Terms of Reference

Northern Contingent Atlantic Mackerel (Scomber scombrus) Stock Assessment in 2024

Regional Peer Review - Quebec Region

February 26-27, 2025

Mont-Joli, QC

Chairperson: Marie-Julie Roux

Context

The Fisheries Resource Management Directorate of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) has requested advice on stock status, environmental conditions affecting the stock, and rebuilding projections for the northern contingent of Atlantic Mackerel (Scomber scombrus) (DFO 2024) as part of the multiyear stock assessment cycle. This stock is prescribed under section 6 of the Fisheries Act.

The purpose of this meeting is to assess Atlantic mackerel. The last assessment took place in February 2023 and indicated that the Atlantic mackerel stock in Canada declined further below its Limit Reference Point (DFO 2023). Scientific advice on Atlantic mackerel to inform the 2025-2026 fishing seasons and the rebuilding plan is requested.

Objectives

• Provide advice on stock status and trends, including:
• A summary of Canada and US fishery statistics up to the 2024 fishing season.
• A summary of updated biological and fishery data used as input to the stock assessment model, including the egg survey index.
• Stock assessment results, including estimates of fishing mortality, spawning stock biomass and abundance at age; with spawning stock biomass projections for the years 2025-2027 under different TAC scenarios.
• An update of stock status with respect to the Precautionary Approach Framework and established reference points.
• Advise on ecosystem and climate change considerations relevant to stock status and trends, including:
• Review of available and recent information on predation pressure, consumption estimates.
• Review of the impact of spatiotemporal prey distribution on recruitment.
• An assessment of the relative importance of the southern Gulf and adjacent ecosystems for mackerel spawning, based on the results of the 2023 and 2024 western and southern Newfoundland egg survey.
• Advise on specific elements to inform the update of the rebuilding plan:
• Update of the Tmin, which is the time the stock would take to rebuild to a rebuilding target in the absence of all fishing (F=0).
• Review of evidence on the potential impacts of fishing on spawning grounds during the spawning period on the stock rebuilding potential.
• Review relevant information on the biology of the fish and environmental conditions affecting the stock, information on whether habitat loss or degradation has occurred and contributed to the stock’s decline.
• Update on the length where 50% of the stock’s population has reached maturity, also known as L50.

Expected Publications

• Science Advisory Report
• Research Document

Expected Participation

• Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Sciences and Fisheries management sector
• Provincial governments
• Academia
• Indigenous communities/organizations
• Fishing industry
• Environmental non-government organizations

References

• DFO. 2023. Assessment of the northern contingent of Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus) in 2022. DFO Can. Sci. Advis. Sec. Sci. Advis. Rep. 2023/015.
• DFO. 2024. Rebuilding plan - Atlantic mackerel (Scomber scombrus L.): Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization sub-areas 3 and 4. Accessed November 14, 2024