New England/Mid-Atlantic
New England/Mid-Atlantic
New England and the Mid-Atlantic, including the Chesapeake Bay, have a long and storied history of fishing.
Fishing continues to define our culture today, with lobsters, sea scallops, crabs, and a variety of fish filling our menus and attracting tourists from all over the world. New Bedford, Massachusetts, is consistently among the highest value ports in the United States, thanks to the lucrative scallop fishery.Recreational fishing is a popular pastime, contributing billions to our economy. Many fishermen still fish in the same places and for the same species as their ancestors hundreds of years ago.
We are also dedicated to conserving, protecting, and rebuildingendangered and threatened marine and anadromous species in rivers, bays, estuaries, and marine waters off New England and the Mid-Atlantic. Our work helps ensure the survival of protected marine mammals, sea turtles, and fish for future generations.
Our work to maintain sustainable fisheries and protect marine life is a joint effort of the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office and Northeast Fisheries Science Center, offering sound science to help inform management decisions in an ever-changing environment.
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Featured News
Celebrate Seafood This Holiday Season
Seafood Tips from the People Bringing You America's Seafood (Part 1)
Thomas Piecuch flips floating oyster bags on his farm (Credit: Holy Ground Oyster Company).Celebrating Aquaculture Week: Farming from Tide to Table
A subsample of bluefin tuna larvae collected via net tow from the Slope Sea. The small individuals are about 3 millimeters in length and the larger individuals are about 6 millimeters. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Katey MarancikGenomics Help Uncover Mysteries of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna
Caption: The electronic data collection setup used by the groundfish conversion factor project. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Dan GatesNOAA Fisheries Partners with Northeast Groundfish Industry to Update Key Data for Stock Assessments
Notices & Rules
Closure: Atlantic Bluefin Tuna General Category Fishery Through November 30, 2025
2025 Commercial Scup Quota and Possession Limit Increase
Closure: Atlantic Bluefin Tuna General Category (Commercial) Fishery
Incidental Take Authorization: U.S. Navy's Pier 171 Repair and Replacement Project in Newport, Rhode Island
Restoring America’s Seafood Competitiveness
Upcoming Events
Request for Public Comment on the Draft Regional Standards for Offshore Wind Project-Level Monitoring
Educator Webinar: Empowering Educators—How Community Partners Can Fuel Hands-On MWEE Training through Grants and Support
December 2025 Safe Handling, Release, and Identification Workshop
Bulletins
In-Season Adjustment to 2025 Atlantic Herring Specifications
NOAA Fisheries Announces Commercial Blueline Tilefish Fishery Closure
Massachusetts Commercial Summer Flounder Fishery Closure
Increase in the Commercial Scup Quota and Possession Limit for the 2025 Winter II Period (October 1 - December 31)
NOAA Fisheries Announces 2025-2026 Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Specifications
Open Funding Opportunities
NOAA Great Lakes Fish Habitat Restoration Partnership Grants
Featured Highlights
Commercial fishing boats lined up in Sitka, Alaska. Credit: Shutterstock.NOAA Fisheries Seeks Recommendations for Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness
Uncrewed Vehicle Helps Fill Data Gaps in Northeast’s Difficult-to-Reach Areas
New Calculator Helps Oyster Growers Measure the Water Quality Benefits of Farms
Science Overview
In 1871, NOAA Fisheries’ first laboratory was founded inWoods Hole, Massachusetts. Since then, our research has promoted recovery and long-term sustainability of marine life in the region and sustaining coastal communities. Through our comprehensive marine science program, we studyfishery species and fisheries, monitor and model ocean conditions and habitats, develop aquaculture, and provide reliable advice for policymakers. We're also home to theWoods Hole Science Aquarium, the nation's oldest public marine aquarium.
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Science News & Blogs
Genomics Help Uncover Mysteries of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna
A subsample of bluefin tuna larvae collected via net tow from the Slope Sea. The small individuals are about 3 millimeters in length and the larger individuals are about 6 millimeters. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Katey MarancikShortfin Squid Project “Squids Their Stride” in 2025
NOAA Fisheries Partners with Northeast Groundfish Industry to Update Key Data for Stock Assessments
Caption: The electronic data collection setup used by the groundfish conversion factor project. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Dan GatesUncrewed Vehicle Helps Fill Data Gaps in Northeast’s Difficult-to-Reach Areas
Workshop Targets High-Tech Ways to Assess Endangered Whale Health
Southern resident killer whales. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Candice EmmonsFisheries Overview
We work cooperatively with theNew England andMid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils, and theAtlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to develop, review, and implement fishery management plans in federal waters (from 3 to 200 nautical miles). Our research and research surveys provide the necessary information needed to evaluate the overall health of more than 50 fisheries with 14 fishery management plans in our region, from Maine to North Carolina, an area about the size of California.
Commercial Fishing
- Vessel and Dealer Trip Reporting
- Vessel Monitoring
- Vessel and Dealer Permitting
- Fish Online (Log-in Required. Access permits, reporting, and other services)
- Marine Mammal Authorization Program for Commercial Fishermen
- Northeast Fisheries Sampling and Monitoring
- Quota Monitoring and Landing Reports
- Discard Methodology
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Fisheries News
In-Season Adjustment to 2025 Atlantic Herring Specifications
NOAA Fisheries Announces Commercial Blueline Tilefish Fishery Closure
Massachusetts Commercial Summer Flounder Fishery Closure
Increase in the Commercial Scup Quota and Possession Limit for the 2025 Winter II Period (October 1 - December 31)
NOAA Fisheries Announces 2025-2026 Mackerel, Squid, and Butterfish Fishery Specifications
Protected Marine Life Overview
We are dedicated to research and management to conserve, protect, and rebuild endangered and threatened marine and anadromous species in rivers, bays, estuaries, and marine waters of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. Our work helps ensure the survival of protected marine species for future generations.
Protecting Marine Life
- Atlantic Large Whale Take Reduction Plan
- Atlantic Trawl Take Reduction Team
- Harbor Porpoise Take Reduction Plan
- North Atlantic Right Whale Recovery Plan Northeast U.S. Implementation Team
- Sea Turtle Disentanglement Network
- Greater Atlantic Marine Mammal Stranding Network
- Greater Atlantic Large Whale Disentanglement Network
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Marine Life News
NOAA Announces Confirmed U.S. Large Whale Entanglement Numbers for 2024
Credit: NOAA/Maria HarveyWhere the Copepods Are: Prey Data Can Improve Right Whale Models
Workshop Targets High-Tech Ways to Assess Endangered Whale Health
Southern resident killer whales. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Candice Emmons2022 and 2023 Combined Report of Marine Mammal Strandings in the United States
A complete necropsy of a minke whale on Blakely Island, Washington. The necropsy revealed injuries—including severe bruising and broken ribs and vertebrae—consistent with a vessel strike. Credit: The Whale MuseumNOAA Announces Confirmed Large Whale Entanglement Numbers for 2023
Trained and authorized responders use a grapple to grab the entanglement trailing behind a North Atlantic right whale (#4545). Credit: Center for Coastal Studies, taken under NOAA Permit # 24359Habitat Overview
Healthy habitats are the foundation of healthy fisheries. We work to protect, conserve, and restore habitats for fishery resources under our stewardship. We alsoconduct research on marine life to determine how habitat loss, degradation, restoration, and mitigation affect ecosystems. Our vision is for healthy and self-sustaining coastal and marine habitats that support vital ecosystem functions, including abundant living marine resources, human uses, and resilient coastal communities. We work cooperatively with a wide variety of federal, state, and local agencies and non-governmental organizations to protect and restore habitat to sustain fisheries, recoverprotected species, and maintain resilient coastal ecosystems and communities.
Conserving Habitat and Ecosystems
Habitat and Ecosystem Research
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Habitat News
Habitat Restoration in the Great Lakes: By the Numbers
Aerial view of Belle Isle in the Detroit River. Credit: Friends of the Detroit River.Wading in to Wild Wetlands with Sultana Education Foundation and Maryland Students
Students explored wetlands and got up close with critters who call wetlands “home.” Photo: Jackie DoerrRestoring Habitat for Great Lakes Fisheries on New York’s Salmon River
Anglers fish in the Salmon River, shown here after several structures associated with an abandoned railroad trestle bridge were removed. Credit: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.Revitalizing the Detroit River Ecosystem for Great Lakes Fisheries
Sugar Island. Credit: Rami Tamimi/Geoics LLCCape Cod Cranberry Bog Project Restoring Wetlands and Fish Passage for River Herring
Aerial view of the restored lower Coonamessett River. Credit: Adam SouleSpecies Overview
Species that we manage, protect, and study in the New England/Mid-Atlantic Region.
We manage 42 commercial and recreational fish and shellfish for sustainable use. We protect and conserve dozens of marine mammal, sea turtle, and endangered fish species from Maine to North Carolina.
Species News
Celebrating Aquaculture Week: Farming from Tide to Table
Thomas Piecuch flips floating oyster bags on his farm (Credit: Holy Ground Oyster Company).Genomics Help Uncover Mysteries of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna
A subsample of bluefin tuna larvae collected via net tow from the Slope Sea. The small individuals are about 3 millimeters in length and the larger individuals are about 6 millimeters. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Katey MarancikNOAA Fisheries Partners with Northeast Groundfish Industry to Update Key Data for Stock Assessments
Caption: The electronic data collection setup used by the groundfish conversion factor project. Credit: NOAA Fisheries/Dan GatesNOAA Announces Confirmed U.S. Large Whale Entanglement Numbers for 2024
Credit: NOAA/Maria HarveyWhere the Copepods Are: Prey Data Can Improve Right Whale Models