The scup (''Stenotomus chrysops'') is a

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...

which occurs primarily in the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

from

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

. Along with many other fish of the family

Sparidae The Sparidae are a family of fish in the order Perciformes, commonly called sea breams and porgies. The sheepshead, scup, and red seabream are species in this family. Most sparids are deep-bodied compressed fish with a small mouth separated by a ...

, it is also commonly known as porgy. Scup grow as large as 18 in (450 mm) and weigh 3 to 4 lb (2 kg), but they average 0.5–1.0 lb (0.25–0.50 kg). Scup can live up to 20 years; females can begin to reproduce at the age of two. Every year female scups lay approximately 7,000 eggs in sand and weed abundant areas. In the

Middle Atlantic Bight The Mid-Atlantic Bight is a coastal region running from Massachusetts to North Carolina. It contains the New York Bight. It is separated from the South Atlantic Bight by Cape Hatteras to the south and the Gulf of Maine to the north by Cape Cod ...

, scup spawn along the inner

continental shelf A continental shelf is a portion of a continent that is submerged under an area of relatively shallow water, known as a shelf sea. Much of these shelves were exposed by drops in sea level during glacial periods. The shelf surrounding an island ...

. Their

larvae A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

end up in inshore waters, along the coast and in

estuarine An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...

areas. At two to three years of age, they mature. Scup winter along the mid and outer continental shelf. When the temperature warms in the spring, they migrate inshore. They are fished for by both commercial and recreational fishermen. The scup fishery is one of the oldest in the United States, with records dating back to 1800. Scup was the most abundant fish in colonial times Fishermen began using trawls in 1929, which increased catches dramatically. The species was termed

overfished Overfishing is the removal of a species of fish (i.e. fishing) from a body of water at a rate greater than that the species can replenish its population naturally (i.e. the overexploitation of the fishery's existing fish stock), resulting in the ...

in 1996, and today there is evidence of a rebound. Today, scup are still caught primarily using an

otter trawl Bottom trawling is trawling (towing a trawl, which is a fishing net) along the seafloor. It is also referred to as "dragging". The scientific community divides bottom trawling into benthic trawling and demersal trawling. Benthic trawling is towin ...

Cuisine

The flesh is "firm and flaky", Alan Davidson, ''North Atlantic Seafood'', 1979, , p. 101 with a "sweet almost shrimplike flavor". Many consumers like their light flavor and they are characterized as panfish. Popular methods of cooking include frying, broiling, and baking. Though the flesh is similar to that of more prestigious fish in the

sea bream The Sparidae are a family of fish in the order Perciformes, commonly called sea breams and porgies. The sheepshead, scup, and red seabream are species in this family. Most sparids are deep-bodied compressed fish with a small mouth separated by a ...

family like

daurade ''Acanthopagrus schlegelii'', commonly known as the blackhead seabream, Japanese black porgy or sea bream, is a fish often farmed for food in Japan. It is one of the most popular fishes for game fishing in Japan. The body is ovoid and compresse ...

and

orata The gilt-head (sea) bream (''Sparus aurata''), known as Orata in antiquity and still today in Italy and Tunisia (known as "Dorada" in Spain, "Dourada" in Portugal and "Dorade Royale" in France), is a fish of the bream family Sparidae found in t ...

, the names "scup" and "porgy" are sometimes considered unattractive, leading to culinary names like orata Americana and Montauk sea bream. Its similarity to ''

Pagrus major ''Pagrus major'' or red seabream is a fish species in the family Sparidae. It is also known by its Japanese name, madai. The fish has high culinary and cultural importance in Japan, and is also frequently eaten in Korea and Taiwan. Range an ...

'' and its mild and fatty characteristics makes it suitable for sushi.

Management

Scup are heavily fished commercially and recreationally. Management measures for the species generally include size limits, bag limits, fishing seasons, and equipment requirements. Scup are also managed through quotas that are separately regulated during the different seasons.Scup
''NOAA FishWatch''. Retrieved 5 November 2012. In Massachusetts, management plans result in the distribution of 78% of the yearly permitted harvest of scups for commercial purposes, and 22% for recreational fishing.

Fishing

Since scups are classified as anglers and tackle bait frantically, squid strips are the most common choice of bait because they stay intact and suspended on the hook after several strikes.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2151537 Commercial fish Fish of the Atlantic Ocean Sparidae Fish described in 1766 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus

Cuisine

Management

Fishing

See also

References