Spurdog

Squalus acanthias

2: Best Choice How we work out the ratings

What to check for

Location

State and federal waters off the Atlantic coast of the U.S.A

Technical location

Atlantic, Northwest, NAFO 5, NAFO 6

Caught by

Bottom trawl (otter)

Rating summary

In the Northwest Atlantic, spurdog is not overfished or subject to overfishing. The fishery is well managed, fishers must have a permit to harvest spurdog and annual catch limits and a commercial quota are set. If the quota is fully harvested, then the fishery will be closed and, if the annual catch limit is exceeded, the exact amount will be deducted from the subsequent fishing year. Demersal trawl fisheries have the potential to cause significant and long-lasting impacts to benthic habitats and communities. The impact of the trawl fishery is also likely causing populations of long-finned pilot whales to decline. This fishery is listed as Category II, the sustainable 'potential biological removal' level is set at 35 whales and the total reported take exceeded this at 38.Rating last updated January 2024.

Technical consultation summary

In the Northwest Atlantic, spurdog is not overfished or subject to overfishing. Spawning output is at 101% of its target, and fishing mortality is at 81% of the overfishing threshold. The fishery is well managed, fishers must have a permit to harvest spurdog and annual catch limits and a commercial quota are set. If the quota is fully harvested, then the fishery will be closed and, if the annual catch limit is exceeded, the exact amount will be deducted from the subsequent fishing year. However, management must effectively reduce the bycatch of ETP species in this area. Demersal trawl fisheries have the potential to cause significant and long-lasting impacts to benthic habitats and communities. The impact of the trawl fishery is also likely causing populations of long-finned pilot whales to decline. This fishery is listed as Category II, the sustainable 'potential biological removal' level is set at 35 whales and the total reported take exceeded this at 38.

How we worked out this Rating

In the Northwest Atlantic, spurdog is not overfished, or subject to overfishing.In the early 1990's, population biomass of spurdog in the Northwest Atlantic was at its highest estimated level. A large scale unregulated fishery developed and quickly depleted the stock of mature female spurdog. The implementation of a spurdog fishery management plan (FMP) in 2000 halted the further depletion of mature female spurdog and allowed the stock to recover to a sustainable level.In the Northwest Atlantic, the latest available stock assessment (2022) showed that the spawning output was estimated to be 190.8 million pups which is 101% of it's target (SSB MSY proxy = 188 million pups). Therefore, it is sustainably fished.There was a reduction in catches in 2022. Fishing mortality was estimated to be 0.02 which is 81% of the overfishing threshold (FMSY proxy = 0.0246). Therefore, it is harvested sustainably.

The spurdog fishery is well managed, fishers must have a permit to harvest spurdog and annual catch limits and a commercial quota are set. If the quota is fully harvested, then the fishery will be closed and, if the annual catch limit is exceeded, the exact amount will be deducted from the subsequent fishing year.The Northwest Atlantic spurdog fishery is managed by NOAA Fisheries, the Mid-Atlantic and New England Fishery Management Councils, and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission. The fishery is managed using a coast-wide annual quota and possession limits. While there are no specific management areas for the fishery, vessels fishing for spurdog in federal waters must also comply with closed areas for Northeast multispecies (groundfish) and other fisheries. There are several exempted fishing areas defined for the spurdog fishery.Fishers must have a permit to harvest spurdog and annual catch limits and a commercial quota are set. From May 2022, the annual catch limit for spurdog has been set at 14,454 tonnes and the commercial quota has been set at 13,408 tonnes. If the quota is fully harvested, then the commercial spurdog fishery will be closed, and, if the annual catch limit is exceeded, the exact amount by which it was exceeded will be deducted as soon as possible from the subsequent fishing year.Trip limits are also used to control the catch rate. The federal commercial trip limit for spurdog is 7500lb and only one trip may be made each calendar day. Some states mirror the federal trip limit, but states can set their own trip limits. There are no fish size limits.Under the multispecies (groundfish) regulations, there are four regulated mesh areas (RMA) that control the gear that can be used in each area: Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank, Southern New England, and Mid-Atlantic. Within these RMAs, vessels fishing with gillnets and trawl gear must abide by minimum mesh sizes. This consists of a 6.5-inch minimum mesh size for square or diamond mesh for both trawl and gillnet gear in all RMAs. In the gillnet fishery, nets may not be longer than 91.4m in length.

Otter trawling is likely to cause some damage to the seabed. Bycatch is moderate and may include vulnerable species. The impact of the trawl fishery is also likely causing populations of long-finned pilot whales to decline.Spurdog (commonly known as spiny dogfish in US fisheries) are found all along the Northwest coast from Labrador to Florida and are most abundant between Nova Scotia and Cape Hatteras. The main commercial fishing gears used to catch spurdog are sink gillnets (70% of landings), bottom longlines, and trawls. Spurdog are frequently caught as bycatch and discarded during groundfish operations.Spurdog is part of multi-species fisheries, under which it is not possible to determine and identify the vessels/trips/hauls targeting and landing spiny dogfish until the gear has been hauled. There are several measures and efforts in place that are intended to reduce bycatch and these include the Standardised Bycatch Reporting Methodology (SBRM) reports and the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) considerations.Species are taken as bycatch in all gear types. These include small quantities species of crab, skate and shark, some of which are considered to be data deficient. Trawl fisheries also have the potential to impact whale populations. In this area, the impact of the trawl fishery is likely causing populations of long-finned pilot whales to decline. This fishery is listed in the US as a Category II fishery. Category II fisheries are those that have an annual mortality of between 1% and 50% of the 'potential biological removal' (PBR) level. In this fishery, the sustainable 'potential biological removal' level is set at 35 whales and the total reported take exceeded this at 38.Towed bottom fishing gears have the potential to cause significant and long-lasting impacts to benthic habitats and communities. Demersal trawls can reduce structural diversity of benthic habitats by damaging or removing benthic organisms attached to the sea floor, such as corals, seaweeds and sponges. The physical features of the seafloor can also be damaged to the extent that benthic invertebrate species and epifauna may no longer be able to find adequate substrates for attachment and juvenile fish species become vulnerable. In addition, sediments can be stirred up with negative effects on a variety of species including the particularly vulnerable cold-water corals.

References

NOAA Fisheries. Atlantic Spiny Dogfish. Available at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/atlantic-spiny-dogfish#overview [Accessed on 14.01.2024].NOAA Fisheries. Stock SMART data records. Available at www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/stocksmart [Accessed on 14.01.2024].NOAA Fisheries. 2019. Atlantic Spiny Dogfish Benefits from Sustainable Shark Management. Available at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/atlantic-spiny-dogfish-benefits-sustainable-shark-management [Accessed on 14.01.2024].NOAA Fisheries. 2022. Marine Mammal Protection Act List of Fisheries. Available at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/national/marine-mammal-protection/marine-mammal-protection-act-list-fisheries [Accessed on 14.01.2024].NOAA Fisheries. 2023. Atlantic Spiny Dogfish 2023 Management Track Assessment Report. Available at https://apps-nefsc.fisheries.noaa.gov/saw/sasi.php [Accessed on 14.01.2024].Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council. 2020. Spiny Dogfish Fishery Information Document. Available at https://static1.squarespace.com/static/511cdc7fe4b00307a2628ac6/t/5f3d6adf1ddc1938bbcdb264/1597860576933/2020+Dogfish+AP+Info+Doc.pdf [Accessed on 14.01.2024].Marine Stewardship Council. US Atlantic dogfish, winter skate and little skate. Available at https://fisheries.msc.org/en/fisheries/us-atlantic-spiny-dogfish-winter-skate-and-little-skate/@@view [Accessed on 14.01.2024].