| Summary: | In 2019, the NAFO Commission requested the NAFO Scientific Council (SC) advice on possible technical measures to protect and improve the productivity of the 3M stock of Atlantic cod, Gadus morhua. The objective of this paper is to study possible protection measures related to the temporal and spatial closures of fishing activity. Analysis of historical maturity data indicates that the spawning time of 3M cod occurs during the first quarter of the year and that it is when 65% of the annual cod catch is made. The catch per unit of effort (CPUE) has generally higher values in this season than in the rest of the year and the mean length of caught cod in that season is generally above the length at maturity (L50). During this first quarter, trawl fishery activities are concentrated in a small area at the Southwest of the fishing ground, but, as our data comes from the fishery, we cannot conclude that this is the only spawning area as we have not information about cod activity in the rest of the area in that season. For all these reasons, it is concluded that a spawning closure of Flemish Cap cod fishery during the first quarter of the year may be a suitable measure to protect and improve the productivity of 3M cod stock.
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