|
| Marine Resource Fact Sheet |
| |
| Witch flounder - Northeast Newfoundland Shelf and Northern Grand Bank |
 | Witch flounder in Div. 2J3KL |
| | Data Ownership | | This document provided, maintained and owned by Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) , is part of NAFO Summary Sheets data collection. |
|
| Related observations | Locate in inventory | | | | Species: | | FAO Names: en - Witch flounder, fr - Plie cynoglosse, es - Mendo, ru - Камбала длинная (красная) атлантическая |
|
|
| Geographic extent of Witch flounder - Northeast Newfoundland Shelf and Northern Grand Bank
Map tips
- Click on
 to turn layers on and off
- Double-click to zoom in
- Drag to pan
- Hold down the shift key and drag to zoom to a particular region
| FAO Fishing Statistical Division Areas |
|---|
| 21.2.J | Atlantic, Northwest / 21.2.J |
|---|
| 21.3.K | Atlantic, Northwest / 21.3.K |
|---|
| 21.3.L | Atlantic, Northwest / 21.3.L |
|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| Main Descriptors | Considered a single stock: Yes
Spatial Scale: Regional
Management unit: Yes
Reference year: 2012
|
| Considered a single stock: A group of individuals in a species occupying a well defined spatial range independent of other stocks of the same species. It can be affected by random dispersal movements and directed migrations due to seasonal or reproductive activity. |
| Spatial Scale: Spatial scale contains a standard term such as Global, Regional (e.g. for the whole Atlantic), sub-regional (e.g. for a part of the Atlantic), national, local (for sub-national levels). |
| Considered a management unit: An aquatic resource or fishery is
declared as [Fishery] Management Unit if it is
effectively the focus for the application of selected
management methods and measures, within the broader
framework of a management system. According to the FAO
Glossary for Responsible Fishing, "a Fishery Management
Unit (FMU) is a fishery or a portion of a fishery
identified in a Fishery Management Plan (FMP) relevant
to the FMP's management objectives." FMU's may be
organised around fisheries biological, geographic,
economic, technical, social or ecological dimensions ,
and the makeup and attribute of a fishery management
unit depends mainly on the FMP's management
objectives. |
| Jurisdictional distribution: Jurisdictional qualifier (e.g.
"shared", "shared - highly migratory") of the aquatic
resource related with its spatial distribution. |
| Environmental group: Classification of the aquatic
resource according to the environmental group (e.g.
pelagic invertebrate, or demersal fish) to which the
species belong. |
| Reference Year: The Reference Year is the last year considered in the stock assessment and/or fishery status. |
| | | | | | Biological State and Trend The stock remains below Blim. Recruitment in 2011 and 2012 was below average and fishing mortality is currently low. Habitat and Biology Climatic zone: Temperate. Bottom type: Unspecified. Depth zone: Slope - Deepslope (500 m - 1000 m). Horizontal distribution: Neritic. Vertical distribution: Demersal/Benthic. Geographical Distribution Jurisdictional distribution: Straddling between High Seas and EEZ Geo References  | | Geographic extent of Witch flounder - Northeast Newfoundland Shelf and Northern Grand Bank
| FAO Fishing Statistical Division Areas | 21.2.J: Atlantic, Northwest / 21.2.J | | 21.3.K: Atlantic, Northwest / 21.3.K | | 21.3.L: Atlantic, Northwest / 21.3.L |
| | | | | | Intersecting Major FAO areas and LME areas |
The following area codes have been found as intersecting the distribution of Witch flounder - Northeast Newfoundland Shelf and Northern Grand Bank Resource Structure Considered a single stock: Yes Exploitation A moratorium was implemented in 1995 following drastic declines in catch from the mid-70s, and catches since then have been low levels of bycatch in other fisheries (e.g. Greenland halibut and redfish fisheries). Recent catch estimates and TACs are:
| |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
| TAC |
ndf |
ndf |
ndf |
ndf |
ndf |
ndf |
ndf |
ndf |
ndf |
ndf |
| STATLANT 21 |
0.3 |
0.2 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
0.2 |
0.2 |
0.2 |
|
| STACFIS |
0.8 |
0.2 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
0.2 |
0.2 |
0.2 |
|
|
ndfno directed fishing.
|
Effects of the fishery on the ecosystemThere is no directed fishery. Assessment Overall Assessment Results Reference Point Blim is 15% of the highest observed survey biomass, adjusted to the entire stock distribution (B1984*1.48) (STACFIS 2010 p 193). Projection Quantitative assessment of risk at various catch options is not possible at this time. Assessment Model Analytical assessment Results Qualitative evaluation of trends in survey biomass indices relative to exploitation and recruitment information were used to assess the status of the stock. Next assessment is planned for 2016. Human impactMainly bycatch related fishery mortality has been documented. Other sources (e.g. pollution, shipping, oil-industry) are undocumented. Biological and environmental interactionsIn the late 1970s and early 1980s witch flounder were widely distributed throughout the Div. 2J3KL shelf area in deeper channels around the fishing banks, and were more abundant in Div. 3K. By the mid-1980s they were rapidly disappearing and by the early 1990s had virtually disappeared from the area entirely except for some very small catches along the slope and more to the southern area. Since 1998, witch flounder have been found mostly along the deep continental slope area, in depths of 200-750m. Fishing MortalityRecruitmentBiomassScientific Advice Special commentsNone Management Management unit: Yes Div. 3L only Management Advice Recommendation for 2014-2016No directed fishery to allow for stock rebuilding. By-catches of witch flounder in other fisheries should be kept at the lowest possible level. Management Objectives No explicit management plan or management objectives are defined by Fisheries Commission. General convention objectives (GC Doc. 08/3) are applied. Advice is based on survey indices, catch trends and estimates of recruitment. The stock is widely distributed throughout the shelf area of Div. 2J3KL in deeper channels around the fishing banks, primarily in Div. 3K. Source of information Report of the Meeting, 7-20 June, 2013 - SCS Doc. 13/17  http://www.nafo.int/publications/frames/sci-reports.html |
|
| |
|
