Inshore trawl lobster condition from F/V Robert Michael, F/V Tara Lynn NEC-JS2000-1 along the the Maine and New Hampshire coasts from 2000-2004 (NEC-CoopRes project)

<p>Project Leader: John Sowles, Maine Department of Marine Resources<br />
Additional Participants:<br />
Sally Sherman, Maine Department of Marine Resources<br />
Yong Chen, University of Maine<br />
Jeff Flagg, Portland Trawler Supply<br />
Sam Galli, F/V Tara Lynn<br />
Doug Grout, New Hampshire Fish and Game<br />
Hannah Smith, Maine Department of Marine Resources<br />
Vincent Manfredi, Maine Department of Marine Resources<br />
Keri Stepanek, Maine Department of Marine Resources<br />
Robert Tetrault, F/V Tara Lynn<br />
Curt Rice, F/V Robert Michael</p>

<p>\"This project is a fishery independent multi-species stock assessment along the Maine and New Hampshire inshore waters. The overall goal of the project is to establish a solid foundation for long-term fishery-independent monitoring of the Gulf of Maine inshore waters, filling an information gap on the status and trends of groundfish and other species in this area for which assessment data would otherwise be absent. Funded in part by the Northeast Consortium and in part by the NOAA Fisheries Cooperative Research Partners Program, the survey began in the fall of 2000 and consists of annual, spring and fall stratified random surveys, each covering approximately 115 stations from New Hampshire to Canada. The project is a close partnership with commercial fishermen and the two state agencies charged with managing the inshore state waters. Data is being provided for the management of a number of species including lobster, shrimp, crab, scallop, shad, herring, and groundfish. The project is contributing to stock abundance, structure, and recruitment indices for the area and compliments data from the NOAA Fisheries bottom trawl survey in the Gulf of Maine and the Massachusetts Department of Marine Fisheries inshore trawl survey.</p>

<p>In August 2005, and independent peer review of the project was facilitated by the Northeast Consortium. It was conducted to determine the viability of using the data in regional stock assessments and to improve the project for the future. The project received funding again in 2005 from the Northeast Consortium and the participants are incorporating many of the panel’s recommendations in current and future surveys.\" <em>extracted from: Summary of Completed Cooperative Research Projects Funded by the Northeast Consortium, January 2006</em></p>

<p>For a detailed description of the sampling schema see <a href=\"http://www.northeastconsortium.org/ProjectFileDownload.pm?report_id=327&amp;table=project_report\">Final Report</a> starting on page 3.</p>

<p>Project website: &nbsp; <a href=\"http://www.state.me.us/dmr/rm/trawl/\">http://www.state.me.us/dmr/rm/trawl/</a></p>

<p><strong>Questions regarding the data should be directed to:</strong><br />
John Sowles<br />
Maine Department of Marine Resources<br />
P.O. Box 8<br />
West Boothbay Harbor, ME 04575-0008<br />
Phone: [phone]<br />
E-mail: <a href=\"mailto:[e-mail]\">[e-mail]</a></p>