Research Document - 2009/025

Commercial fishery and biology of the Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus L.) in NAFO Subareas 3 and 4 in 2007

By F. Grégoire, C. Lévesque, J-L. Beaulieu
and M-H. Gendron

Abstract

In 2007, preliminary landings of Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus L.) in the Northwest Atlantic totalled 75,863 t, which represents a decrease of 34,423 t from 2006 and 20,475 t from 2005. In eastern Canada, 50,578 t were landed with 44,032 t (87%) in Newfoundland alone. The actual landings made in Canadian waters should be higher because fishery data from certain provinces were not all accounted for at the time of the assessment. In 2007, American landings totalled 25,285 t, a decrease of 31,352 t compared with 2006 and 15,732 t with 2005. The sharing of the resource based on historical landings and including the catches made by foreign vessels in American and Canadian waters would total 74% in favour of the United States if this calculation were based on total landings made between 1960 and 2007. This proportion would be 51% if the calculation were based on the average annual landings proportion of each country. When only considering domestic American and Canadian landings, these values would total 63% and 70% respectively in favour of Canada. In 2007, most of the landings off the west coast of Newfoundland were from unit areas 4Rb, 4Rc and 4Rd with respective totals of 7,100 t, 8,094 t and 8,039 t. On the east coast of Newfoundland, the most important landings were from unit areas 3Kh, 3Ki, 3La and 3Lb with respective values of 6,131 t, 1,483 t, 4,687 t and 5,511 t. Since the early 2000s, Canadian landings have been greatly dominated by fish from the 1999 year-class. Between 2000 and 2004, fish from this year-class have accounted for between 45% and 77% of all catches in numbers, which had not been observed since the late 1960s. Nevertheless, the relative significance of this year-class dropped sharply beginning in 2005 in favour of the 2003 year-class that accounted for 40% of the 2007 landings. The strong 1999 year-class, which was responsible for landings of more than 150,000 t since 2000, is no longer an important contributor to the fishery or to the spawning stock. The strength of the year-classes since 1999 does not appear to be strong. Catches in the order of 50,000 t in recent years have been supported by this strong year-class. It is uncertain that catches of that level can be realized in the years to come with the year-classes presently available to the fishery.

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