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Making Waves Fall 2020
Fishery Stock Assessments In New England and the Mid-Atlantic Stock assessments describe how many fish are available for harvest, numbers of young and mature fish in the population, and how many fish die from natural causes or fishing. Story Courtesy NOAA Fisheries New England/Mid-Atlantic Why We Conduct Assessments We study the size and age composition of fish populations off New England and the Mid-Atlantic, focusing on federally managed fishery species. We do this in order to:
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Monitor the abundance of fish stocks
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Measure the impact of fishing activity
Evaluate biological aspects of the ecosystem Together, each element describes stock health through a stock assessment. In our study area, New England/Mid-Atlantic, we assess approximately 40 different fish and invertebrate species, and contribute to marine mammal assessments.
Stock Assessments Use Data From All Sources Commercial fishermen and fish dealers, recreational fishermen, and research scientists all collect and contribute to fisheries data. Together, these data help us develop our stock assessments, which in turn help us determine sustainable harvest levels for each fish stock.