Scup (Stenotomus chrysops)
Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) for Scup:
- Eggs: EFH is estuaries where scup eggs were identified as
common, abundant, or highly abundant in the ELMR database for the "mixing" and
"seawater" salinity zones. In general scup eggs are found from May through
August in southern New England to coastal Virginia, in waters between 55 and
73 oF and in salinities greater than 15 ppt.
- Larvae: EFH is estuaries where scup were identified as
common, abundant, or highly abundant in the ELMR database for the
"mixing" and "seawater" salinity zones. In general scup larvae are most
abundant nearshore from May through September, in waters between 55 and 73
oF and in salinities greater than 15 ppt.
- Juveniles: 1) Offshore, EFH is the demersal waters over
the Continental Shelf (from the coast out to the limits of the EEZ), from the
Gulf of Maine to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, in the highest 90% of all the
ranked ten-minute squares of the area where juvenile scup are collected in the
NEFSC trawl survey. 2) Inshore, EFH is the estuaries where scup are identified
as being common, abundant, or highly abundant in the ELMR database for the
"mixing" and "seawater" salinity zones. Juvenile scup, in general during the
summer and spring are found in estuaries and bays between Virginia and
Massachusetts, in association with various sands, mud, mussel and eelgrass bed
type substrates and in water temperatures greater than 45 oF and
salinities greater than 15 ppt.
- Adults: 1) Offshore, EFH is the demersal waters over the
Continental Shelf (from the coast out to the limits of the EEZ), from the Gulf
of Maine to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, in the highest 90% of all the
ranked ten-minute squares of the area where adult scup are collected in the
NEFSC trawl survey. 2) Inshore, EFH is the estuaries where scup were
identified as being common, abundant, or highly abundant in the ELMR database
for the "mixing" and "seawater" salinity zones. Generally, wintering adults
(November through April) are usually offshore, south of New York to North
Carolina, in waters above 45 oF.