North Carolina Long Haul Seine Fishery - MMPA List of Fisheries
U.S. fisheries are classified under the Marine Mammal Protection Act according to the level of interactions that result in incidental mortality or serious injury of marine mammals.
Current Classification on the List of Fisheries
Category |
II |
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Estimated Number of Participants |
10 |
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Target Species |
Weakfish, spot, croaker, menhaden, bluefish, spotted seatrout, and hogfish |
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Applicable Take Reduction Plans |
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Observer Coverage |
There has not been observer coverage in this fishery. |
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Marine Mammal Species/Stocks Killed or Injured |
Bottlenose dolphin, Southern NC estuarine system Bottlenose dolphin, Northern NC estuarine system1 |
^ Number of participants estimates are based on state and federal fisheries permit data. The estimated number of participants is expressed in terms of the number of active participants in the fishery, when possible. If this information is not available, the estimated number of vessels or persons licensed for a particular fishery is provided. If no recent information is available on the number of participants, then the number from the most recent LOF is used. NOAA Fisheries acknowledges that, in some cases, these estimations may be inflating actual effort.
*Observer coverage levels include the latest information reported in the most current final Stock Assessment Report (SAR).
1 Indicates the stock or species is driving the classification of the fishery.
Basis for Current Classification
The 2010 LOF included a superscript “1” following bottlenose dolphin (WNA coastal stock) because the annual mortality and serious injury of that stock in this fishery was greater than 1% and less than 50% of the stock’s Potential Biological Removal (PBR) level. When the stocks of bottlenose dolphins killed/injured in this fishery were updated on the 2011 LOF, the superscript “1” was retained after the new stocks because NOAA Fisheries cannot yet differentiate to which stock a killed/injured animal belongs. In this case, there is only one stock the killed/injured animals could have come from.
Distribution
The fishery includes fishing with long haul seine gear to target any species in waters off North Carolina, including estuarine waters in Pamlico and Core Sounds and their tributaries. The fishery occurs from February-November, with peak effort occurring from June-October.
Gear Description
This fishery uses multi-filament seines consisting of a 1,000-2,000 yard (3,000-6,000 ft) net pulled by two boats for 1-2 nmi (2-4 km). Fish are encircled and concentrated by pulling the net around a fixed stake.
Management
The fishery is managed under Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Interstate Fishery Management Plans, and is an affected fishery under the BDTRP.
Historical Information
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Original Category (Year added to the LOF) |
II (2001) |
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Original Number of Participants |
33 |
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Basis for Original Classification |
This fishery was created by separating it from the Category II "Mid-Atlantic haul/beach seine" fishery because slight differences in the type of gear are used. This fishery remained a Category II based on observer data of three live-released dolphins and stranding records of interactions. |
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Past Names |
N/A |
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Species/stocks historically documented as killed or injured (but not currently on the list) |
N/A |
Timeline of Changes
| 2024 |
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| 2020 |
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2017 |
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2011 |
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2006 |
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