Evaluating the Current Status of American Shad Stocks in Three Virginia Rivers

Robert J Latour,Troy D Tuckey,John E Olney,Brian E Watkins,Eric J Hilton,Patrick D Lynch

doi:10.1080/19425120.2012.675978

Robert J Latour, Troy D Tuckey + Show 4 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1080/19425120.2012.675978

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Abstract

AbstractDirected commercial fisheries for American shad Alosa sapidissima in the primary Virginia tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay have been under moratorium since 1994. Monitoring of adult American shad within these rivers has been ongoing since 1998 through a cooperative program involving commercial fishers. The monitoring program is designed to mimic traditional commercial fishing practices so that stock status can be inferred by comparing contemporary catch‐per‐unit‐effort levels with those derived from historic logbooks. In this paper, we present analyses of the available monitoring and historic catch rate data along with updated stock status information for American shad in the James, York, and Rappahannock rivers. Two analytical methods were used to derive annual indices of relative abundance; both methods yielded very similar patterns for each river system. Comparisons of contemporary and historic indices of relative abundance suggest that American shad in the James and York rivers continue to persist at low levels of abundance. Measures of stock abundance in the Rappahannock River have been higher than the logbook reference value for much of the monitoring period. However, current moratoria and restoration strategies, which include hatchery releases of fry, the removal of obstructions blocking spawning and nursery habitat, and reductions in bycatch from other fisheries, should continue into the foreseeable future.Received March 30, 2011; accepted August 21, 2011

Highlights

Following the moratorium on in-river fisheries for American shad in Virginia, a variety of restoration activities were initiated in an effort to rebuild depleted stocks
We provide indices of relative abundance derived from catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) data collected for adult American shad in the James, York, and Rappahannock rivers of the Chesapeake Bay in an effort to evaluate progress toward stock rebuilding
The relative abundance based on monitoring data from the James and York rivers was below the reference index value from their respective logbook reference periods for all years

Summary

Introduction

Following the moratorium on in-river fisheries for American shad in Virginia, a variety of restoration activities were initiated in an effort to rebuild depleted stocks. The only available historic fisheries data for American shad in Virginia, other than landings, were catch rates obtained from logbooks voluntarily provided by a subset of commercial fishers. These logbooks provided information on the daily effort and catch of females from 1980 to 1992. We provide indices of relative abundance derived from catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) data collected for adult American shad in the James, York, and Rappahannock rivers of the Chesapeake Bay in an effort to evaluate progress toward stock rebuilding. Our specific objectives were to (1) evaluate the current status of American shad stocks in three Virginia rivers through comparisons of adult abundance indices from the standardized monitoring program (1998–2011) with those calculated from logbook data (1980–1992 for all rivers and 1953– 1957 for the York River) and (2) assess the relative accuracy of a nonparametric approach and a parametric approach for the quantification of trends in the relative abundance of American shad

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