Landings Newsletter Header




January 22nd, 2024 | EDITION #2 | 207-633-9414 | [email protected]

________________________________________________________________________







Fisherman Spotlight

At the age of 7, Andrew Simmons started out by helping his dad in the shop. His father, a 5th generation lobsterman taught him that, ?In this business, you have to work hard to earn your respect, but do it in an honest way.? At an early age, Andrew realized that the lobster business was a wealthy one, but it was also a dog-eat-dog business. He took every opportunity he could to learn from the ?old timers.? Each time he lent a hand to help shovel or bring bait aboard their boats, they?d offer a few tips on how to find success in the industry. Andrew noted that an early start always helped.

?

The advice Andrew would give to someone starting out in the industry is rooted in the values his father instilled in him; always be honest (don?t keep any close lobsters when it comes to the measure or the tail), work hard, lend a helping-hand if needed, and go to college.

Andrew thinks that Maine has done a great job with keeping the fishery sustainable and stated, ?let us do our jobs and leave us alone,? when thinking about the future of the industry. Andrew is concerned that the rules and regulations being placed on fisherman will have negative impacts on the industry. This worries him, especially when thinking about the next generation of fisherman ? like his young son, a 7th generation lobsterman who will attend college in the future. Andrew noted that he is catching the same number of lobsters in the winter as he was 10 years ago, and his catch has been consistent during the winter and summer months.

When asked about his most memorable fishing moments, Andrew talked about boat-to-boat bait fights with his cousins, brothers, and their fathers. Another time, his father pulled up a lobster that was as tall as Andrew. The ocean is astounding, and he hopes that his son has the chance to write an article like this one day.

?




fishing

Photo Credit: Andrew Simmons

?

________________________________________________________________________

Trawl Survey Program

Fish 1

The 23rd year of the Maine - New Hampshire Inshore Trawl survey was completed in the spring & fall. This biannual survey provides valuable information for management of multiple commercially harvested species. It covers inshore waters out to 12nm & aims to complete 120 randomly selected tows each season. Details of survey gear & protocols are on the DMR website here [ [link removed] ].

?



Map

?

In this year?s spring survey, the overall total catch weight mostly contained gadid fishes, dominated by whiting (silver hake). Lobster and crab catch increased slightly in the spring compared to spring of 2022. Data for the fall survey are currently undergoing checks and will be available for viewing on our data portal soon.?Data from surveys can be viewed on the Maine ? New Hampshire Inshore Trawl Survey data portal [ [link removed] ]. If you have any questions please contact Rebecca Peters at [email protected].??

?

?







________________________________________________________________________



Landings Program Highlights

*"Need Help with Electronic Reporting?"*

Staff from DMR?s Landings Program will be at the Maine Fisherman?s Forum from Thursday, February 29 ? Saturday, March 2 to provide one-on-one assistance to harvesters that need help submitting their landings reports.

*"When Are My Landings Reports Due??"*


* SCALLOP ? trip level reports are due electronically by 11:59PM Sunday for any landings occurring from Monday 12:01AM ? Sunday 11:59PM. A Did Not Fish report is required if no fishing trips occurred during the week.
* LOBSTER ? trip level reports are due electronically by the 10th of each month. A Did Not Fish report is required if no fishing trips occurred during the month.
* URCHIN ? trip level reports are due by the 10th of each month. A Did Not Fish report is required if no fishing trips occurred during the month.

*"Electronic Reporting Updates:"*? Maine LEEDS - Be on the lookout for the ability to set up Landings Preferences by fishery. VESL App - Choose SEA scallop instead of BAY scallop for scallop reports.?

________________________________________________________________________







divesurvey
Sea Urchin Sampling Program

The 2023-24 green sea urchin season started in October, with divers and draggers fishing for the spiny echinoderms until the season ends in March 2024. The sampling program started in 1994 & consisted of phone interviews to harvesters; two years later this also expanded to coastwide port sampling. DMR staff interview active harvesters in both Zones 2x per month to ask questions about fishing effort and to record harvester observations from recent fishing trips. The program seeks to record changes in sea urchin catch & effort and establish long term trends, along with recording environmental observations harvesters detect in the ecosystem.



graph 2

The implementation of the swipe card system in 2016 automated the process of collecting and reporting commercial landings. This system, combined with harvester interviews, allow DMR scientists to gather snapshots of the urchin fishery throughout the commercial season. Outside of the fishing season, DMR scientists review and analyze trends from the in-season data collected and conduct an annual green sea urchin dive survey in May and June. These datasets are used to assess urchin distribution and abundance along the coast.



________________________________________________________________________







HOW TO: Check Your Reporting Compliance Status
status
* Login to Maine LEEDS & click on "View Reporting Compliance Status"
* Select the license type and number you would like to check. A list of months will display with a "Status" column showing either "Submitted"," Did Not Submit", "Incomplete", or "Rejected" status.?
* *"Submitted"*?- reports were submitted & accepted.*" Did Not Submit"* - reports have not been received, either because it is not due yet *or* because it is past due. *"Incomplete"* - report was submitted but is missing information. *"Rejected" *- report was submitted but is missing information and we have not been able to obtain the information from you. For "Incomplete" or "Rejected" report statuses, please call us at 207-633-9414.

*VESL App users are also recommended to check their reporting compliance status in Maine LEEDS, as VESL only displays the dates you did submit reports, not the periods where you may be missing reports.?

________________________________________________________________________







"*Click the links below to see detailed instructions & additional reporting tips:*"






*Maine LEEDS:*

* How To View Your Reporting Compliance Status [ [link removed] ]?*NEW!*
* How to Enter Lobster Fishing Effort in LEEDS [ [link removed] ]? *NEW!*
* Editing a Report in LEEDS [ [link removed] ]
* Setting Favorites [ [link removed] ]



*VESL App:*

* How To View Your Reporting Compliance Status [ [link removed] ]?*NEW!*
* How To Enter Lobster Fishing Effort in VESL [ [link removed] ]? *NEW!*
* Creating a Did Not Fish Report [ [link removed] ]?*NEW!*
* Editing a Report in VESL [ [link removed] ]
* Using Map Function to Enter Fishing Location [ [link removed] ]
* Refreshing App Data [ [link removed] ]
* Changing Date Range in ?Find Report? [ [link removed] ]







?

________________________________________________________________________

Update your subscriptions, modify your password or email address, or stop subscriptions at any time on your Subscriber Preferences Page [ [link removed] ]. You will need to use your email address to log in. If you have questions or problems with the subscription service, please contact subscriberhelp.govdelivery.com [ [link removed] ].

DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL AS RESPONSES ARE NOT MONITORED.?

This service is provided to you as a courtesy by the?Maine Department of Marine Resources [ [link removed] ].

________________________________________________________________________

This email was sent to [email protected] using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of: Maine Department of Marine Resources?? 21 State House Station ? Augusta, ME 04333-0021? 207-624-6550 GovDelivery logo [ [link removed] ]