Abstract
The Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation (CFRF) and fishing partners completed the second year of the South Fork Wind Farm pre-development fisheries monitoring gillnet survey. During the reporting period, spring survey trips were conducted in April-June and the fall seasonal survey was completed between October-December 2022. The gillnet survey gear consists of five gillnet strings per area with six, 300-foot net panels of 12-inch mesh and tie downs. A total of ninety nets were sampled, twice per month on a 24-hour soak during survey periods. The entire catch was measured, and weighed, with length/width measurements taken of individual fish and crustacean species. Stomach samples were collected from select commercially valuable fish species such as winter skate, monkfish and Atlantic cod for prey composition analysis. Oceanographic conditions including temperature, depth, salinity, and weather conditions were recorded for each string. Preliminary results reported in this document cover the second year of surveying. For this second year, the eastern reference area encountered 22 different species and as in the previous year was dominated by skates (winter and little skate), monkfish, and bluefish. The western reference area encountered 30 different species and was dominated by skates (winter skate, little skate) with sea scallops, monkfish, bluefish, summer flounder and chub mackerel as part of the assemblage. Finally, the proposed wind farm area encountered 27 different species and was again dominated by winter skate, monkfish, little skate, and bluefish with an increase in Atlantic mackerel this year. An increase in Atlantic menhaden in all three areas was observed and no blue fin tunas were observed this year. The bottom water temperatures were cooler than in 2021 and the salinity slightly higher in 2022. During the spring months, winter skate dominated the catch with consistent lower levels of summer flounder, monkfish, little skate, spiny dogfish and Atlantic menhaden. This year the expected increase in monkfish and winter skate during their migration in the fall was not observed, but a consistent catch of little skate and bluefish occurred. As in the previous year’s stomach analysis, we found a dominance of fish in monkfish diets with winter skate consuming a much more diverse diet.