More Information About White Hake (Citations)
These citations were used to generate the information found on the white hake species page.
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The Northeast multispecies (groundfish) complex consists of 13 species:
Groundfish are distributed throughout the Greater Atlantic region, from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, to the U.S./Canada border. Some species of groundfish are typically found on (flounders) or near (cod, haddock) the seafloor, while others (redfish, white hake) may only spend a portion of their time near the bottom of the ocean.
The majority of the groundfish that are landed in the Greater Atlantic Region are harvested in the Gulf of Maine and on Georges Bank. Fishermen primarily use bottom trawl, sink gillnet, and hook gear to target groundfish. Historically, many of the vessels that actively fish for groundfish have hailed from ports from New Jersey to Maine. Atlantic cod, haddock, and yellowtail flounder have traditionally been the highest-value groundfish species.
Last updated by Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office on 09/26/2019
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022
Northeast multispecies (groundfish) species, including Atlantic cod and haddock, are highly prized by recreational fishermen. To manage recreational catch, both private and charter/party vessels are subject to regulations which include minimum fish size and possession limits.
Be sure to check these regulations frequently to confirm seasonal changes in possession limits, closed areas, and other restrictions.
The following measures apply to private recreational fishing vessels in the exclusive economic zone (typically 3–200 nautical miles from shore), federal charter/party permitted vessels, and federal groundfish limited access permitted vessels fishing under the charter/party or recreational regulations (not fishing under a groundfish day-at-sea or on a sector trip).
Federal Minimum Fish Sizes and Possession Limits for Recreational and Charter/Party Vessels
Species |
Possession Limit |
Minimum fish Size2 (inches) |
Maximum fish Size2 (inches) |
Open Season |
|
Atlantic cod |
Inside GOM RMA1 |
1 fish per person per day |
22 |
N/A |
September 1-October 7, April 1-14 (Private) |
September 1-October 7, April 1-14 (Charter/Party) |
|||||
Outside GOM RMA1 |
5 fish per person per day |
22 |
28 |
August 1 - April 30 |
|
Haddock |
Inside GOM RMA1 |
20 fish per person per day |
17 |
N/A |
May 1 - February 28/29, April 1-April 30 |
Outside GOM RMA1 |
Unlimited |
18 |
N/A |
All Year |
|
Atlantic halibut |
1 fish per vessel per trip |
41 |
N/A |
All Year |
|
Pollock |
Unlimited |
19 |
N/A |
All Year |
|
Witch flounder (gray sole) |
Unlimited |
14 |
N/A |
All Year |
|
Yellowtail flounder |
Unlimited |
13 |
N/A |
All Year |
|
American plaice (dab) |
Unlimited |
14 |
N/A |
All Year |
|
Winter flounder (blackback) |
Unlimited |
12 |
N/A |
All Year |
|
Redfish (ocean perch) |
Unlimited |
9 |
N/A |
All Year |
|
Offshore hake, red hake, white hake, and silver hake (whiting) |
Unlimited |
None |
N/A |
All Year |
|
Atlantic wolffish, windowpane flounder, ocean pout |
NO RETENTION |
N/A |
N/A |
CLOSED |
1Gulf of Maine (GOM) Regulated Mesh Area (RMA): See figure and coordinates below.
2Minimum size is measured as total length.
The Gulf of Maine Regulated Mesh Area is bounded on the east and south by a line connecting the following points:
Point |
N. Latitude |
W. Longitude |
G1 |
(1) |
(1) |
G2 |
43° 58' |
67° 22' |
G3 |
42° 53.1' |
67° 44.4’ |
G4 |
42° 31' |
67° 28.1' |
CII3 |
42° 22’ |
67° 20' |
G6 |
42° 20' |
67° 20' |
G7 |
42° 20' |
69° 30’ |
G8 |
42° 00' |
69° 30' |
G9 |
42° 00' |
(2) |
1The intersection of the shoreline and the U.S.-Canada Maritime Boundary.
2The intersection of the Cape Cod, Massachusetts, coastline and 42°00' N. lat.
State recreational fishing regulations may differ from the federal regulations. Please consult with your state to determine its regulations. When federal and state regulations both apply, vessels are bound by the most restrictive requirements.
Groundfish caught on a recreational trip may not be sold. It is unlawful to sell, barter, trade, or otherwise transfer for a commercial purpose, or to attempt to sell, barter, trade, or otherwise transfer for a commercial purpose, groundfish caught or landed by recreational fishing vessels fishing in the exclusive economic zone, or charter/party vessels not fishing under a day-at-sea.
Each angler is limited to one line. There is no limit to the number of hooks per line. All other fishing gear must be properly stowed as described in the regulations.
Charter/party vessels without a limited access groundfish permit that fish for or possess groundfish in the exclusive economic zone must obtain an open access groundfish charter/party permit (Category I). Vessels with a limited access groundfish permit do not need to obtain a charter/party permit. Such vessels, when fishing under the charter/party rules, must stow all fishing gear except rod & reel or handline gear unless further restricted by a closed area Letter of Authorization described below, and must abide by the restrictions on sale described above.
All groundfish charter/party vessels are required to submit a vessel trip report to the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office for each trip. You are not required to submit a “Did Not Fish” vessel trip report for weeks that you do not fish.
Vessels fishing under charter/party regulations may not fish in the Gulf of Maine Cod Protection Closures, Spring Massachusetts Bay Spawning Protection Area, Cashes Ledge Closed Area, or the Western Gulf of Maine Closed Area unless the vessel has on board the appropriate Letter of Authorization issued by the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office. Restrictions apply, as stated in the Letter of Authorization. Letters of Authorization are available upon request by calling the Regional Office at (978) 281-9370. Additional details on closed areas are available on the groundfish closed areas page.
Last updated by Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office on 07/15/2022.
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022
Northeast multispecies (groundfish) have been harvested commercially in the Northeast for more than 400 years. To manage commercial catch, commercial fishing vessels are subject to a variety of regulations including minimum fish sizes, possession limits, days-at-sea restrictions, and quotas. This page provides a brief overview of some of the federal regulations that apply to federally permitted commercial groundfish vessels operating in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (typically 3–200 nautical miles from shore). Implementing regulations for the Northeast groundfish fishery are located at 50 CFR part 648.
In 2010, Amendment 16 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan implemented a system of catch share management called the sector program. Under this system, limited access groundfish permit holders have the option to join a sector or fish in common pool during each fishing year. A sector is a self-governing group of permit holders that operates similarly to a harvest cooperative.
Every year, each sector receives an allocation, or annual catch entitlement, for 15 groundfish stocks. A sector’s annual catch entitlement for a stock represents the percentage of that stock’s annual catch limit that the members of that sector are permitted to jointly harvest during a given fishing year. Each sector’s annual catch entitlement is based on the collective fishing history of all the permits that are enrolled in the sector.
Every limited access permit is assigned a potential sector contribution based on the fishing history attached to that permit. A permit’s potential sector contribution represents the percentage of the total annual catch limit for an allocated groundfish stock that the permit contributes to a sectors quota for a fishing year.
When a limited access permit is enrolled in a sector, the potential sector contribution attached to that permit is pooled with the potential sector contribution attached to all of the other permits enrolled in that sector; collectively, this allocation is known as a sector’s annual catch entitlement. Members of a sector are jointly responsible for ensuring that their sector does not exceed its allocation for any stock within a given fishing year.
Sector members are exempt from many of the input controls that are in place regulating the groundfish fishery, but they are also subject to additional monitoring and administrative requirements. For a broad overview the regulations governing the sector portion of the fleet, please visit the sector management page.
For more information about the sectors and exemptions that are approved for the current fishing year, please visit the current fishing year sectors page.
Permit holders that choose not to join a sector remain in the common pool. Fishing effort in the common pool is still primarily regulated using input controls such as days-at-sea restrictions, trip limits, and gear restrictions. For more information about the regulations governing the common pool, please visit the common pool page.
A vessel holding a federal groundfish permit may not fish for, possess, or land Atlantic wolffish, ocean pout, or windowpane flounder.
All commercial fishing vessels are subject to the following minimum fish sizes:
Minimum Fish Sizes for Commercial Vessels
Species |
Minimum Size1 (inches) |
Atlantic cod |
19 |
Haddock |
16 |
Pollock |
19 |
Witch flounder (gray sole) |
13 |
Yellowtail flounder |
12 |
American plaice (dab) |
12 |
Atlantic halibut |
41 |
Winter flounder (blackback) |
12 |
Redfish (ocean perch) |
7 |
1Minimum size is measured as total length.
Minimum fish sizes apply to whole fish or to any part of a fish while possessed on board a vessel and to whole, whole-gutted, or gilled fish only after landing. However, each person aboard a vessel may possess up to 25 pounds of fillets as long as they came from legal-sized fish exclusively for personal consumption. In order to meet minimum size requirements, fillets or parts of fish must have all the skin still attached while possessed on board a vessel and when they are landed.
Effective at 0001 hours on May 1, 2022, the Regular B Days-at-Sea (DAS) program closed for the remainder of fishing year 2022, through April 30, 2023. During this closure, Northeast multispecies vessels may not declare or use regular B days-at-sea.
For more information, see the bulletin for the closure.
There are a number of year-round and seasonal closure areas that apply to sector and/or common pool vessels. For more information about these closures, please visit the groundfish closed areas page.
The groundfish management unit is divided into four regulated mesh areas: Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank, Southern New England, and Mid-Atlantic.
Owners/operators of vessels holding a federal groundfish permit must submit vessel trip reports electronically using approved electronic vessel trip report software. eVTRs must be complete to the extent possible prior to entering port and submitted within 48 hours of offloading fish. For more information about trip reporting, and to see a list of approved electronic vessel trip report software applications, please visit the Greater Atlantic Region vessel trip reporting page.
The following vessels are required to have an operational vessel monitoring system unit installed on board:
Vessel monitoring system units must report a vessel’s position at least once per hour, for 24 hours a day, 365 days per year, unless otherwise exempted. If a vessel holds additional permits that require 30 minute vessel monitoring system reporting (e.g., a limited access Atlantic sea scallop permit), that vessel must abide by the most restrictive reporting rate. For more information about vessel monitoring system requirements, or to learn more about exemptions or power down letters of authorization, please visit the Greater Atlantic Region vessel monitoring system page.
In some situations, a vessel holding a federal groundfish permit is required to report via the interactive voice response system instead of through a vessel monitoring system. These situations include:
All vessels reporting via the interactive voice response system must report their trip start time less than 1 hour prior to departing the dock, and they must report their trip end time upon returning to the dock. For more information about the interactive voice response system, please visit the Greater Atlantic Region vessel trip reporting page.
Additionally, all federally permitted vessels are obligated to carry a Northeast Fishery Observer Program observer if randomly selected for coverage by NOAA Fisheries. Sector vessels are also obligated to carry an at-sea monitor if selected for coverage by NOAA Fisheries. For more information about the Northeast Fishery Observer Program, please visit the Northeast Fisheries Observer Program page. For more information about at-sea monitoring, please visit the at-sea monitoring page.
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022
The Northeast multispecies (groundfish) fishery is managed jointly by the New England Fishery Management Council and NOAA Fisheries under the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (Plan). The Plan uses a variety of management tools, including days-at-sea restrictions, time and area closures, special management programs, and the Northeast multispecies sector management system to manage the fishery.
The groundfish fishing year runs from May 1 through April 30. For example, fishing year 2010 ran from May 1, 2010, to April 30, 2011.
Thirteen groundfish species are managed under the Plan. Collectively, this aggregation of species is known as the Northeast multispecies or groundfish complex. The groundfish complex comprises 20 distinct stocks:
The majority of these stocks are managed solely by the New England Fishery Management Council and NOAA Fisheries. However, the three transboundary Georges Bank stocks (Georges Bank cod, haddock, and yellowtail flounder) are managed jointly with Canadian authorities under the U.S./Canada Resource Sharing Understanding.
In order to harvest regulated groundfish in federal waters, fishermen must possess a federal groundfish permit. There are currently 10 federal groundfish permit categories; six of these categories are limited access permits:
Limited access permits are only issued to vessels that previously held them, or to approved replacements of those vessels. Therefore, a vessel owner wishing to obtain a limited access permit must acquire an existing permit from another permit holder.
The four remaining groundfish permit categories are open access permits:
Eligible vessel owners may apply for new open access permits through the Greater Atlantic Region Permit Office. For more information on permit types and application requirements, please visit our groundfish permits page.
The commercial fishery for groundfish is divided into two programs. The common pool fishery is primarily managed using input controls such as days-at-sea restrictions, trip limits, and gear restrictions. The sector program is a type of catch share program. Fishermen in the sector program are exempt from several regulations that apply to common pool fishermen. Prior to the beginning of each fishing year, limited access permit holders are given the option to enroll in a sector. Permit holders that choose not to join a sector remain in the common pool. Since 2010, the majority of limited access permits have been enrolled annually in sectors. For more information about sector management, please visit the sector management page. For more information about common pool management, please visit the common pool page.
This list contains a brief summary of selected management actions in the groundfish fishery. For more information about these actions, or to learn more about additional actions not mentioned in this list, please visit the New England Fishery Management Council's groundfish page.
Last updated by Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office on 08/11/2020.
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022
The most recent groundfish operational assessments were completed in 2019. Please visit the Northeast Regional Stock Assessment Workshop page for more information about stock assessments.
Last updated by Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office on September 26, 2019.
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022
These citations were used to generate the information found on the white hake species page.
These citations were used to generate the information found on the witch flounder species page.
These citations were used to generate the information found on the ocean pout species page.
These citations were used to generate the information found on the Atlantic wolffish species page.
Last updated by NOAA Fisheries on 12/15/2022