Groundfish Assessment Program
The Groundfish Assessment Program is responsible for planning, executing, analyzing, and
reporting results from surveys to establish time series estimates of the distribution and
abundance of Alaska groundfish resources in the Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, and Aleutian Islands.
The program also investigates biological processes and interactions with the environment to
estimate growth, mortality, and recruitment to improve the precision and accuracy of forecasting
stock dynamics. Impacts of bottom trawls on the seafloor and the description of bottom type are also
being studied in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands.
The Groundfish Assessment Program in cooperation with the RACE
Shellfish Assessment Program annually conducts a bottom trawl
assessment survey for groundfish and king and Tanner crabs in the eastern Bering sea. This survey was initiated
in 1971 and has been conducted annually since 1979. Annual surveys of sablefish abundance in the Bering
Sea/Aleutian Islands region and Gulf of Alaska have been conducted since 1979 in cooperation with the
AFSCs Auke Bay Laboratory. Major
triennial surveys have been conducted for groundfish resources in the Aleutian Islands region, and in portions
of the eastern Bering Sea not included in the annual groundfish/crab survey
since 1977. Standard trawls and longlines have been used throughout these time series surveys. Special purpose
surveys and studies have been conducted to improve understanding of biological processes, interaction with the
environment, and factors affecting the precision and accuracy of estimates of abundance and population forecasts.
Data derived from Groundfish surveys are documented
in scientific reports and are incorporated into stock assessment advice to
the Pacific Fishery Management Council, the
North Pacific Fishery Management Council,
international fishery management organizations, the fishing industry, and the general public.
*Featured Items*
Recent Poster Presentations, Publications, Reports & Activities
- STARK, J. W.
2012. Female maturity, reproductive potential, relative distribution, and growth compared between arrowtooth flounder (Atheresthes stomias) and Kamchatka flounder (A. evermanni) indicating concerns for management. J. Appl. Ichthyol. 28: 226–230.
- BOLDT, J. L., S. C. BARTKIW, P. A. LIVINGSTON, G. R. HOFF, and G. E. WALTERS.
2012. Investigation of fishing and climate effects on the community size spectra of eastern Bering Sea fish. Trans. Am. Fish. Soc. 141:327-342.
- STARK, J. W.
2012. Contrasting maturation and growth of northern rock sole in the eastern Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska for the purpose of stock management. N. Am. J. Fish. Manag. 32:93-99.
- ROOPER, C. N., and M. H. MARTIN.
2012. Comparison of habitat-based indices of abundance with fishery-independent biomass estimates from bottom trawl surveys. Fish. Bull. 110:21-35. (.pdf, 1 MB). Online.
- Lumpy Bumpy the Sea Star: Revisiting an Internal Molluscan Parasite of Sea Stars in the North Pacific
By: VANESSA LOWE
Conference: National Shellfisheries Association 104th Annual Meeting, Seattle, WA, Mar 2012
(2012 poster, .pdf, 5.7 MB) Online.
- Marine Macroinvertebrates of Alaska — Annotated Checklist
By: DAVID T. DRUMM, JAMES W. ORR
Conference: Alaska Marine Science Symposium, Anchorage, AK, Jan 2012
(2012 poster, .pdf, 973 KB) Online.
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Improved Long-range Sonar Delivered and Tested
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NOAA Corps Hydrographer Adam Pfundt Joins the Habitat Research Group
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Wormy Habitat Too Cold for Worm-Eaters?
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The Alaska Coral and Sponge Initiative (AKCSI): A NOAA Deep Sea Coral Research and Technology Program Regional Fieldwork Initiative in Alaska
See the poster and publications databases for additional listings.
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