Stock status update of Arctic Surfclam (Mactromeris polynyma) on Banquereau and Grand Bank to the end of the 2023 fishing season

Abstract

An update on the status of the offshore Arctic Surfclam (Mactromeris polynyma) resource was requested by Maritimes Region Resource Management to support harvest level decisions in the Arctic Surfclam fishery. Surfclam is assessed on a multi-year assessment schedule, with Stock Status Updates produced in interim years. The basis for assessing Arctic Surfclam on Banquereau and Grand Bank was examined at a framework meeting on June 28–29, 2016. During the framework, a fisheries-dependent assessment methodology was developed for Banquereau using a spatially disaggregated surplus production model (Hubley and Heaslip 2018). This method was used to provide an assessment of the stock status on Banquereau and potential harvest levels based on two removal rates. This report updates fisheries information (landings, catch per unit effort, fishery footprint) and secondary indicators to the end of the 2023 fishing season for both Grand Bank and Banquereau, as well as biomass model results from Banquereau, and assesses them against agreed upon reference points and thresholds. These banks were last assessed in 2017 (DFO 2017, Hubley et al. 2020) with updates conducted annually from 2018 – 2023 (DFO 2023). This Science Response Report results from the regional peer review on September 12, 2024, on the Stock Status Update for Arctic Surfclam on Banquereau Bank and Grand Bank.