were completely computerized. It is the first year in which data is presented to conform to the National Marine Fisheries Service statistical reporting areas. This report does not, however, cover the scope of the Project's existing database and computational capability. Requests for expanded information, or questions concerning this publication, should be made to the Division's Statistics Project in Salem MA* (508) 745-3113. , .K J This report has been prepared by personnel from the Division of Marine Fisheries Statistics and Data Processing Project, funded jointly by the Commonwealth and the National Marine Fisheries Service under the Commercial Fisheries Research and Development Act (Public Law 88-309). The preparation of this report would not have been possible without the cooperation of licensed lobstermen who provided the information on their annual reports. Special thanks go to Ann Spires who continues, year after year, to interpret and keypunch, with special care and accuracy, the type' of reports that fishermen are likely to fill out, and to Gerald Nash for his help in Oracle development and report generation. Thanks also goes to Charlie Anderson, who heads up the project, for his continual help with system development, upgrades and suggestions concerning this publication. These three people have as integral a 1 part in this process as I do, and without them this publication would not be possible. SOURCE OF DATA No person may fish for or take lobster in coastal waters or land lobster in the Commonwealth without a permit issued by the Director of the Division of Marine Fisheries (Chapter 130, Mass. G.L., Section 38). Chapter 130, Mass. G.L., Section 33, requires any person so licensed to file an annual report of their catch by January 31 for the preceding calendar year. In 1980, a dual reporting system was established. Commercial lobstermen (coastal, offshore and seasonal(student)) received a detailed catch report form with their license renewal application. This report requests the following information: method of fishing; number and type of gear used; effort data (set-over days, number of trips per month, etc.); pounds of lobster caught; areas fished; principal ports of landing; and information relative to the vessels and traps used in the fishery. Recreational fishermen are asked to report on their license renewal application form the number of lobsters taken during the previous year and the maximum number of traps fished. Project personnel sort, edit, tabulate and interpret data from all reports received. Data presented in this publication are based on catch reports actually received as of July 23, 1991, and are not expanded to represent all of the permits issued in 1990. EXPLANATION OF TABLES All data presented in this publication are broken down into two basic categories: the first is "territorial" which represents data pertaining to all lobster activity taking place within the territorial waters (3 mile line) of the Commonwealth (Areas 1-14 on Figure lA); the "non-territorial" category refers to all data outside those coordinates (Areas 15-25 on Figure IB). This is a departure from years past when data were separated into inshore / offshore components. In 1990, the statistical eporting map was revised to reflect the territorial / non-territorial breakdown beca e it reflects a better estimate of territorial landings, it takes care of the confusing issue of an "offshore" permit holder fishing in "inshore" waters as in years past, and it conforms to the National Marine Fisheries Service's statistical reporting areas. Figures lA and IB show the new areas as defined for 1990. Figure lA. 1990 Massachusetts Lobster Fishery; Statistical Reporting Map Showing Territorial Waters and Outlying Areas (See page 4 for descriptions of territorial areas) Description of Boundaries for Territo rial Areas in Figure lA Between Between Areas Boundaries Areas Boundaries 1 & 2 Castle Neck, Ipswich 11 Sc 12 70 Degree Longitude Line 2 & 3 Goldsmith Point, Manchester 12 Sc 13 41 Degree 20 Minute Latitude Line 3 & 4 Red Rock, Lynn 13 & 14 Elizabeth Islands and 4 & 5 Tobias Ledge (Spindle), Scituate Sow & Pigs Reef to 5 & 6 High Pines Ledge, Plymouth 41 Degree 20 Minute Latitude Line 6 & 7 Scussett Beach. Sandwich 14 &: 15 70 Degree 10 Minute Longitude Line (5,6.7) & 8 8 & 9 9 & 10 9 & 11 10 & 12 10 & 13 120 Foot Line 70 Degree Longitude Line 70 Degree Longitude Line 41 Degree 20 Minute Latitude Line Wasque Point, M.V. to Muskeget Island Waquoit Bay, Falmouth to Cape Poge, Nantucket M.V. Areas 1 - 14 = Territorial Waters Parts of Area 10 are Federal waters, but are managed by DMF. Figure IB. 1990 Massachusetts Lobster Fishery; Statistical Reporting Map Showing Offshore Areas (which correspond to NMFS Statistical Areas) •^ -ME .■■;v><2' 1^ ^ ^ r NA V j§ r /' / r / > X J ~ y ' o •'■.'.., ^|::^^i\ k / V_/^ r^\ /§ . • **^U%^J^^P r 3 \ / '^---^ y r f >.- \ ^ ^^— ^ i ' ■ •. •"•W^^ / X •^vN^^aA /\ /y'^^^><\ / \ / /""^ y\, '\ \v o^ / vv -^4/ ] X ><> ^ ai /Sc / 25 1 I \ • : '-• ^(^ \ 20 ^ y ^ /\ r-^ ^ X. ..■•■••'y!-v-:.^ \ ex / /^ / / ^ \ ' y^ \. ' •. • •..-.v:-.-..-?! \ ^ /N /\ 22 >v >''^'^^'^\/^ >N. J^ \^ • :v.--:^ VY / ^ \ < /^ j/\ \v \ ■.'■.■••v;''-i yy ^\^ \ ) > / / >^ \ o'' \^NH-;J^g^icr 18 > / / y\ \4 ^ ■.*-VK'-^M \ -^ '^^ ^^r'^ ^^Jv /2a''' y\ \/4o #^ x\ / cJ / M ^ /v^ ^ \ / ' yY / ^ ■ • . .".• ■.V'-'^^t^;^ Hi F?^^^'^ . /v y y^ X \* '■^-'■Y'.^^^ Y^ r \ ^"^ J^A y y 16 -^ ^^^y \ \ . / y \y X \i /\ \x ' K^S rS^ Jt\^ y , \^ ^r \^ * ' *^» Af^^yy yy >^' \ y^ \ / '■'NY'^3J^\ y / ^ . \ /^ \ „^ ■^^t^dr V / y j \ / v*° 4\ • 11- •".♦•' ?!^^^^ ><'\ \ ~,' y^ Jf Below is a brief definition of each lobster license type, both commercial and non- commercial, describing their entitlements. Coastai Commercial: Allows the holder to harvest lobster anywhere, most importantly inside territorial waters. Offshore Commercial: Allows the holder to harvest lobster outside territorial waters only. Seasonal Commercial: Allows the holder, if he or she is a student to harvest lobster anywhere, but with a maximum of 25 traps and only during the months June - September. Non-commercial: Allows the holder to harvest lobster anywhere but with a maximum of only 10 traps (if fishing traps) and cannot sell catch. In all cases, the legal minimum size of a harvestable lobster was 3 i/4 inches in 1990. As promulgated by the New England Fishery Management Council in cooperation with lobster producing states in New England and the Mid-Atlantic, 1990 was the "off-year" of a 5-year program to increase the minimum legal size from 3 3/16 to 3 5/16 inches by January of 1992 through four 1/32 inch increases. Tables presenting number of fishermen, number of pots fished, number and value of boats used in the fishery and total landings statewide, by county and license type, and for each city and town were prepared using the catch reports submitted by commercial fishermen. In keeping with Division policy, some of the data are masked or combined to protect the confidentiality of the individual submitting the report. Data referring to the number of fishermen, number and value of gear, and number and value of boats are presented by the home port of the licensee filing the report. Pounds of lobster harvested are presented by the port of landing reported by the fishermen. Vessel and SCUBA gear values were calculated on the basis of the fishermen's estimate of its present value and the percentage of its use specifically for lobstering. Average values were used when the information was omitted from an individual report. When fishermen reported the number of lobsters taken, rather than poundage, a conversion factor of 1.27 pounds per lobster was used to calculate poundage figures. This figure is based on information collected by the Division's Commercial Lobster Investigations Project. For information on biological (average carapace length, sex ratios, percent of egg-bearing lobster in catch etc.) and other parameters (mortality, exploitation and catch per unit of effort rates) contact this Project in Sandwich, MA at (508) 888-1155. Where tables refer to county, the reader is referred to Figure 10. ISSUED LICENSES AND REPORTING STATUS Table 1 lists the number of licenses, both commercial and recreational, issued in 1990, the total value in terms of fees and the number that reported catching lobster. There were 2,638 commercial lobster licenses issued during 1990: 1,782 coastal, 774 offshore and 82 seasonal. Non-commercial licenses issued totaled 12,343, a breakdown of their reporting status and landings can be found in Table 6. As of July 23, 1990, a total of 161 licensed commercial lobstermen (6 percent) failed to file a catch report with the Division. Of the 2,371 commercial fishermen who reported, 633 or 25 percent claimed they did not catch any lobster during 1990. If one looks at the coastal license category in Table 2, they will see a 4 percent drop in the number of fishermen catching lobst:^r from 1989 or a 10 percent drop over the last five years. It is interesting to note the slow decline of coastal licenses issued over the last three years as a result of the moratorium placed on the issuance of new license set in 1988. The number of offshore licensees catching lobster over the last five years has increased considerably, up 42 percent with very little change in the number of licenses issued. This is most probably due to the change in wording on the catch report in 1988 which asked if they actually caught lobster rather than if they fished, or directed their efforts, for lobster. Student commercial licenses continue to decline in number with a 61 percent drop in number issued between 1986 and 1990. Table 1. 1990 Massachusetts Lobster Fishery; Reporting Status of Licenses Issued Licenses Licensing Reported Reported Not License Type (Fee) Issued Revenue "Catching Lob er" "No Lobster Catch" Reporting Coastal Commercial ($ 260) 1,727 $449,020 1,281 74% 420 24% 26 2% Offshore Commercial ($ 260) 738 $191,880 417 57% 207 28% 114 15% Seasonal (Student) Commercial ($ 65) 67 $4,355 40 60% 6 9% 21 31% Non-Commercial ($ 40) 12,343 $493,720 7,562 61% 1,528 12% 3,253 26% Total 14,875 $1,138,975 9,300 63% 2,161 15% 3,414 23% Table 2. Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery; Selected Licensing Information, 1986 - 1990 Percent Five 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Year Change Coastal Licenses Issued 1,803 1,877 % Change 4.10 1,832 1,782 -2.40 -2.73 1,727 -3.09 -4.22 "Caught Lobster" 1,418 1,434 % Change 1.13 1,436 1,333 0.14 -7.17 1,281 -3.90 -9.66 "Did Not Catch Lobster" 359 409 % Change 13.93 362 422 -11.49 16.57 420 -0.47 16.99 Not Reporting 26 34 % Change 30. 77 34 27 0 -20.59 26 -3.70 0.00 Percent Not Reporting 1 2 2 2 2 Offshore Licenses Issued 711 764 % Change 7.45 795 774 4.06 -2.64 738 -4.65 3.80 "Caught Lobster" 294 291 % Change -1.02 323 339 11.00 4.95 All 23.01 41.84 "Did Not Catch Lobster" 270 319 % Change 18.15 347 338 8.78 -2.59 207 -38. 76 -23.33 Not Reporting 147 161 % Change 9.52 125 97 -22.36 -22.40 114 17.53 -22.45 Percent Not Reporting 21 21 16 13 15 Seasonal (Student) Licenses Issued 171 131 % Change -23.39 99 82 -24.43 -17.17 67 -18.29 -60.82 "Caught Lobster" 88 60 « Change -31.82 53 49 -11.67 -7.55 40 -18.37 -54.55 "Did Not Catch Lobster" 13 9 % Change -30. 77 15 13 66.67 -13.33 6 -53.85 -53.85 Not Reporting 70 63 % Change -10.00 31 20 -50.79 -35.48 21 5.00 -70.00 Percent Not Reporting 41 48 31 24 31 LANDINGS AND VALUE An unprecedented 16,567,377 pounds of lobster were reported landed by commercial lobstermen in Massachusetts, a 13.5 percent increase over 1989. Based on a price of $2.46 per pound, however, the commercial catch was valued at $40,755,747, a 1 percent decrease. Figure 2 shows the weighted ex-vessel price for 1990 as derived from audited lobstermen's records, a significant drop from $3.14 and $2.82 paid in 1988 and 1989 respectively. (Weighted price means that each price is weighted by the number of pounds that were paid at that price instead of taking a flat average of all prices). Regional differences in price are typical, where lower prices are usually paid in Boston. Figure 3 shows weighted ex-vessel price over time for the past four years. A best-fit regression line indicates a downward trend over this time period, although it is not statistically significant. The coastal license holders reported landing 13,876,370 pounds, or 84 percent of the commercial catch. Of the 16,567,377 pounds of lobster landed commercially, 12,260,805 were reported taken within the territorial waters of the Commonwealth. Again, all categories of landings are up over 1989 levels. In fact, the average pounds landed per fishermen (coastal and offshore licenses only) increased 12 percent in 1990. In total pounds of lobster landed, Essex County ranked first, Plymouth County second and Suffolk County third. See Table 3 for a breakdown of pounds landed and number of fishermen by license type and county and Table 4 for a five-year comparison of selected landings and effort statistics. Trap and non-trap landings and the number of traps fished are not available for years prior to 1990, as shown in Table 4, since the statistical reporting map was changed in 1990. These figures are available for the old "inshore / offshore" designations only (see 1989 and prior year's reports). Gloucester ranked as the number one port in total pounds landed followed by Boston, Sandwich and Plymouth respectively. In total numbers of active commercial fishermen, Essex County ranked first with 642, Plymouth County second with 358 and Bristol County third with 280. Gloucester ranked first in active fishermen followed by New Bedford, Boston and Plymouth, respectively. See Tables 3 and 5, (the shaded areas in Table 5 refer to the top 10 cities in at least one of the two categories: pounds landed or number of fishermen). Figure 2. 1990 Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery; Weighted Ex-Vessel Price Derived from Audited Lobstermen's Records $ 6 $ 5 - feJ3 Weighted Regional Prices: North Shore: S2.50 Boston: $2.37 South Shore: $2.45 Lobstermen's three day strike Weighted State Price: $2.46 Jan I Mar I May | July I Sep I Nov I Feb Apr Jun Aug Oct Dec Month Total number of observations = 7,205. 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Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery; Selected Landings (Lbs.) and Effort Statistics, 1986 - 90 Percent Five Year 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 Change Total Landings Percent Change 14,690,452 13,384,566 -8.89 14,262,798 6.56 14,610,078 2.43 16,567,377 13.40 12.78 Total Traps Fished Percent Change 427,819 459,360 7.37 460,031 0.15 453,447 -1.43 458,280 1.07 7.12 Total Value Percent Change $36,873,035 $40,515,081 9.88 $44,785,186 10.54 $41,200,420 -8.00 $40,755,747 -1.08 10.53 TERRTrORIAL (Inside 3 Miles) Landings (see note below) Percent Change 10,634,231 9,371,224 -11.88 9,700,058 3.51 10,391,098 7.12 12,260,805 17.99 15.30 Value Percent Change $26,691,920 $28,366,695 6.27 $30,458,182 7.37 $29,302,896 -3.79 $30,161,580 2.93 13.00 Trap Landings * * * * 12,223,266 Traps Fished * * * * 385,201 Non-Trap Landings (Gillnet, Diver) * * * * 37,539 NON-TERRITORIAI, (Outside 3 Miles) | Landings (see note below) Percent Change 4,056,221 4,013,342 -1.06 4,562,740 13.69 4,218,980 -7.53 4.306,572 2.08 6.17 Value Percent Change $10,181,115 $12,148,386 19.32 $14,327,004 17.93 $11,897,524 -16.96 $10,594,167 -10.95 4.06 Trap Landings * * * * 3,616,544 Traps Fished * * * * 73,079 Non-Trap Landings (GOlnet, Trawler) * * * * 690,028 Average Price ($) / Pound Percent Change 2.51 3.03 20.60 3.14 3.73 2.82 -10.19 2.46 -12.77 Ave. Lbs. / Trap-Haul Percent Change 0.6907 0.6304 -8.73 0.6478 2.76 0.6601 1.90 0.7336 11.13 Ave. Lbs. / Trap Percent Change 33.10 28.15 -14.95 29.88 6.15 31.00 3.75 34.56 11.50 ♦ Figures not available for these years, only inshore/offshore breakdown available. See explanation in text. Territorial and non-territorial landings for 1986-1989 were calculated based on the lobsten caught from territorial waters. nan's estimate of the percent of his total landings 11 Table 5. 1990 Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery; Number of Fishermen and Landings by Homeport. Does Not Include Seasonal Licenses and Their Landings. TOWN FISHERMEN NUMBER RANK POUNDS POUNDS NON- TERRITORIAL TERRITORIAL TOTAL POUNDS PERCENT RANK B ARN ST ABLE- Y ARMOUTH BEVERLY 14 43 25 9 26,529 361.448 387,977 748,197 2.34 4.52 18 6 660,115 88,078 BOSTON BOURNE m 3 1,535.001 52,308 191,636 1,726.637 52.308 10.43 0.32 2 36 9 29 CHATHAM 26 17 89.197 88.599 177,796 1.07 24 CHILMARK 16 23 69.218 664.827 63.164 783 132.382 665.610 0.80 4.02 27 8 POH A9<;PT A"? 0 v.^v-/n>\ooc. 1 't^ y DANVERS 15 24 78.275 16,172 94,447 0.57 30 DARTMOUTH 21 21 36.172 15,722 51,894 0.31 37 DENNIS 20 22 76.121 76,121 0.46 31 DUXBURY 5 33 44.257 44,257 0.27 40 ESSEX FAIRHAVEN 11 39 27 19,276 19,276 0.12 3.87 45 9 10 ^ 117,I34||| li-E 523,487" ' 640,621 FALMOUTH-GOSNOLD 13 26 32,220 C^C t\^^' 32.220 0.19 WM 44 GLOUCESTER 220 1 1,152,846 575,926 1,728,772 1 HARWICH 3 34 31.787 81,728 113,515 0.69 29 HINGHAM 32 16 539.494 13,252 552,746 3.34 12 HULL 34 14 341.741 15,646 357,387 2.16 19 IPSWICH-ROWLEY 22 20 51.856 5 51.861 0.31 38 KINGSTON 7 31 32.516 32,516 0.20 43 LYNN 8 30 247,368 3,007 250,375 1.51 22 MANCHESTER 32 16 256.028 72.607 328.635 1.98 21 MARBLEHEAD 56 7 554,233 43,393 597.626 3.61 11 MARSHFIELD 83 5 609,048 157,571 766,618 4.63 5 MATTAPOISETT 13 26 45.967 13.983 59,950 0.36 33 N AH ANT ;.;...;...........:...:....-..3^...... ...■.:.:.:.:.-:.-.x.-.::-.:;:.-:.M:::.- ...-.....- .:.:.:.....:..:..,.606,251........ ..-..:...::.:.;:: 20,280 ;,,,;.. ,^.,626,5^1. ,..,.., .,.:...;..J;78., 10 NANTUCKET 5" 33" 15,423 49.076 64,499 0.39 32 NEW BEDFORD 178 2 128,366 353,388 481,755 2.91 15 NEWBURYPORT-NEWBURY 26 17 31.332 24.448 55,781 0.34 35 ORLEANS-EASTHAM 24 19 156,208 2,880 159,088 0.96 26 PLYMOUTH 106 4 833,153 30,196 32,128 863,348 168,410 5.21 1.02 4 25 PROVINCETOWN 37 12 136.282 QUINCY-BRAINTREE 11 27 55,556 3,120 58,676 0.35 34 REVERE-CHELSE MEDFORD 10 28 328.879 7,556 22,669 336,436 450,985 2.03 2.72 20 17 ROCKPORT 60 6 428,316 SALEM 14 25 26.058 10,166 36,223 0.22 41 SALISBURY SANDWICH 6 34 32 14 17,647 279,095 1,211 602,396 18.858 881,491 0.11 5.32 46 3 SAUGUS SCITUATE 45 56 8 7 522,325 422,474 7,962 123,407 530,286 545,881 477,287 3.20 3.30 2.88 14 13 16 SWAMPSCOTT 33 15 436.880 40,407 TISBURY-OAK BLUFFS-EDGARTO^ VN 13 26 11.262 5,403 16,665 0.10 47 TRURO-WELLFLEET 9 29 32.537 32.537 0.20 42 WAREHAM-MARION 9 29 37.725 12,273 49.997 7 1 0 04 1 0.30 39 7 28 WESTPORT-FALL RIVER-BERKLEY WEYMOUTH ' 78 1 1 1 17 AO'; ^0 7 31 1 1 /,4Zj 87,695 5yj,ol3 35,585 123,279 0.74 WINTHROP 25 18 178.760 178,760 1.08 23 STATEWIDE TOTAL 1,679 12,253.185 4,306,572 16,559,757 100.00 OUT OF STATE 19 34.096 347,462 381,558 Shaded areas refer to towns which rank in top 10 for one or both of the categories. 12 Recreational statistics are shown in Table 6. Licenses issued in 1990 totalled 12,343, down slightly from 1989, with 7,562, or 61 percent, reporting that they fished for lobster. In general, reporting rates, and landings did not change much from 1989. Landings amounted to 416,952 pounds, or only 2.5 percent of commercial landings. Often there are concerns by the commercial sector that recreational fishermen have a detrimental effect on the resource. This obviously is not the case, as these figures illustrate. It should be noted that those individuals who did not report, did not renew their recreational license for 1991 as well. With the number of licenses issued from 1989 to 1990 virtually unchanged, one quarter of the recreational fishery has turned over in the last two years. Historically, this kind of turn-over rate is not unusual. Table 6. 1990 Massachusetts Recreational Lobster Fishery; License Status and Harvest Information Method License Type: Diver Diver/Pot Potman Unknown Total Percent 1) Number of Licenses Issued in 1990 4,758 3.567 4,018 0 12.343 2) Number That Reported 3.336 2,728 3,026 0 9,090 73.64% a) Total Number That Fished 2.768 2.278 2,516 0 7,562 61.27% b) Total Number That Did Not Fish 568 450 510 0 1,528 12.38% 3) Number That Did Not Report 1.499 872 1,089 0 3,253 26.36% Percent Change 4) Number of Lobsters Reported landed 62.165 95.388 170,756 0 328,309 from 1989 Pounds of Lobsters (Calculated)* 78.950 121,143 216,860 0 416,952 1.80% 5) Number Pots Fished 7,600 19,721 0 27,321 -0.49% 6) Number of Hours Diving 48,324 35.075 0 83,399 5.77% * Based on 1.27 Pounds per Lobster. 13 Territorial landings by commercial fishermen were concentrated during the months July through November when 84 percent of the yearly harvest was landed. This is a typical scenario from year to year, where catch increases sometime in mid to late July and peaks in August and September. Water temperatures rise during this time inducing growth and subsequent recruitment of previously sub-legal lobsters into the legal size category. See Table 7 and Figure 4. The greatest harvest of lobster taken from territorial waters was from the Boston Harbor vicinity (including outlying areas out to the territorial line or Area 4 on Figure lA), where approximately 43% of the state's territorial harvest was caught. This far outweighs any of the other designated areas in terms of landings. It is difficult to determine which reporting Table 7. 1990 Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery; Percent Monthly Territorial Harvest for Each License Type Month Coastal Seasonal January 1.10 February 0.57 March 0.87 April 1.41 May 3.29 June 5.06 18.20 July 13.46 33.95 August 21.67 34.92 September 21.64 12.93 October 16.52 November 10.33 December 4.08 Total 100.00 100.00 QJ t 'cd o -i-j 'si! CO X 'cO 'u o u u la o c O •a (0 w a, to u, E- I-) o c o Figure 7. 1990 Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery; Catch Per Unit of Effort for Both Coastal and All Potmen by Month 0.4 0.3 = 0.2 0.1 0 Average CPUE for All Potmen = .2270 + = All Potmen ■ = Coastal License Potmen Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Month (0 G !-. > o 01 TS 0) 3 (0 o, (0 u E- "(0 o w XI o CI, 0.4 Figure 8. 1990 Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery; Catch Per Unit of Effort for All License Types by Area Fished 0.3 0.2 0.1 Areas 1 - 14 = Massachusetts Territorial Waters See Figure lA for Map Average CPUE for All Potmen =- .2270 0 6 7 8 9 Area Fished 10 11 12 13 14 17 FISHING GEAR, VESSELS AND VALUE In the commercial fishery, traps were valued at $21,502,173, diving gear at $63,940, and power and non-power boats at $54,177,672, yielding a total gear value of $75,743,785. Combined with the ex-vessel value of lobster sold, $40,755,747, gives a total fishery value of $116,499,532. See Tables 9, 10 and 11. Overall, 69% of the traps fished in the commercial fishery were wire framed, with 30% being wooden framed and less than 1% categorized as "other". This supports a continuing trend of increasing wire traps employed in the fishery. Average value (including warp and buoy) ranged anywhere from $28.47 to $73.37, with an overall average of $46.73. See Table 9. Table 9. 1990 Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery; Trap Types Fished and Value for Each License Type Total Percent Coastal Offshore Seasonal Trap Type of Total Wooden Framed Traps 127,219 12,611 132 139,962 30.42% Value $5,717,354 $925,250 $3,758 $6,646,361 Value/Trap $44.94 $73.37 $28.47 $47.49 Wire Framed Traps 298,378 20,009 651 319,038 69.33% Value $13,419,761 $1,365,277 $22,619 $14,807,657 Value/Trap $44.98 $68.23 $34.74 $46.41 Other Trap Types 1,165 1,165 0.25% Value $48,155 $48,155 Value/Trap Total for License Type Value Value/Trap $41.33 $41.33 426,762 32,620 783 460,165 $21,502,173 $46.73 $19,185,270 $2,290,526 $26,377 $44.96 <^A 01 $33.69 >/0.22 Value of trap includes warp and buoy. These figures include out-of-state fishermen. 18 m 5 O lO * — o •» 00 <« « -< S 3 ^ «0 O jn vr; r- ^^ t: "* «^ • ^ c»< en — g "> t^ S 00 -< 1/1 73 i2 O cu a > I a 3 2 V3 t- "» •- ?i P ». -» «* O goo oe S ? '^ 8 :: a S £ f^ r»1 \0 CS O 5 - S K - 8 - < < O O H O 0 O 00 en o> en 00 ■o Tt ■Ci CS I^-^ S S! ? en S; "^ en 00 3"^ s ? CS o — — — «-i CS — m — >0 — -fl- 1/1 Tt 00 CS — en j« \e O H "^ I » § :! "2 I (£ 2 19 SI ■«• >o t- 00 o 2 t "" s 11.655 795.367 14,281 o sj o Ov ^o m (ft « s s M f»t 5 73 U CO (O > I o > « s 00 O vo O SJ •TV 5 t~ ■o f^ iri ts o 8 S r- «0 (p -< >« 0< 08 »C tn r«J —T 00* ■^ Si ^ r> to "X tn :00: 3 t cs cs S ?5 00 3oo" oo" s ^ O 3 P CO CO "* VO R PI 8 O «S o 5? J o u < CiO < o u 1 ^ o 8 00 00 o ■* VO CS CM oo" Ov S 8 R 1/1 00 Ov CS ^ 2 Ov «1 o CI Q vO_ O •-< m O o" CS ;^ s CI oo' 1 vrv Ov 00 CO o^ ^ s 8 8 in in 8 8 00 VO i S ^ o <<% 00 o »^ c~ (N r~ S rr Ov cl ^ CN vo CS *r\ o «1 CS o" c^" O f5 a. u CO U 3 ^ Q £ O 20 VALIDITY OF DATA Each year 150 coastal license holders are selected and audited for the records they used to complete the catch portion of their catch report. The Division does this to assess the amount of error involved in the reporting process. Selection is done randomly except when fishermen fail an audit. In these cases, they are audited again the following year. The audit was first instituted in 1977 for the 1976 catch reports. Over the last five years the lobstermen selected for audit reported landing 6,105,853 pounds. The audit of their records revealed a harvest of 6,041,841 pounds or a difference of 1.05 percent. Last year the fishermen selected for audit reported harvesting 1,681,685 pounds of lobster on their 1990 catch reports. The audit of their actual records showed total landings of 1,660,164 pounds, a difference of 21,521 pounds or 1.28 percent. Nine of the randomly selected fishermen have yet to respond to the audit request. Figure 9 shows the distribution of the percent difference between the selected fishermen's reported catch and their audited records. In general, reported landings are very well documented by dealer receipts and/or personal records, especially by the so-called "high-liners" in the fishery. Most of the lobstermen have had licenses for several years and know what is required in terms of reporting their fishing activities in addition to the value of reporting accurately in the development of management plans. They also know that their reported information is kept strictly confidential and published only in aggregate form. These factors all contribute to a fairly conscientious and responsible reporting constituency. O c 0) cr 18 16 - 14 - 12 10 - 8 6 4 - 0 Figure 9. Massachusetts Commercial Lobster Fishery- Frequency Distribution of the Percent Difference Between Fishermen's Reported Catch and Their Audited Records Overall Percent Difference = 1.28 -80 -60 -40 Number of Fishermen Audited = 150 ■20 20 Percent Difference 40 60 80 21 Figure 10. Coastal Map of Massachusetts Showing Statistical Reporting Areas (Counties) A. Essex B. Suffolk C. Norfolk D. Plymouth E. Bristol F. Barnstable G. Dukes H. Nantucket 22 ¥y«'JK>£iifi|i«'f»tir^< % 'M "4 ** -? 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