Species Collected: Age and Growth Studies in the Northeast
This table lists the species for which we currently collect age samples, along with the structures and preparation methods for each one. Various additional species have been collected in the past, and structures collected historically may be different.
Otolith: the ‘ear stone’ of a fish; a calcium carbonate structure located inside the skull.
Chondrophore: the spoon-shaped hinge of a surfclam.
| Species | Latin name | Structure | Preparation Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bass, Black Sea | Centropristis striata | Otoliths (Scales historically) | Whole (some thin sectioned) |
| Bass, Striped | Morone saxatilis | Otoliths | Not currently aged |
| Bluefish | Pomatomus saltatrix | Otoliths | Thin sectioned |
| Butterfish | Peprilus triacanthus | Otoliths | Whole |
| Cod, Atlantic | Gadus morhua | Otoliths | Thin sectioned |
| Cusk | Brosme brosme | Otoliths | Baked & thin sectioned |
| Flounder, Fourspot | Paralichthys oblongus | Otoliths | Not currently aged |
| Flounder, Summer | Paralichthys dentatus | Otoliths (Scales historically) | Thin sectioned (some whole) |
| Flounder, Windowpane | Scophthalmus aquosus | Otoliths (Scales historically) | Whole (some cut in half) |
| Flounder, Winter | Pseudopleuronectes americanus | Otoliths (Scales historically) | Thin sectioned |
| Flounder, Witch | Glyptocephalus cynoglossus | Otoliths | Thin sectioned |
| Flounder, Yellowtail | Limanda ferruginea | Otoliths (Scales historically) | Whole (some thin sectioned) |
| Haddock | Melanogrammus aeglefinus | Otoliths (Scales historically) | Thin sectioned (small fish aged whole) |
| Hake, Offshore | Merluccius albidus | Otoliths | Not currently aged |
| Hake, Red | Urophycis chuss | Otoliths | Thin sectioned |
| Hake, Silver | Merluccius bilinearis | Otoliths | Thin sectioned |
| Hake, Spotted | Urophycis regia | Otoliths | Not currently aged |
| Hake, White | Urophycis tenuis | Otoliths | Thin sectioned |
| Halibut, Atlantic | Hippoglossus hippoglossus | Otoliths | Not currently aged |
| Herring, Atlantic | Clupea harengus | Otoliths | Embedded whole |
| Mackerel, Atlantic | Scomber scombrus | Otoliths | Embedded whole |
| Plaice, American | Hippoglossoides platessoides | Otoliths | Thin sectioned (small fish aged whole) |
| Pollock | Pollachius virens | Otoliths | Thin sectioned |
| Pout, Ocean | Zoarces americanus | Otoliths | Not currently aged |
| Quahog, Ocean | Arctica islandica | Shells | Not currently aged |
| Redfish, Acadian | Sebastes fasciatus | Otoliths | Thin sectioned (some cut in half) |
| Scallop, Sea | Placopecten magellanicus | Whole shell | Growth rings measured on upper shell |
| Scup | Stenotomus chrysops | Otoliths (Scales historically) | Thin sectioned |
| Surfclam, Atlantic | Spisula solidissima | Chondrophore | Not currently aged |
| Tilefish, Golden | Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps | Otoliths | Thin sectioned |
| Wolffish, Atlantic | Anarhichas lupus | Otoliths | Not currently aged |