The management of spiny dogfish in the Atlantic is shared by the Mid-Atlantic and New England Fishery Management Councils (federal waters) and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (state waters). Because the state fishery management plan sometimes differs from the federal plan, conflicting regulations (e.g. seasonal closures and quotas) can cause confusion among spiny dogfish fishermen. The Councils are working on amending the fishery management plan to help align federal regulations with state regulations, which will simplify management up and down the Atlantic coast.
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LAUNCH THE MAPAtlantic Spiny Dogfish
Squalus acanthias
ALSO KNOWN AS:
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Dogfish shark, Cape dogfish, Spring dogfish, Spiked dogfish, Grayfish, Spur dog, Picked dogfish
SOURCE:
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U.S. wild-caught from Maine to North Carolina
STATUS
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POPULATION
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FISHING RATE
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HABITAT IMPACTS
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BYCATCH
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OVERVIEW
A spiny dogfish tagged as part of the Spiny Dogfish Cooperative Research Tagging Study.
LAUNCH GALLERYSpiny dogfish was once considered an “underutilized” species with relatively minor value to the domestic fisheries of the U.S. East Coast. As more traditional groundfish resources declined, and as international markets opened due to a rapid decline in European dogfish stocks, some U.S. commercial fishermen started fishing for dogfish. From 1987 to 1996, harvests increased nearly 10-fold. Most fishermen targeted larger—primarily female—dogfish. This disproportionate removal of mature female dogfish led to a significant decline in the population. By 1998, scientists found the spiny dogfish stock had fallen below the minimum level determined to be sustainable.
To reverse this decline and rebuild the stock, managers established an annual catch limit at a level that would rebuild the stock and limited how much dogfish a fishermen could harvest during a single fishing trip. They set this limit low enough to discourage a directed fishery for dogfish, and harvests subsequently decreased dramatically. In 2010, NOAA Fisheries announced that the spiny dogfish stock was rebuilt. As a result, managers have now increased catch limits for the dogfish fishery. Higher catch limits provide greater opportunities for fishermen in the dogfish fishery, and for others who supplement their groundfish income by catching dogfish.
Spiny dogfish are also found and harvested in the North Pacific Ocean. See Pacific spiny dogfish.
Looking Ahead
This Just In
LOCATION & HABITAT
Spiny dogfish are found in the North Atlantic and North Pacific Oceans, mostly in the temperate and subarctic areas. In the Northwest Atlantic, they are found from Labrador to Florida and are most abundant between Nova Scotia and Cape Hatteras. Spiny dogfish live inshore and offshore, usually near the bottom but also in mid-water and at the surface. They’re often found in enclosed bays and estuaries.
Spiny dogfish swim in large schools and migrate seasonally, with changes in water temperature. Much of the population travels north in the spring and summer and south in the fall and winter. Some spiny dogfish remain in northern waters throughout the year and move offshore during the winter.
BIOLOGY
Like all sharks, dogfish grow slowly, mature late in life, and live a long time (35 to 40 years). Female spiny dogfish grow larger and mature later than males—they’re first able to reproduce at age 12 and they grow up to 4 feet (compared to males at 6 years and 3.3 feet). Spiny dogfish spawn in winter in offshore waters. Females have between two and 12 eggs per spawning season. The eggs are fertilized internally and, after a gestation period of 18 to 24 months, female dogfish bear live young (an average of six pups).
Spiny dogfish are top-level predators. They are opportunistic feeders, preying on whatever is most available. Smaller dogfish tend to feed primarily on crustaceans, while larger individuals like to eat jellyfish and schooling fish. Although they have venom-delivering spines on each of their two dorsal fins, spiny dogfish are preyed upon by cod, red hake, goosefish, other spiny dogfish, larger sharks, seals, and orcas.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Spiny dogfish are slim, with a narrow, pointed snout and characteristic white spots. They have two dorsal fins with ungrooved large spines and are colored grey above and white below. Males grow up to 3.3 feet, and females grow up to 4 feet.
OVERVIEW
Scientists from NOAA’s Northeast Fisheries Science Center conduct trawl surveys to assess the abundance of spiny dogfish.
POPULATION STATUS
Spiny dogfish was classified as overfished in 1998 due to declines in mature female dogfish, the result of over-harvesting. Managers implemented strict regulations to rebuild the stock. The amount of mature females (spawning stock biomass) has begun to increase over the past few years. Scientists recently found that spiny dogfish spawning stock now exceeds the target level and is rebuilt. However, they project spawning biomass will decline somewhat in the coming years due to the low number of pups born during the 1990s when spiny dogfish were heavily fished.
ADDITIONAL RESEARCH
The spiny dogfish management plan allows managers to set aside a small percentage of the annual catch for research. Proceeds from the sale of this set-aside catch are used to fund research on the spiny dogfish resource and fishery. This research set-aside program encourages cooperative research between commercial fishing vessels and scientists to further the understanding of our nation’s fisheries.
In January 2011, NOAA's Northeast Fisheries Science Center launched a cooperative initiative to tag spiny dogfish in the Gulf of Maine, Southern New England, and Georges Bank. This project is designed to answer longstanding questions about stock structure, movement patterns, and life history to update and improve dogfish stock assessments.
Harvesting Spiny Dogfish
Some gillnet vessels target Atlantic spiny dogfish, mainly in state waters, but they're mostly caught as bycatch in gillnet and longline fisheries for groundfish species. They're also sometimes harvested as bycatch in trawl fisheries for groundfish.
Trawls can impact habitat, depending on where they are used. Managers have implemented a variety of measures for groundfish trawl fisheries to protect habitat, including closing some areas to fishing and modifying fishing gear to reduce contact with habitat. Trawl and gillnet fisheries for groundfish can incidentally catch other fish and marine mammals (whales, harbor porpoises, etc.); restrictions on gear and fishing effort in these fisheries limit these interactions.
Management
Who’s in charge?NOAA Fisheries; the Mid-Atlantic and New England Fishery Management Councils and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission
Current regulations: Spiny Dogfish Fishery Management Plan
- Annual catch limit, allotted between two quota periods that divide up the fishing year.
- Limit on the amount fishermen can harvest during one fishing trip to control the catch rate.
- Fishermen must have a permit to harvest spiny dogfish.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission implemented the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Spiny Dogfish in state waters, establishing complementary regulations to the federal ones.
Annual Harvest
Over 12.6 million pounds of spiny dogfish were harvested in the Atlantic in 2010. Over half of the harvest was landed in Massachusetts.
Economy
Although domestic demand for spiny dogfish is low, the U.S. commercial fishery supplies European markets that use dogfish for fish and chips in England and as a popular beer garden snack called shillerlocken in Germany. There is also a small scientific fishery in Maine, which uses spiny dogfish to study several of the species’ unique biological characteristics. For example, studies of dogfish rectal glands help scientists better understand the function of human kidneys. Dogfish also secrete a compound called squalamine, which has strong antibiotic characteristics and shows promise as an anti-cancer agent.
Recreational
Recreational fishermen only catch spiny dogfish when their preferred target species are unavailable. Recreational fishing only accounts for 3 to 4 percent of total landings. No regulations apply to recreational catch.
OVERVIEW
Caught in fisheries in Canada, Iceland, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States, spiny dogfish has a sweet, mild flavor and a higher oil content than mako or other sharks. It has a flaky yet firm texture. The raw meat is white. The outer flesh can have a reddish color, which turns brown when cooked. The rest of the meat remains white when cooked.
Dogfish meat should have a faintly sweet smell and, although a slight metallic odor is acceptable, it should not smell like ammonia. Sharks lack a traditional urinary tract, so they concentrate urea in their blood and excrete it through their skin. As soon as a dogfish is caught, it must be gutted, bled, and chilled. Otherwise, the urea remains in the flesh (evidenced by an ammonia smell within 24 hours). (Seafood Business, 2011) 
SEASONAL AVAILABILITY
Year-round
NUTRITION
Shark is a low-fat source of protein and is high in selenium and vitamins B6 and B12. Shark may contain amounts of methylmercury in excess of the FDA’s recommended limit for nursing moms, moms-to-be, and young children. For more information, see EPA and FDA advice on what you need to know about mercury in fish and shellfish.
| Servings | 1 |
| Serving Weight | 100 g (raw) |
| Calories | 130 |
| Protein | 20.98 g |
| Fat, total | 4.51 g |
| Saturated fatty acids, total | 0.925 g |
| Carbohydrate | 0 g |
| Sugars, total | 0 g |
| Fiber, total dietary | 0 g |
| Cholesterol | 51 mg |
| Selenium | 36.5 mcg |
| Sodium | 79 mcg |
Atlantic Spiny Dogfish Table of Nutrition
