Ernest D. True

Download pdf (1 MB)

Kenchington, E., L. Beazley, F. J. Murillo, G. Tompkins MacDonald, E. Baker.

Vázquez A., J. M. Casas and R. Alpoim. 

E. Kenchington, M. Best, A. Cogswell, K. MacIsaac, F. J. Murillo-Perez, B. MacDonald, V. Wareham, S. D. Fuller, H. I. Ø. Jørgensbye, V. Sklyar and A. B. Thompson

For September 2003, the Scientific Council initiated its Special Session titled Workshop on Mapping and Geostatistical Methods for Fisheries Stock Assessment, as a specifi c topic of interest to the Scientific Council. The Council invited David Kulka (Canada) and Lisa Hendrickson (USA) to design and convene the workshop. It was suggested that the focus should be to provide a basic understanding of the geostatistical concepts and methods and tools that could be used by the Scientific Council in the context of stock assessments.

During 10–12 September 2003, the Scientific Council held the Special Session in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of NAFO, at the Holiday Inn in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada. David Kulka (Canada) and Lisa Hendrickson (USA) were conveners, and Nicholas Bez (France), Reiner Schlitzer (EU – Germany), Jerry Black (Canada) and Mark Simpson (Canada) were invited instructors.

At its meeting of 15–19 September 2003, the Council noted the success of the Workshop and that the complete report will be published as SCS Doc 03/22. During the September 2004 many scientists proposed that the report should be published in the Scientific Council Studies series, and the Council intersessionally agreed to make this Studies publication. This publication endorses the success of the workshop and the possibilities opened to apply geostatistical analyses in stock assessments.

M. J. Morgan, J. Burnett, J. Tomkiewicz, F. Saborido-Rey

The Scientific Council Special Session, the Symposium on Variations in Maturation, Growth, Condition and Spawning Biomass Production in Groundfish held at the Altis Hotel in Lisbon Portugal during 9--11 September 1998 in conjunction with the 20th NAFO Annual Meeting, resulted with the Scientific Council establishing the Working Group on Reproductive Potential. The Working Group (Chair E. Trippel) through its deliberations concerning fish stocks in the North Atlantic recommended to the Scientific Council that

i) a complete collection of scientific papers relating to the subject be peer reviewed and considered for publication in the Journal a/Northwest Atlantic Fishery Science,

and

ii) a compilation of available data for those stocks be published in the Scientific Council Studies.

The Scientific Council endorsed the recommendation, and this issue of the Scientific Council Studies series is dedicated to the compilation regarding the available data. Many members of the Working Group and scientists both within the Scientific Council circles and outside these circles have spent a great deal of time and effort collecting, collating and refining the information base. The comprehensive coverage achieved in this publication is timely and important for scientists dealing with fish stocks and stock complexes in the North Atlantic, particularly in the NAFO and ICES areas.

During 13-15 September 2000, the Scientific Council held the Special Session in conjunction with the 22nd Annual Meeting of NAFO, at the Boston Back Bay Hilton, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America. D. Rivard (Canada) and C. Darby (EU-United Kingdom) were conveners, and R. K. Mayo (USA) played a key role in the preparation of the Workshop and the presentation of tutorials.

At its meeting of 18-22 September 2000, the Council evaluated this Workshop as a very informative and a valuable contribution to the work of the Scientific Council. While recommending that a workbook should be published in the Scientific Council Studies series. the Council noted the publication could constitute previously published information as well as public domain material. While there was a considerable time lapse in the preparation of the final texts and tutorials for this publication, the comprehensive coverage achieved in this publication is believed to be timely and important for scientists throughout the world dealing with stock assessments.

At its meeting during 5–19 June 1996, the Standing Committee on Publications (STACPUB) noted that the extensive scientific review of the Cod Stock in NAFO Div. 2J and 3KL conducted by the Scientific Council consisted of a group of papers suitable for a single publication of NAFO Scientific Council Studies. At its meeting during 7–13 September 1996, STACPUB invited J. Morgan, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Centre, Newfoundland, Canada, to undertake the coordination of the papers for this publication.

In recent years the Scientific Council has recorded an increasing importance on abundance data derived from research surveys, for the fish stock assessments. While there are serious problems with the quality of the catch statistics necessary for assessments, several important stocks assessed by the Scientific Council are under moratoria and are therefore not producing fishery data. In these cases, abundance survey data are the only available reliable source of information on stock status. Observing the urgent need to consider fishery independent methods of stock assessments, the Scientific Council called for a Workshop to review the methods, at its Special Session to be held in conjunction with the 18^th Annual Meeting of NAFO.

The Workshop titled 'Assessment of Groundfish Stocks Based on Bottom Trawl Survey Results' with H. Lassen as convener was held during 4–6 September 1996, at Shuvalov Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia. The Workshop was open to the general scientific community, although participation was primarily aimed at the NAFO Scientific Council members.

Considering the hands-on nature of the Workshop, the total number of participants was limited. A total of 39 participants attended from Canada, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, Faroe Islands, Japan, Norway, Portugal, Russia, Spain, United Kingdom and the United States of America.

Noting that Denmark (in respect of Greenland) with the concurrence of Canada  had requested advice on harp and hooded seals, the Scientific Council called a meeting of the Joint ICES/NAFO Working Group on Harp and Hooded seals. This Group met at the Keddy's Dartmouth Inn, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, during 5–9 June 1995, in conjunction with the Scientific Council meetings of 7–21 June 1995. The Group considered the assessment of the stocks and catch options, as reported in Scientific Council Reports, 1995, pages 43–48.

Noting that most of the research documents presented at the Working Group meeting were quite extensive and together presented an excellent summary of current knowledge of the status of the harp and hooded seals, the Council agreed that it would be extremely useful to compile these documents into a single issue of the NAFO Scientific Council Studies. Upon the approval of members of the Working Group, authors were requested to submit their revised papers for a special issue of the Council Studies.

This issue of NAFO Scientific Council Studies was initiated by the Standing Committee on Publications (STACPUB) of the Scientific Council with the intent of publishing the detailed review on Flemish Cap oceanography as prepared by the Chairman (M. Stein) of the Standing Committee on Fisheries Environment (STACFEN). At its meetings, STACPUB agreed to publish this review in addition to the annual review papers on climatic conditions as well as other currently available reports related to the Flemish Cap from research documents presented to its meetings, under a single cover of the NAFO Scientific Council Studies. The 24 previous issues of NAFO Scientific Council Studies are listed on the inside back cover of this volume.

During 15–16 September 1994, the Scientific Council held a Symposium on 'Impact of Anomalous Oceanographic Conditions at the Beginning of the 1990s in the Northwest Atlantic on the Distribution and Behaviour of Marine Life', with M. Sinclair (Canada) and M. Stein (Republic of Germany) as co-conveners. Through ICNAF and NAFO times, the scientific community had expressed the interests and values of conducting decadal reviews of the environmental conditions in the northwest Atlantic. Two such publications were completed for the decades of the 1960s (ICNAF Special Publication, No. 8 – Symposium on Environmental Conditions in the Northwest Atlantic, 1960–69, Jul 1972, 254 p.), and the 1970s (NAFO Scientific Council Studies, No. 5 – Symposium papers on Environmental Conditions in the Northwest Atlantic, 1970–79 Dec 1982, 114 p.). The September 1994 Symposium addressed the environmental issues in recent years, particularly relating them to marine life.

At its meeting during 2–16 June 1993, the Scientific Council noted that a complete scientific review of results from the Northern Cod Science Program of Canada was scheduled for late-1994, and the coordinator of the Program, J. S. Campbell, should be invited to consider a NAFO publication for a collection of papers. The Council noted a group of papers dealing with Northern Cod presented at its June 1993 meeting appeared suitable for a single publication. At its meeting during 7–10 September 1993, the Council expressed its appreciation to J. S. Campbell for accepting this task, and the Secretariat undertook to complete the publication by the end of 1994.

During 4–6 September 1991, the Scientific Council held a Symposium on "Changes in Abundance and Biology of Cod Stocks and Their Possible Causes", with H. Hovgård (Denmark, in respect of the Faroe Islands and Greenland) as convener. At its meeting in September 1989, the Scientific Council initially agreed to host the 1991 Special Session on Atlantic Cod, and was pleased to welcome R. (Dick) Wells, the well-known Canadian expert on gadoid biology and fishery management science, to convene a Symposium. With the sad, untimely death of Dick Wells in December 1989, the Council was pleased Hovgård agreed to convene the session, and new ideas on the theme and specific topics were considered. The Council decided to dedicate the Symposium in memory of Dick Wells.

Interest in the contributions to the Symposium resulted in the Scientific Council recommendation that papers presented should be published in full or as extended abstracts in a special issue of, with H. Hovgård and T. Amaratunga undertaking the editorial review of the papers.

During 9-11 September 1992, the Scientific Council held a Special Session on "State-of-the-Art in Fish Assessment: a Tutorial/Workshop on Calibration Methods and Their Practical Use" at the NAFO Headquarters, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada, with R. K. Mohn (Canada) and R. Cook (EEC-United Kingdom) as co-conveners. For use during this tutorial/workshop R. K. Mohn prepared a workbook titled Introduction to Sequential Population Analysis and R. Cook prepared a working paper on ICES VPA Tuning Methods, while some additional working papers were circulated during the sessions. At its meeting of 14-18 September 1992, the Scientific Council agreed that the ICES VPA tuning methods be included in a revised workbook and that all materials contained in the other working papers be incorporated in a publication of a single volume of NAFO Scientific Council Studies. The tutorial material prepared by the authors now form the body of this Workbook, and the other working papers are appended.

During 5-7 September 1990, the Scientific Council held a Special Session on "Management Under Uncertainties Related to Biology and Assessments, with Case Studies on Some North Atlantic Fisheries" at the Lord Nelson Hotel, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, with J. Shepherd (EEC-UK) as convener. Keen interest in the contributions and associated discussions prompted the Scientific Council to consider publishing all contributions in a single volume of NAFO Scientific Council Studies. Of the 22 presentations made at the Session, 16 papers and 5 extended abstracts were accepted for publication in this issue of Studies after review by the convener and the editor. The contributions are printed in the order they were presented at the Session.

During 5-7 September 1984, the special session on "Biology and Ecology of Squids in the Northwest Atlantic" was held at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada, with T. W. Rowell (Canada) and Ch, M. Nigmatullin (USSR) as conveners. Keen interest in the contributions and associated discussion prompted the participants to propose that the Scientific Council consider publishing all suitable papers in a single volume.

Of the 27 documented contributions, 15 papers and a bibliography were accepted for publication in this issue of Studies after critical review by one or both conveners and the editor, with the occasional assistance of other fishery scientists. The titles and available abstracts of the remaining 11 contributions, which were either not submitted or not suitable for inclusion in this volume, are listed on pages 171-175.

At the Annual Meeting of the Scientific Council of NAFO in September 1980, it was agreed that a review of environmental conditions in the northwest Atlantic during the 1970-79 decade was desirable. Consequently, a symposium was held at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada, on 15-16 September 1981, during which 15 contributions were discussed (NAFO Scientific Council Reports for 1981). Several of the papers were solicited by the convener to ensure that the major aspects of environmental conditions were covered. Twelve of the contributions are included in this volume.

Although satellite-sensed oceanographic data have been collected over a 20-year period and major application advances have been made over the past 5 years, the Scientific Council of NAFO recognized that new opportunities for application to fisheries research are not being fully exploited. Accordingly, at its meeting in June 1980, the Council agreed that a special session on "Remote Sensing Methods and Their Possible Application to Fisheries Science" would be held during its Annual Meeting in September 1981.

The purpose of this Special Session was to focus on remote-sensing applications relevant to fisheries research through both invited and contributed papers, thereby updating participants on the demonstrated and potential usefulness of remote sensing techniques in NAFO's particular field of interest.

The Scientific Council, noting that the Session gave a good review of remote-sensing techniques and provided a useful and concise account of the application of these techniques to fisheries science, decided that the papers presented at the Session should be published collectively in a volume of NAFO Scientific Council Studies. Apart from updating and minor editing, the 12 contributions are included in this issue. They not only serve as a record of the Special Session in September 1981 but hopefully will stimulate a broader audience to investigate and utilize remote-sensing data as a valuable adjunct to their fisheries research programs.