Document Type
Report
Department/Program
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Publication Date
4-15-2003
Abstract
Concern about the decline in landings of American shad (Alosa sapidissima) along the Atlantic coast prompted the development of an interstate fisheries management plan (FMP) under the auspices of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Management Program (ASMFC 1999). Legislation enables imposition of federal sanctions on fishing in those states that fail to comply with the FMP. To be in compliance, coastal states are required to implement and maintain fishery-dependent and fisheryindependent monitoring programs as specified by the FMP. For Virginia, these requirements include spawning stock assessments, the collection of biological data on the spawning run (e.g., age-structure, sex ratio, spawning history), estimation of total mortality, indices of juvenile abundance, and evaluation of restoration programs by detection and enumeration of hatchery-released fish. This annual report documents continued compliance with Federal law. Since 1998, scientists in the Anadromous Fishes Program of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science have monitored the spawning run of American shad in the James, York and Rappahannock rivers. The information resulting from this program is reported annually to the ASMFC, has formed the basis for a number of technical papers published in the professional literature, and is contributing substantially to our understanding of the status and conservation of this important species
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21220/V5KS43
Keywords
American Shad, Alosa sapidissima, James River, York River, Rappahannock River, Virginia, Fisheries
Funding
Funding Agencies: US Fish and Wildlife Service and Virginia Marine Resources Commission Virginia Institute of Marine Science Contract Number: F-116-R-5
Recommended Citation
Olney, J. E. (2003) Monitoring Relative Abundance of American Shad in Virginia’s Rivers 2002 Annual Report. Virginia Institute of Marine Science, William & Mary. https://doi.org/10.21220/V5KS43
