Years 4-5: Data archiving and analysis!

In response to the CRPP’s Broad Agency Announcement in the Spring of 2005, GMRI submitted a proposal for a NRCTP ‘Year Four’. The key objectives were to maintain the tagging infrastructure currently in place, while also adding a historical data component to the scope of work and extending GMRI’s current remit for tagging data analysis, as recapture information continues to be received.

NOAA Fisheries (Northeast Region) has recognized the need to “keep the lights on” for this project by sustaining the tag reporting and rewarding infrastructure. GMRI will continue to reward all tag returns and high-reward tag returns with the incentives currently offered: a recapture report in addition to the reporter’s choice of T-shirt, hat or mug for all yellow and orange tags, or $100 for blue (high-reward) tags.

During the Collaborative Mark-Recapture workshop (October 2004) and at other Program update meetings, it was recommended that historical cod tagging datasets be preserved since they could prove useful in developing cod movement projection models in the future. Thus, another key aim of this proposal was to archive the smaller tagging datasets for cod tagging studies undertaken in recent decades in the Northeast Region. The benefits of collating past cod tagging studies into one single database format have further been recognized as highly desirable since the Northeast Fisheries Science Center is now developing a regional, multispecies tagging database, which will eventually house the cod tagging data.

GMRI received a new contract to run from July 2006 through October 2007 and as such, is again in a position to continue collecting and rewarding tag recaptures. GMRI will ensure that these are accurately entered into the online GIS-enabled database, making the data accessible to the public online, through www.gmamapping.org/codmapping.htm. GMRI’s specific deliverables for 2006/2007 include:

1) Develop historical tagging databases which mirror the NRCTP’s structure, in order that all major tagging datasets for cod in the NE region are in one master database format for more efficient future use.

2) Continue analysis, ensuring that stock assessment data requirements are met as much as the NRCTP data can provide.

3) Continue to disseminate findings to industry and other stakeholders with an emphasis on a results-oriented, glossy mass-mailing and an industry/science workshop.

GMRI continues to place high value on providing fishermen and other stakeholders with regular updates on cod tagging information and findings. The next mailing you receive will be a lengthier document which provides greater detail on the findings from the NRCTP data. You can expect to receive this in the winter of 2007-8.

Program history - Years 1-3:

Tagging started in March 2003. The final tagging trip took place in July 2005 and with all the tag release data now entered, we have tagged and released over 114,000 Atlantic cod throughout the Gulf of Maine, in the Bay of Fundy, on George’s Bank and in waters around Cape Cod. We have met and exceeded our goal of 100,000 tagged cod.

We have received recapture information from over 5,600 tagged cod; the overall tag return rate is currently at ~4.3%. This is great news and we hope to continue to improve our tag returns with time.

In May 2004, a high-reward tagging study was initiated as part of the Northeast Regional Cod Tagging Program. Both yellow (regular) and blue (high-reward) T-bar anchor tags were inserted into cod between May 2004 and July 2005. Findings from high-reward tags will enable us to calibrate the information returned from regular tags and estimate a reporting rate.

In October 2004, the Gulf of Maine Research Institute coordinated a regional mark-recapture workshop during which eight different Northeast regional tagging programs were presented and reviewed. The proceedings from this workshop are available for downloading and should be of considerable value to other current and future tagging studies.

Since October 2004, 100% of the cod we release have been double-tagged. This is an increase from the 10% double-tagging rate originally undertaken and this is in direct response to recommendations made at the mark-recapture workshop.

Preliminary analysis of the data began, with a focus on the development of analytical tools for these data. However, valuable information has continued to be reported in ensuing months and these data will continue to be incorporated into longer-term analyses.

The NRCTP's 3rd Annual Meeting took place on the 13th and 14th December 2005; this two-day meeting was attended by Program Partners and stakeholders and was a productive event.

To read more about the evolution of this large-scale tagging Program, please view or download our Bi-monthly updates, our Newsletters, our meeting summaries and our posters.

To read updates on a local scale, you can visit the following web sites:

Tagging by CCCHFA around Cape Cod;

Tagging by SMAST on Georges Bank;

Tagging by the Island Institute, in downeast Maine.

Tagging by DMR around Fippennies & Cashes Ledges, Jordan Basin and nearshore Maine.

Tagging by DFO on Browns Bank and in the Bay of Fundy.