A maximum likelihood method is developed for the decomposition of krill density-at-length data into the proportion of recruits in a population sampled by a net haul survey. Preliminary results from a series of five net haul surveys in the South Atlantic and the Indian Ocean sectors of the Southern Ocean give a mean recruitment rate for 1+ krill (the ratio of the number of krill aged one year to the number of krill aged one year and above) of 0.339 with a standard deviation (SD) of 0.100. The corresponding result for recruitment for 2+ krill (the ratio of the number of two-year-old krill to the number aged two and above) from nine surveys is 0.552 with a standard deviation of 0.074. A number of the assumptions needed for reliable results is discussed.