Abstract

This is a summary of the most recent stock assessments of three important reef fish in the U.S. waters of the Gulf of Mexico, vermilion snapper (Rhomboplites aurorubens), red snapper (Lutjanus campechanus), and gag (Mycteroperca microlepis). For commercial vessels reporting using handlines to harvest vermilion snapper, 50 percent of the catch is accounted for by approximately 30 vessels (3% of the fleet). Of the recreational headboats reporting harvesting vermilin snapper, to vessels account for approximately 50% of the total vermilion snapper headboat harvest. There is evidence to suggest that the recent decrease in commercial landings of vermilion snapper may be due in part to similar trends in recruitment patterns. Red snapper remain highly overfished with a large proportion of the fishing mortality being applied during the juvenile stages in the form of bycatch from the shrimp fishery.\Regulations that required the use of Bycatch Reduction Devices (BRD) were put into effect in 1998. Examination of catch rates of juvenile red snapper reveal the possibility of annual and inter-annual variability in juvenile settlement. Based on observations of annual gag harvest, there is neither an obvious increasing nor decreasing trend in landings. Gag compose approximately 33 percent of the commerciallandings of grouper species and approximately 15 percent of total commercial reeffish landings. The bulk of the 1986-1996 commercial catch of gag was from the eastern Gulf of Mexico to the west and north of Tampa - St. Petersburg, Florida. An increase in the estimated number of recreational fish discarded dead has been observed starting in 1991. It is possible that these increases in 1994, 1995, and 1996 were due to the strong 1993 year class recruiting into the fishable population, but not yet large enough to be fully recruited past the 20 inch minimum size.

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