28636 Bottom Longline Survey Data Project Published / External 28635 Longline Survey Data Project In Work The Southeast Fisheries Science Center Mississippi Laboratories conducts standardized fisheries independent resource surveys in the Gulf of Mexico, South Atlantic, and U.S. Caribbean to provide abundance and distribution information to support regional and international stock assessments. A shark/snapper/grouper bottom longline survey is conducted every year from July through September. The survey covers waters between 5-200 fm from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina to West Palm Beach, FL, and the U.S. northern Gulf of Mexico from southwest Florida to Brownsville, TX. While there have been minor changes in gear and survey design, in general, during each survey approximately 300 randomly selected stations are sampled in both state and federal waters. Survey sites for bottom longline effort were selected at random within three depth strata: 9 – 55 m, 55 – 183 m, and 183 – 366 m in the Gulf of Mexico only. Most bottom longline sets are conducted parallel to depth contours unless survey conditions (i.e., current, sea state, wind) necessitated a different orientation. The number of randomly selected survey sites occupied within 60 nm contiguous sampling zones is proportionally allocated based on the amount of continental shelf area within each of the depth strata. In the Atlantic, 60% of stations were allocated between 9 - 55 m and 40% between 55 -183 m. In the Gulf of Mexico, 50% of stations were allocated between 9 - 55 m, 40% between 55 - 183 m, and 10% were allocated between 183 - 366 m (or at least 1 per sampling zone). Standardized gear utilized during the survey includes one mile of mainline and 100 15/0 circle hooks baited with Atlantic mackerel. Soak times are limited to one-hour to minimize mortality rates of all captured organisms and sampling occurs during day and night. All live sharks are tagged and released unless biological samples are needed for life history studies. Life history data pertaining to age, growth and reproduction are obtained from all captured reef fishes. All other fishes are measured and weighed prior to being released. To provide abundance and distribution information on sharks and red snapper for use in regional stock assessments. Mississippi Laboratory Pascagoula MS Data Steward 1988 Person Driggers, William william.driggers@noaa.gov 3209 Frederic St. Pascagoula MS 39568 228-549-1630 228-769-9200 Distributor 2013 Organization Southeast Fisheries Science Center SEFSC https://ror.org/0396y0w87 75 Virginia Beach Drive Miami FL 33149 USA (305)361-5761 https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/about/southeast-fisheries-science-center About SEFSC Online Resource 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. EST Metadata Contact 1988 Person Driggers, William william.driggers@noaa.gov 3209 Frederic St. Pascagoula MS 39568 228-549-1630 228-769-9200 Point of Contact 2013 2021 Person Weber, Charles J 3209 Frederic Street Pascagoula MS 39567-4112 228-549-1684 228-769-9200 Retired IT United Head Pascagoula -98 -73 36 18 Western North Atlantic Ocean Continuing 1988 Unclassified Contact the individual identified as the distributor for this dataset. Please include the title of the dataset and the name of the data steward when requesting a copy of this data. There are not restrictions or legal prerequisites for accessing this data. NOAA NMFS does not approve, recommend, or endorse any proprietary product or proprietary material mentioned in this publication. No reference shall be made to NMFS, or to this publication furnished by NMFS, in any advertising or sales promotion which would indicate or imply that NMFS approves, recommends, or endorses any proprietary product or proprietary material mentioned herein or which has as its purpose any intent to cause directly or indirectly the advertised product to be used or purchased because of this NMFS publication. NMFS is not responsible for any uses of these datasets beyond those for which they were intended, and NMFS makes no claims regarding the accuracy of any data provided by agencies or individuals outside NMFS. Acknowledgement of NOAA NMFS and SEAMAP would be appreciated in products derived or publications generated from this data. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/28636 As specimens are collected, total number of individual fish by species and lengths are taken and recorded into the shipboard data collections system. At the end of each survey data are reviewed for accuracy/relevance by chief scientists. Specimens that cannot be identified during the survey are identified in the laboratory. 29401 Data Set 29403 Data Set 29400 Data Set 29395 Data Set gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:28636 Charles Weber 2015-11-12T12:04:44 SysAdmin InPortAdmin 2026-03-04T19:17:18 2022-05-26 Southeast Fisheries Science Center SEFSC 75 Virginia Beach Drive Miami FL 33149 USA (305)361-5761 www.sefsc.noaa.gov 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. EST 1001 Public No 2022-05-26 1 Year 2023-05-26