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Stock assessment of short-finned squid, Illex illecebrosus, in the northwest Atlantic during 1992
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1997
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Description:The status of the short-finned squid (Illex illecebrosus) stock is assessed for 1982-1992 based on indices of stock size and recruitment computed from research vessel survey data. Total landings from U.S. and Canadian waters have been dominated by the domestic fishery since 1983 and have been increasing, along with effort, since 1988. Concurrently, standardized domestic landings per unit of effort have generally been decreasing. Autumn survey indices of relative abundance during 1991 and 1992 suggest that Illex abundance on the continental shelf was intermediate to periods of high abundance during 1975-1981 and 1987-1990 and to periods of low abundance during 1967-1974 and 1982-1986. Based on the current overfishing definition, the stock was not overfished during 1992 and will not be overfished in 1993 or 1994. The stock is at a medium biomass level, and based on the current maximum sustainable yield (MSY) of 30,000, is underexploited. However, Illex illecebrosus has recently been documented to be an annual species, and therefore a new overfishing definition should be developed which recognizes that only a single cohort supports both the fishery and the spawning stock. Likewise, MSY should be re-evaluated based on this new life history information, since the potential for recruitment overfishing may be substantial. Furthermore, recruitment may vary significantly depending upon environmental favorability and predator-prey relationships. The implementation of a real-time assessment/management system would allow full exploitation of the stock while ensuring that adequate levels of spawning stock escapement are maintained.
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Rights Information:CC0 Public Domain
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