Deployment: NEC-HH2006-1

The purpose of this project was to examine the feasibility of multi-beam sonar as a fisheries acoustic survey method for stock assessments, EFH identification, and evaluation of time/area closures for Atlantic cod. The proposed research included installing, calibrating, and testing multi- and split-beam sonar configurations in experimental cages for detection of cod. Once experimental methodologies were proven, relations between acoustic measurements and fish biology were examined through experimental manipulation of wild fish caught by fishing industry participants. Results from the proposed research would naturally lead to further experimentation and cooperative research using a multi-disciplinary approach of acoustic and trawl sampling to describe spatial distribution and relative abundance of spawning cod aggregations within EFH such as the rolling area closure 133 in the Western Gulf of Maine.