Full report - Conservation Gateway

Chapter 6 - Diadromous Fish© Bridget Besaware presumed to be the healthiest populations within theUnited States and are the only rivers with abundanceestimates: for the Hudson, approximately 870 spawningadults/yr and for the Altamaha, approximately 343 spawningadults/yr. Populations in the St. John and St. LawrenceRivers in Canada still support fisheries.Because sturgeon are a long-lived, slow growing fish witha late age of first reproduction, they rely on high survivalof adults to maintain the population. Today, though protectedfrom directed fishing, a greatly reduced number ofadults face a variety of ongoing threats. All of the habitats(oceanic, estuarine, and riverine) used by various lifestages of Atlantic sturgeon are necessary for species survival.However, riverine habitat where spawning occursmay be the most critical to maintenance of the species.The 2007 status review concluded that the principalthreats to the survival of Atlantic sturgeon are modificationsto or loss of spawning and nursery habitat, poorwater quality, and contaminants. Dredging causes physicalalteration of habitat, increases siltation, and may reducefood availability. The dams on most major river systemshave severely restricted the amount of spawning habitatavailable to Atlantic sturgeon; dams close to the rivermouth are the most problematic because they precludenearly all-upriver movement and can create unsuitableconditions for egg hatching and survival. To date, fish passagedevices for Atlantic sturgeon have been unsuccessful.In addition to these habitat impacts, direct mortality fromdredging activities, ship strikes, and bycatch in estuariesand coastal waters were cited. A 2007 ASMFC report onbycatch in coastal fisheries for 2001-2006 found concentrationsof sturgeon bycatch in sink gillnet fisheries in afew locations including Massachusetts Bay, off the eastshore of Cape Cod, Rhode Island coastal waters, NewYork Bight, and the Delmarva Peninsula at depths lessthan 50 m. As a result of the population status and multipleongoing threats, Atlantic sturgeon is a candidate forlisting under the Endangered Species Act.Please see the historical chapter beginning on page xx foradditional information.Management andConservationRegulatory AuthoritiesASMFC is an interstate compact of the fifteen Atlanticcoast states formed in 1942. Since 1994, ASMFC hasbeen responsible for implementing fishery managementrequirements for all Atlantic coast interjurisdictionalfisheries under the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Act, whichestablished cooperative management among ASMFC,NMFS and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service(USFWS). There are 22 species regulated under thisprogram, including the diadromous species American eel,American shad, hickory shad, blueback herring, alewife,Atlantic sturgeon, and striped bass.For species that have significant fisheries in both stateand federal waters, e.g., Atlantic herring, the Commissionworks cooperatively with the East Coast Regional FisheryManagement Councils to develop fishery managementplans. The Commission also works with NMFS to developcompatible regulations for the federal waters of theexclusive economic zone (from three miles to 200 milesoffshore; from the shoreline to three miles offshore is thejurisdiction of the individual coastal states). The 1988fisheries management plan (FMP) for Atlantic salmonestablished explicit United States management authorityover all Atlantic salmon of United States origin toNorthwest Atlantic Marine Ecoregional Assessment • Phase 1 Report 6-25