"Maine/New Hampshire Inshore Trawl Survey"
Station Information

Project Leader: John Sowles, Maine Department of Marine Resources
Additional Participants:
Sally Sherman, Maine Department of Marine Resources
Yong Chen, University of Maine
Jeff Flagg, Portland Trawler Supply
Sam Galli, F/V Tara Lynn
Doug Grout, New Hampshire Fish and Game
Hannah Smith, Maine Department of Marine Resources
Vincent Manfredi, Maine Department of Marine Resources
Keri Stepanek, Maine Department of Marine Resources
Robert Tetrault, F/V Tara Lynn
Curt Rice, F/V Robert Michael

"This project is a fishery independent multi-species stock assessment along the Maine and New Hampshire inshore waters. The overall goal of the project is to establish a solid foundation for long-term fishery-independent monitoring of the Gulf of Maine inshore waters, filling an information gap on the status and trends of groundfish and other species in this area for which assessment data would otherwise be absent. Funded in part by the Northeast Consortium and in part by the NOAA Fisheries Cooperative Research Partners Program, the survey began in the fall of 2000 and consists of annual, spring and fall stratified random surveys, each covering approximately 115 stations from New Hampshire to Canada. The project is a close partnership with commercial fishermen and the two state agencies charged with managing the inshore state waters. Data is being provided for the management of a number of species including lobster, shrimp, crab, scallop, shad, herring, and groundfish. The project is contributing to stock abundance, structure, and recruitment indices for the area and compliments data from the NOAA Fisheries bottom trawl survey in the Gulf of Maine and the Massachusetts Department of Marine Fisheries inshore trawl survey.

In August 2005, and independent peer review of the project was facilitated by the Northeast Consortium. It was conducted to determine the viability of using the data in regional stock assessments and to improve the project for the future. The project received funding again in 2005 from the Northeast Consortium and the participants are incorporating many of the panel's recommendations in current and future surveys." extracted from: Summary of Completed Cooperative Research Projects Funded by the Northeast Consortium, January 2006

For a detailed description of the Maine - New Hampshire Inshore Groundfish Trawl Survey program see: Procedures and Protocols Report. Note this is a large pdf file.

Project website: http://www.state.me.us/dmr/rm/trawl/

Data Elements
Parameter Names and Descriptions
Station Information

1 = NH-Southern ME
2 = Casco Bay - Midcoast
3 = Penobscot Bay
4 = Jerico-Frenchmans Bay
5 = Downeast, ME
For more details see: Procedures and Protocols Report
1 = 5-20 fathoms,
2 = 21-35 fathoms,
3 = 36-55 fathoms,
4 = >56 fathoms to approx. the 12-mile limit

From Fall 2000 to Fall 2002, depth strata 4 was not sampled. The fourth stratum was added in the Spring 2003 survey. (All catch data have been adjusted to a standard tow of 20 minutes duration.) minutes

Revised November 9, 2006; gfh