Collapse and recovery of the yellowtail flounder (Limanda ferruginea) fishery on Georges Bank

Stock biomass of yellowtail flounder (Limanda ferruginea) on Georges Bank was depleted by over-fishing from the 1970s to the mid-1990s, but fishery restrictions have effectively increased survival, and with recent strong recruitment, biomass is rebuilding to historic levels. The decline, collapse and recovery of Georges Bank yellowtail flounder is illustrated by past and present spatial distribution and abundance data from groundfish surveys and trends in exploitation, recruitment, biomass and age composition from recent stock assessments. Evidence for the dominant influence of exploitation on the decline and reduced abundance of this stock and the effectiveness of the current management strategy towards stock rebuilding is illustrated through deterministic simulations and yield per recruit analyses.