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More News About the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation
The CFRF and RI DEM Black Sea Bass Research Fleet
This project partners with fishermen to collect important data on black sea bass in Southern New England and the Mid-Atlantic region. Participant fishermen collect data at sea during commercial fishing activities using the CFRF’s custom-designed tablet application, On Deck Data. The data is being used to characterize the composition of discarded and landed black sea bass and to improve the stock assessment for this species.
Supporting Management of the Emerging Jonah Crab Fishery and the Iconic Lobster Fishery in the Northeast USA
The CFRF Lobster and Jonah Crab Research Fleet project focuses on implementing a cost-effective method to collect critically needed biological data for two commercially important species, the Jonah crab and the American lobster. The project uses a fishing vessel research fleet approach, with lobster and Jonah crab fishermen using digital calipers and the On-Deck Data app to collect biological data from their catch in commercial and ventless traps.
Project goals:
Continue the Jonah crab and lobster biological time series developed by the successful CFRF On-Deck Data Pilot Project.
Collect and communicate spatially and temporally explicit biological data on Jonah crab to support the development of a management plan and stock assessment.
Determine the size at maturity of male and female Jonah crabs in the Southern New England (SNE), Georges Bank (GB), and Gulf of Maine (GOM) regions.
Better inform the lobster stock assessment by providing essential data on the size, sex, and reproductive structure of the lobster stock, particularly from under-sampled offshore areas.
Demonstrate a model approach to data collection, management, analysis, and utilization that can be duplicated in a cost-effective way in other fisheries.
Thanks to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Saltonstall-Kennedy Grant Program for funding this work from 2021-2023! You can read the final report for the work this grant supported here.