The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Northern Shrimp Section approved a 180-day fishing season for the 2009-2010 northern shrimp fishery, the same length of last year’s season. Section Chair Pat White from Maine said that their efforts to reduce fishing mortality in the early 2000s continue to result in a high abundance of shrimp.
As per the book the 2005 year-class showed good strength in this summer’s annual survey and the 2006 year-class continues to be very weak and will likely be unavailable in significant numbers as five-year olds for the 2011 season. However, the 2007 and 2008 year-classes exhibited average strength when compared to past years of the survey. White said that the Section is pleased that current stock abundance allows us to set another six-month fishing season.
The 2010 fishing season, which is the same for mobile and trap gear, will be open seven days a week from December 1, 2009, through May 29, 2010. The Section also elected Douglas Grout of New Hampshire and George D. Lapointe of Maine as its new Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively. The northern shrimp fishery is jointly regulated by Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine through the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Northern Shrimp Section.
