Research Document 1998/102
Etat des populations de crevettes nordiques (Pandalus borealis) de l'estuaire et du golfe du Saint-Laurent (divisions 4RST de l'OPANO)
By J. Lambert, H. Bouchard, and L. Savard
Abstract
Data from research surveys and commercial fishery for northern shrimp in the Gulf of St. Lawrence were analysed and results are presented to show overall tendencies in the abundance of shrimp and the impact of harvest on the stocks. The abundance index for shrimp in the Gulf and Estuary has fluctuated since the 1980s. However, assessment results indicate that the populations were in good condition at the end of the 1997 fishing season. Fluctuations in abundance can be explained by the strength of the year-classes supporting the fishery. Thus, the high abundance indices of 1994, 1995, 1996 and 1997 are due to the contribution of the strong year-classes produced in the early 1990s. Shrimp in the size-class 19 to 21 mm that were hatched mainly in 1994, should reach sizes that are fully retained by trawls in 1998. This year-class, along with the strong 1993 year-class, should maintain catches at high levels in 1998.
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