Stock status update of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) in NAFO divisions 4X5Y for 2022

Abstract

In the Canadian Atlantic, Atlantic Cod (Gadus morhua) ranges from Georges Bank to northern Labrador. There are several concentrations of Atlantic Cod within this range, including those on the southern Scotian Shelf and Bay of Fundy in Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) Divisions 4X and 5Y. In 2010, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada assessed the southern population unit (4X5YZjm) as Endangered, and a Recovery Potential Assessment was completed in 2011 (DFO 2011). The latest 4X5Y Atlantic Cod stock assessment was conducted in 2018, along with a framework assessment which included a review of data inputs, ecosystem information, modelling approaches, and data-limited approaches. The last stock status update was provided in 2020. Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Fisheries Management has requested that DFO Science apply the modelling approach developed in 2018 with updated survey and catch indices to provide catch advice. This Science Response Report results from the Regional Peer Review on the Update of Stock Status for Cod in 4X5Y held on December 6-7, 2022.