The objective of this part of the St.
Georges Bay Ecosystem Project is to provide a description of the timing
and location of commercial fisheries in the area. It will focus on:
-
Where the main species are caught
-
The timing of the different fisheries and the importance
of annual migrations and interactions with other fisheries
-
How the fisheries are conducted, the types of fishing
gear and how much fishing effort is expended
-
How much has been caught and how this has varied
over the past decade or so.
This is a preliminary version of a report that will
be developed over the summer of 1997. The information presented in this
version has been taken from purchase slip records maintained by the Department
of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) in Moncton and maps of fishing grounds from
the DFO Oceans Act Coordination Office, Resource Mapping Series, Traditional
Fisher's Knowledge for the Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence: a Provisional
Atlas. Additional information will come from interviews with knowledgable
fishermen in the area. The interviews will be conducted during the summer.
If you have any comments or suggestions, please let us know at one of the
addresses given below. The report will be modified periodically as new
information becomes available, so keep checking us out.
For more information contact:
Alan
Sinclair, Marine Fish Division, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Moncton
N.B.
John
Legault, Oceans Act Coordination Office, Department of Fisheries and Oceans,
Moncton N.B.
Erin Breen, ISAR,
St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, N.S.
Fishing Ports In St. Georges Bay
-
The GBEP study area includes the coastline from Lismore,
NS at the western extreme around Cape George to the Canso Causeway, and
north along the Cape Breton Coast as far as Mabou Mines. Almost all of
the fish and shellfish caught in St. Georges Bay are landed in fishing
ports along this coastline. Some landings also come from fishing grounds
outside St. Georges Bay.
-
The table below lists the currently active fishing
ports in the study area, and indicates how these were grouped in order
to present the spatial distribution of the landings information.
| Group Port |
Port Name |
Port Code |
| LISMORE* |
LISMORE* |
11202 |
|
|
|
| ARISAIG* |
ARISAIG* |
11303 |
|
|
|
| BALLANTYNE'S COVE* |
LIVINGSTONE'S COVE* |
11311 |
|
BALLANTYNE'S COVE* |
11304 |
|
|
|
| CRIBBENS POINT* |
CRIBBENS POINT* |
11321 |
|
|
|
| BAYFIELD* |
SOUTHSIDE HARBOUR* |
11317 |
|
POMQUET* |
11316 |
|
BAYFIELD* |
11305 |
|
|
|
| HAVRE BOUCHER* |
WEST ARM TRACADIE |
11345 |
|
TRACADIE* |
11318 |
|
EAST TRACADIE* |
|
|
HAVRE BOUCHER* |
11308 |
|
AULD COVE |
11402 |
|
|
|
| BAXTER'S COVE* |
MARYVILLE* |
10323 |
|
BAXTER'S COVE* |
10341 |
|
MCKAY'S POINT* |
10348 |
|
|
|
| MURPHY'S POND* |
LITTLE JUDIQUE HARBOUR* |
10313 |
|
PORT HOOD* |
10330 |
|
MURPHY'S POND* |
10324 |
|
|
|
| MABOU HARBOUR* |
MABOU HARBOUR* |
10319 |
|
MABOU MINES* |
10320 |
Total Landings of Commercial Species in St. Georges
Bay, 1985-97
Landings for a total of 36 commercial fish species
have been reported in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans purchase slip
files for the period 1985-97. Landings have been highest for herring and
lobster, followed by the groundfish species white hake, winter flounder,
and plaice. Snow crab landings have been the sixth highest, however almost
all of the landings come from areas outside St. Georges Bay. Atlantic cod
is seventh on the list. This fishery has been closed since September, 1993,
due to low abundance.
| Species |
Tonnes |
Species |
Tonnes |
| Herring |
24716 |
Haddock |
7 |
| Lobsters |
18873 |
Oysters (American) |
6 |
| White Hake |
8732 |
Yellowtail |
5 |
| Winter Flounder |
4506 |
Unsp. Flounders |
3 |
| Plaice |
4363 |
Bar Clams |
2 |
| Snow Crabs (Queen) |
2650 |
Quahaugs Clams |
1 |
| Cod |
1522 |
Shark, Unsp. |
1 |
| Alewives (Gaspereau) |
1148 |
Halibut |
1 |
| Mackerel |
1072 |
Tomcod |
1 |
| Scallops |
512 |
Catfish |
0 |
| Tuna, Bluefin |
289 |
Greenland Halibut (Turbot) |
0 |
| Rock Crabs |
247 |
Salmon |
0 |
| Greysole (Witch) |
224 |
Striped Bass |
0 |
| Eels |
199 |
Mussels |
0 |
| Dogfishes |
163 |
Silversides |
0 |
| Smelts |
155 |
Pollock |
0 |
| Skate |
32 |
Monkfish (Amerr Angler) |
0 |
| Squid |
17 |
Redfish |
0 |
|
