Historical Relationships Among Fisheries Abundance and Hydrographic and Pollution Variables in Northeastern Estuaries

Categorical time series regression was applied to 24 commercial fisheries in five northeastern estuaries for the period 1929-1977. Explanatory variables included were: relative stock abundance, hydrographic variables, and pollution indicator variables, all lagged back in time to represent the conditions influencing the multiple age classes comprising each fishery. Results showed that interactions among explanatory variables (lagged stock, hydrographic and pollution variables) were very important in controlling year-to-year variation in commercial fisheries abundance.