Accuracy and Precision of Fish Ages - Northeast
It is important to ensure consistency in fish ages used in fish population assessments. The Fishery…
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The summer flounder fishery in the U.S. operates from Maine to the North Carolina/South Carolina border. Summer flounder is one of the most sought after commercial and recreational fish along the Atlantic coast. Summer flounder is found in inshore and offshore waters from Nova Scotia, Canada, to the east coast of Florida. Summer flounder are mainly caught in bottom otter trawls, but are also taken by pound nets and gillnets in estuarine waters. The market for summer flounder is for human consumption and is primarily sold fresh. U.S. wild-caught summer flounder is a smart seafood choice because it is sustainably managed and responsibly harvested under U.S. regulations. Implementing regulations are found at 50 CFR part 648 subpart G.
Below target levels and fishing rate promotes population growth.
At recommended levels.
Bottom trawls can impact bottom habitats. However, summer flounder live on sandy ocean bottom habitat, which is more resilient than other habitat types to the impacts of fishing gear.
Regulations are in place to minimize bycatch.
At the December Council Meeting, the Council and Board voted to continue “conservation equivalency" for the summer flounder recreational fishery in 2020. This means we waive the federal recreational bag limit, minimum fish size, and fishing season, and vessel owners are subject to regulations in the state where they land. This decision will be final when the final rule publishes in the Federal Register.
Please contact your state for information on summer flounder regulations that apply to you.
Overfishing Limit (OFL) | 30.94 million lb |
---|---|
Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC) | 25.03 million lb |
Commercial Annual Catch Limit (ACL) | 13.53 million lb |
Commercial Annual Catch Target (ACT) | 13.53 million lb |
Recreational ACL and ACT | 11.51 million lb |
Commercial Quota | 11.53 million lb |
Recreational Harvest Limit (RHL) | 7.69 million lb |
For all charter/party permit holders, VTRs must be maintained on board the vessel and submitted to NOAA Fisheries for all fishing trips, regardless of species retained. Instructions for completing the VTR can be found online on our reporting page.
Charter/Party vessel permit owners and operators with a federal charter/party (for-hire) permit to fish for summer flounder (and other Mid-Atlantic species) must submit the required VTR by electronic means through a software application approved by NOAA Fisheries. These electronic log VTRs must be submitted within 48 hours after entering port at the conclusion of a trip. More information of the eVTR requirements and help with electronic reporting can be found online on our reporting page.
The recreational (charter/party) summer flounder fishery does not have any Interactive Voice Response (IVR), Vessel Monitoring System (VMS), or specific observer requirements. However, all federally permitted vessels are obligated to carry an observer if randomly selected by the National Observer Program.
Reporting is not required for the private recreational fishery, but the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) is a system of voluntary coordinated data collection programs designed to estimate recreational catch and effort.
The minimum commercial size limit for summer flounder is 14 inches in total length.
There are no federal possession limit requirements in the commercial summer flounder fishery, unless using certain gear types (see below). Please check with your state agency for any state or regional measures and requirements that may apply.
Overfishing Limit (OFL) | 30.94 million lb |
---|---|
Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC) | 25.03 million lb |
Commercial Annual Catch Limit (ACL) | 13.53 million lb |
Commercial Annual Catch Target (ACT) | 13.53 million lb |
Recreational ACL and ACT | 11.51 million lb |
Commercial Quota | 11.53 million lb |
Recreational Harvest Limit (RHL) | 7.69 million lb |
State | Percent Share | Initial Commercial Quota (lb) | Adjusted Commercial Quota (lb)* |
---|---|---|---|
Maine | 0.05 | 5,484 | - |
New Hampshire | 0.0005 | 53 | - |
Massachusetts | 6.82 | 786,399 | - |
Rhode Island | 15.68 | 1,808,248 | - |
Connecticut | 2.26 | 260,241 | - |
New York | 7.65 | 881,698 | - |
New Jersey | 16.72 | 1,928,391 | - |
Delaware | 0.02 | 2,051 | - |
Maryland | 2.04 | 235,108 | - |
Virginia | 21.32 | 2,457,822 | - |
North Carolina | 27.44 | 3,164,505 | - |
Total | 100.00 | 11,530,000 | -** |
*These quota values include 2018 and preliminary 2019 quota overages. Quota may be transferred between states through inseason actions. These quota values may not include 2019 quota transfers. Please check the quota monitoring page for updates.
**Total quota is the sum for all states with an allocation. A state with a negative number has a 2020 allocation of zero (0). Total final 2020 quota, less overages, does not include negative allocations (i.e., Delaware's overage).
VTRs must be submitted with a record of all fishing activity for each month. The reports must be submitted to NOAA fisheries or postmarked within 15 days after the end of the reporting month. Reports can also be submitted electronically through our online reporting page.
The commercial black sea bass fishery does not have any Interactive Voice Response (IVR), Vessel Monitoring System (VMS), or specific observer requirements. However, all federally permitted vessels are obligated to carry an observer if randomly selected by the National Observer Program.
Otter trawlers – Vessels fishing under a summer flounder moratorium permit must have a minimum mesh size of 5.5-in diamond mesh or 6-in square mesh applied throughout the net body, extension(s), and codend.
Vessels with a summer flounder moratorium permit not fishing under the above mesh requirements may retain no more than 100 lb from May 1 through October 31, and no more than 200 lb from November 1 through April 30.
Some vessels may be exempt from certain gear restrictions under certain conditions when fishing in the Summer Flounder Small-Mesh Exemption Area. Contact our Permit Office for more information on this exemption area and associate Letter of Authorization.
Turtle Excluder Device (TED) – Summer flounder trawlers fishing within the Summer Flounder Fishery Sea Turtle Protection Area are required to use a TED as detailed at 50 CFR part 223. Vessels fishing north of Oregon Inlet, NC, are exempted from this requirement from January 15 through March 15.
The summer flounder fishery is managed in state and federal waters by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, in conjunction with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission. NOAA Fisheries serves as the implementing body for rules and regulations within the fishery.
The commercial fishery is managed using commercial quotas allocated to the states, size limits, and gear requirements. The recreational fishery also uses size limits, along with seasons and bag limits to manage summer flounder.
The fishing year runs from January 1 through December 31, with NOAA Fisheries Greater Atlantic Region jurisdiction covering from Maine to the latitude of the North Carolina/South Carolina border.
Control Date for the Summer Flounder Fishery: January 26, 1990; Vessels with qualified landings between January 26, 1985, and January 26, 1990.
The Summer Flounder Fishery Management Plan (FMP) requires the specification of catch and harvest limits for up to three years at a time. In 1997, Judge Robert Dumar ordered that specifications must publish before the fishing year begins.
If a state commercial summer flounder quota is fully harvested, then that state’s summer flounder fishery will be closed. Additionally, states can transfer commercial quota between states to avoid exceeding state quotas.
Overfishing Limit (OFL) | 30.94 million lb |
---|---|
Acceptable Biological Catch (ABC) | 25.03 million lb |
Commercial Annual Catch Limit (ACL) | 13.53 million lb |
Commercial Annual Catch Target (ACT) | 13.53 million lb |
Recreational ACL and ACT | 11.51 million lb |
Commercial Quota | 11.53 million lb |
Recreational Harvest Limit (RHL) | 7.69 million lb |
State | Percent Share | Initial Commercial Quota (lb) | Adjusted Commercial Quota (lb)* |
---|---|---|---|
Maine | 0.05 | 5,484 | - |
New Hampshire | 0.0005 | 53 | - |
Massachusetts | 6.82 | 786,399 | - |
Rhode Island | 15.68 | 1,808,248 | - |
Connecticut | 2.26 | 260,241 | - |
New York | 7.65 | 881,698 | - |
New Jersey | 16.72 | 1,928,391 | - |
Delaware | 0.02 | 2,051 | - |
Maryland | 2.04 | 235,108 | - |
Virginia | 21.32 | 2,457,822 | - |
North Carolina | 27.44 | 3,164,505 | - |
Total | 100.00 | 11,530,000 | -** |
*These quota values include 2018 and preliminary 2019 quota overages. Quota may be transferred between states through inseason actions. These quota values may not include 2019 quota transfers. Please check the quota monitoring page for updates.
**Total quota is the sum for all states with an allocation. A state with a negative number has a 2020 allocation of zero (0). Total final 2020 quota, less overages, does not include negative allocations (i.e., Delaware's overage).
All summer flounder landed for sale in a state shall be applied against that state’s annual commercial quota, regardless of where the summer flounder were harvested. Any landings in excess of the commercial quota in any state, inclusive of any state-to-state transfers, will be deducted from that state’s annual quota for the following year in the final rule that establishes the annual state-by-state quotas, irrespective of whether the commercial sector ACL is exceeded.
The recreational sector ACL will be evaluated based on a 3-year moving average comparison of total catch (landings and dead discards). Both landings and dead discards will be evaluated in determining if the 3-year average recreational ACL has been exceeded. If available data indicate that the recreational sector ACL has been exceeded, the total catch exceeds the ABC, or the total catch exceeds the OFL, then a system of accountability measures will be used that are based on a combination of how high the overage is and what condition the stock is in. In other words, the status of the stock determines what type of management response would be implemented, including adjustment of management measures, scaled payback of overage, or pound-for-pound overage payback. These adjustments will be made in the following fishing year, or as soon as possible, as a single year adjustment.
The most recent benchmark stock assessment for summer flounder was in 2018, where the stock was declared not overfished and overfishing was not occuring. The next assessment for summer flounder is expected in 2021.
Spawning Stock Biomass (SSB) | 99.220 million lb (2017) |
---|---|
SSBMSY Proxy | 126.014 million lb |
SSB / ½ SSBMSY Proxy | 1.57 |
Overfished Definition | The stock is overfished when SSB < ½ SSBMSY |
Overfished? | No |
Fishing Mortality Rate (F) | 0.334 (2017) |
FMSY | 0.75 |
F/FMSY | 0.448 |
Overfishing Definition | Overfishing occurs when F > FMSY |
Overfishing? | No |
Current Rebuilding Program? | No. Summer flounder stock declared rebuilt in 2010 |
Next Stock Assessment | Scheduled for 2021 |
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