It's haddock season!
Although the haddock population in the GOM is at a record high, the Atlantic cod population is near an all-time low. Cod and haddock prefer similar habitats and are therefore commonly caught together, which presents a big problem. Despite managers imposing a prohibition on recreational cod harvest, the discarded cod (“bycatch”) from haddock anglers has become a leading source of mortality for the cod stock. In response, DMF developed a bycatch avoidance tool using cod and haddock density data from trawl surveys. The maps further incorporated each species habitat preference, including depth, temperature and seafloor complexity.
Recreational Haddock Fishing Guide
The bycatch avoidance tool identifies the time and place where the catch rate for cod is low yet legal sized haddock are abundant. You can view the full guide here.
Download Haddock Fishing Maps
You can download the Avenza maps to your smartphone. Once downloaded, you will be able to find your location, zoom in, plot a course, track your drifts, and navigate, all within the app.
Become a Citizen Scientist!
Our haddock recreational maps were originally based on information from a trawl survey that ended in 2019. That means they will become less useful over time as the distribution of cod and haddock change. That’s where you come in! We’re looking for anglers to voluntarily report their groundfish catch, fishing time, and locations. So, interested anglers should register to volunteer as a citizen scientist. One of our haddock biologists will follow up with further instructions.
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