2026 Spring Bottom Trawl Survey Completed in Northeast
The Spring 2026 Bottom Trawl Survey successfully concluded following a major transition from the NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow to the NOAA Ship Pisces.
The Northeast Fisheries Science Center’s Bottom Trawl Survey is among the longest running of its kind in the world. This survey provides more than 60 years of standardized data collected during a time of significant change in the ocean around us.
We usually operate the survey on the NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow. This season we used its sister ship, the NOAA Ship Pisces, to prepare for seasons when the Bigelow is not available because of its midlife repair period.
This move required substantial capital investment to update the new platform for survey activities. It makes this survey, which provides data foundational to the management of more than 50 fisheries stocks, more resilient. We had a delayed start driven by construction delays, mechanical issues, staffing challenges, and weather. But the team successfully completed the season by reducing station coverage across all strata to prevent disproportionate impacts to the survey footprint.
Dates and Legs
The 2026 Spring Bottom Trawl Survey began on March 9 and completed operations on May 27 aboard the NOAA Ship Pisces. We conducted the spring survey from south to north and it occurred in four legs:
- Leg 1: March 9–25
- Leg 2: March 31–April 20
- Leg 3: April 27–May 14
- Leg 4: May 18–27
Location
This survey monitors fishery stock abundance and distribution on the Northwest Atlantic continental shelf from Cape Lookout, North Carolina, to the Scotian Shelf.
Completion Rates
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The survey team conducted and/or collected:
- Fishery resource survey tows and oceanographic sampling at 274 of 377 planned stations (73 percent completion)
- Plankton samples at 96 of 116 planned stations (83 percent completion)
- eDNA sampling at 60 stations
- Ocean Acidification sampling at four stations to collect 13 samples
Survey operations on the NOAA Ship Pisces faced initial headwinds from dockside construction delays, persistent mechanical issues with the trawl winches and hydraulic systems, and a steep learning curve as the crew trained in bottom trawl operations. In collaboration with NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, we added a fourth leg of the survey to help make up for some of the delays. This allowed for more complete coverage of the full survey footprint.
Despite these substantial challenges, the vessel and science crews worked tirelessly to complete representative tows at 73 percent of the planned stations.
Survey Mission
In preparation for the Henry B. Bigelow’s midlife repair period and to maintain ship readiness as a backup platform for the Bottom Trawl Survey, we completed extensive work on the Pisces this winter. This work allowed for more effective sampling onboard, updates to critical systems, and replacement of acoustic receivers. The Spring Bottom Trawl Survey was successfully conducted on the Pisces following the repair period.
The Pisces supports a variety of marine research on this multispecies bottom-trawl survey. The most important of its missions is to monitor the region’s fishery resources. These data are critical inputs to regional fish stock assessments. They help inform fishery management decisions by the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils as well as Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.
Data Collection and Use
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The data we collect are used to track fish ages, lengths, weights, sex, maturity, and food habits. The survey also collects taxonomic data and thousands of special sample requests for partner institutions. Additional pilot data collection programs supported NOAA’s ‘Omics strategic initiative.
The temperature and salinity profiles we collect during the survey help link fish distribution to physical oceanographic conditions. We also started a pilot ocean acidification sampling program on the survey
We use bongo nets to collect zooplankton, including larval fish and eggs, which help us:
- Understand fish spawning distributions
- Estimate fish abundance changes
- Construct models that support ecosystem-based approaches to fisheries management
We release survey data annually, about 3 months after the survey is complete. When available, the data can be found on our survey page.
Bottom Trawl Stations in the Mid-Atlantic
Bottom Trawl Stations in the Gulf of Maine
Percentage of Completed Bottom Trawl Stations
Percentage of Completed Plankton Stations
