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Chapter 7 - Demersal FishThey appear to be more tolerant of low temperatures thanadults, which could help recruits survive in marginal habitatconditions.Tilefish feed on a variety of benthic prey items includingbivalve mollusks, polychaetes, sea anemones, echinoderms,and other fishes including conger eel, hagfish, squid, smallspiny dogfish, mackerel, herring, squid, and silver hake.Major predators on juvenile tilefish include spiny dogfish,conger eels, and mostly larger adult tilefish, while monkfishare believed to be the primary predator on adults.The Mid Atlantic Fisheries Management Council hasdesignated a Habitat Area of Particular Concern for juvenileand adult tilefish in the Southern New England/mid-Atlantic region, which encompasses the substrate betweenthe 250 and 1,200 ft isobath line extending from thesouthern flank of Georges Bank to just north of DelawareBay.Longhorn sculpinLonghorn sculpin are distributed across much of theNorthwest Atlantic, occurring from Newfoundland toVirginia. They are common along the Nova Scotia coastand extend as far north as the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Inthe region, they occur from the Bay of Fundy south toVirginia, with highest numbers found in the western Gulfof Maine, along the flanks of Georges Bank, and south toLong Island Sound. Longhorn sculpin are not known formaking extensive migrations, although onshore to offshoremovements have been observed as they move fromshallower to deeper waters as temperatures approach 20 oC (Collette and MacPhee 2000).MonkfishThe monkfish is a solitary, large, slow-growing, bottomdwellinganglerfish which occurs in the western Atlanticfrom the southern and eastern parts of the Grand Banksand the northern side of the Gulf of St. Lawrence to theeast coast of Florida, but is common only north of CapeHatteras. Within the region, they are common in bothinshore and offshore areas of the Gulf of Maine and ubiquitousacross the Continental Shelf in the Mid-AtlanticBight. Monkfish make seasonal onshore-offshore migrationsin response to temperature changes. In the Gulf ofMaine they move and stay offshore to avoid cold coastalconditions in the winter-spring and return inshore ascoastal waters warm in the summer and fall. In the Mid-Atlantic, monkfish may avoid overly warm inshore summerconditions and take advantage of a residual cool poolthat occurs along the mid- to outer Continental Shelf(Steimle et al. 1999e).Adult monkfish occur on soft bottom sediments includingsand, mud, and shell fragments nearshore and on theContinental Shelf. Juveniles occupy similar substrates butwere not captured in the NMFS trawl survey at depths