Description: Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) is defined as those waters and substrate necessary to fish for spawning, breeding, feeding, or growth to maturity (16 U.S.C. 1802(10)). Waters include aquatic areas and their associated physical, chemical, and biological properties that are used by fish and may include aquatic areas historically used by fish where appropriate; substrate includes sediment, hard bottom, structures underlying the waters, and associated biological communities; necessary means the habitat required to support a sustainable fishery and the managed species' contribution to a healthy ecosystem; and spawning, breeding, feeding, or growth to maturity covers a species' full life cycle. This particular layer represents an overlay of EFH polygons for numerous species. The Nature Conservancy obtained individual EFH layers from NOAA. This layer does not represent EFH for individual species but rather the number of overlapping EFH in any given location. The following species are included:American Plaice, Atlantic Cod, Atlantic Halibut, Atlantic Herring, Atlantic Sea Scallop, Atlantic Wolffish, Barndoor Skate, Black Sea Bass, Bluefish, Butterfish, Clearnose Skate, Haddock, Little Skate, Longfin Inshore Squid, Mackerel, Monkfish, Northern Shortfin Squid, Ocean Pout, Offshore Hake, Pollock, Quahog, Redfish, Red Crab, Red Hake, Rosette Skate, Scup, Silver Hake, Smooth Skate, Spiny Dogfish, Surfclam, Summer Flounder, Tilefish, Thorny Skate, White Hake, Windowpane Flounder, Winter Flounder, Winter Skate, Witch Flounder, and Yellowtail Flounder.
Definition Expression: N/A
Copyright Text: NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service; The Nature Conservancy