This data set, in the table ALS.ALS_LANDINGS7278 contains annual and monthly quantities and values for all seafood products that are landed within the Southeast Region and sold by established seafood dealers and brokers. It complements the table ALS.ALS_LANDINGS. These types of fishery-dependent data, referred to as the general canvass landings statistics, have been collected by the NOAA Fisheries Service, National Marine Fisheries Service and its predecessor agency, the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries and more recently by our State partner agencies under the Cooperative Statistics Program. These data are available on computer since the early 1960's. The quantities and values that are reported in this data set include the annual and monthly landings that were initiated in 1972. Between 1962 and 1971, the data for were collected annually and not monthly. See the sections on Links for the reference to the annual general canvass landings.

The general canvass landings from 1972-1976 include quantities and values for all marine commercial landings and are identified by species (usually the local or common name). These data are collected from or reported by every seafood dealer or broker that is licensed by each state in the Southeast Region (North Carolina through Texas). Information on the gear and area of capture is available for most of the landings statistics in the data set (please see Issues for exceptions); however, they are summary records and do not contain information on the quantities of fishing effort or identify the fishermen or vessels that caught the fish or shellfish. This table contains data from FL-TX for the years 1972-1976. The ALS.ALS_LANDINGS table contains data for GA-NC for the same period as well as all the more recent monthly data.

In the early years, the data in this data set were collected by field agents employed by the Southeast Fisheries Science Center and assigned to local fishing ports. The field agents canvassed the seafood dealers and recorded the quantity and value for each species or species category from the dealer?s receipts. Based on interviews with dealers and fishermen as well as their own detailed knowledge of the fishing activity in the area, the agents would determine the type of fishing gear and area where the fishing occurred. In addition, summarized data are extracted from the NOAA-SEFSC Gulf Shrimp System for commercial landings of shrimp species that are landed at ports in the coastal area of the Gulf of Mexico.