Striped Bass Size Limits

[Billfish715]

Virginia Setting Max Size for Striped Bass! This appeared on another state's message board. Search around and you'll find it. I didn't think Gerry would want me to post the site but if you like striper fishing and check other "online" sites, you'll find it.

Anyhow, Virginia evidently will implement a mandatory maximum size limit to protect their (our) future striped bass fishery. Mind you, Virginia is the only state to mandate a maximum size limit.........so far. The message board is lighting up with comments from Virginia fishermen. Needless to say, the "minimum" size limits in neighboring Maryland are much different.

It's an interesting concept especially since Virginia takes pride in its "citation" striped bass fishery. I think the program was just dumped on the fishermen by the Virginia secretary of Natural Resources. It's causing quite a stir. Keep an eye on it. It might be coming to a state near you!

[Jigman13]

Slot 'em! Let the big girls go!

[WhaleFart]

This is one step in the right direction, we must protect this resource and fishery

[tjd24]

Slot 'em! Let the big girls go!

Couldn't agree more....take a pic & let 'em go.

[Skolmann]

Step in the right direction IMHO.

[june181901]

I am all for it! Want my great grandchildren to be able to catch them.

[Billfish715]

If I read the Virginia information correctly, it applied to striped bass over 36 inches. There were comments about the higher quality of eggs produced by "trophy" bass since the eggs were larger, thicker and more likely to have a better chance to develop. Allowing anglers to take a couple of smaller slot fish, a dozen or more years ago, has gone a long way towards restoring a healthy fishery. Some will disagree. However, just because everyone is not catching them or that they only hang around for awhile along the beach doesn't mean the bass population is not healthy. Many stripers pass by N.J. far beyond the three mile limit on their way north and south. We do need to be cautious of how many cows we harvest and how we release the rest or we will see a steady decline of any striped bass. It's a lesson the Federal Regulators can learn about the fluke we catch. Encouraging the harvest of too many big fish can only hurt the situation.

[Jigman13]

2 fish 24-32" per day. Big girls taste like crap anyway. Smaller ones are much better table fare.

[hammer4reel]

Def a step in the right direction.
Hopefully other states follow

[Capt John]

2 fish 24-32" per day. Big girls taste like crap anyway. Smaller ones are much better table fare.

Totally agree...

[Gumada]

When we had the slot, it was deemed “too confusing”. :confused:

[june181901]

By releasing any redfish over 28 inches I believe that is what saved that fishery down in the Gulf of Mexico. Perhaps it could help save the striper. Just have to determine what the cutoff size would be.

[Rubberhead]

Hard to revive a fish with a 12/0 treble hook in its gullet. That is all.

[AndyS]

I saw striper photos from down there and the people were holding what looked like 18" striped bass for the cooler.

[Finprof]

I saw striper photos from down there and the people were holding what looked like 18" striped bass for the cooler.
In Chesapeake Bay the minimum size is 19 inches and the limit is 2 fish per day with only one over 28 inches. Chesapeake Bay is a striped bass nursery. The small fish grow there until they are large enough to swim up to Cape Cod for the summer.

[tjd24]

I saw striper photos from down there and the people were holding what looked like 18" striped bass for the cooler.

Last March I made 2 trips on the Roanoke River in NC for stripers. Regs allowed 2 bass per day @ 18" with 1 of those over 27". Two of us caught 60+ and 40+ respectively each day. Released all.

[Billfish715]

Social Media got ahead of this one. Here's an article which explains it further.
There is an affirmation of the decline in the striped bass stocks and that the decline is a coastal concern and not localized to Virginia.



Home Sports Outdoors

Outdoors
Where are the rockfish? Virginia looks to enact tighter striped bass regulations

By Lee Tolliver
Staff writer
Jan 11, 2019 Updated 1 hr ago


After years of chatter about the declining population of striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay, the state is looking at tightening its regulations for upcoming seasons.

At Wednesday's Finfish Management Advisory Committee, it was announced that the Secretary of Natural Resources has suggested looking at alternatives to current length and bag limits for one of the state's most popular gamefish.

During the recent Chesapeake Bay fall season, anglers could keep two fish a day between 20 and 28 inches, although one fish could be longer than 28. Dozens of fish longer than 40 inches, considered prime breeding stock by biologists, were harvested last fall — far fewer than previous seasons.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission "striped bass committee will look at the stock assessment and consider any changes to regulation when it meets in February, but those changes wouldn't come into play until 2020," said Secretary of Natural Resources Matthew J. Strickler, a recreation angler with a master's degree in marine science from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.

"We think we should be more proactive and get something in place that will help this tremendous fishery recover."

The commission's preliminary stock assessment for a fishery that extends well up the northeastern coast isn't good. It appears the species is being overfished by commercial and recreational fishermen. So the agency likely would implement tighter restrictions. A couple decades ago, the fishery had been depleted to the point where the agency issued a moratorium on fishing for striped bass.

At Wednesday's advisory meeting, there appeared to be some misunderstanding as to what the secretary was asking for, and social media blew up with talk that he had ordered the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to make changes.

"That is totally incorrect," said Steve Bowman, commissioner of the VMRC. "The secretary and I have talked about striped bass because, obviously from what we're seeing and hearing, the population isn't what it should be.

"Has he ordered a directive? Absolutely not."

A major point of concern for Virginia's anglers would be to have the state work with Maryland fisheries managers so that regulations are equal between the states that share the bay's rockfish population. Bowman gave assurances that the conversation would begin soon. In the meantime, the advisory committee was tasked with coming up with the best possible solution pleasing the most anglers while still meeting the call for changes.

One idea being supported by anglers on Facebook is to adopt size and bag limits similar to those that prevent the taking of big red drum. Since new rules were enacted a couple decades ago, the species has made a remarkable comeback and the population of big trophy fish easily could serve as a benchmark for regulatory success.

Anglers in Virginia can keep three drum a day between 18 and 26 inches. All others must be released. Anglers can earn an award in Virginia for released fish measuring longer than 46 inches. Last year, Virginia waters produced 864 reds that met that standard. In contrast, state waters produced only 192 striped bass that met a 40-pound keeper minimum last year.

The last really good striper season was in 2012, when 906 fish of 40 pounds or more were caught, and 425 measuring at least 44 inches were released.

"We want our pros and the advisory committee to give us some ideas so that we can present them to the angling public to help this fishery," Bowman said. "We want to be proactive and protect this very important fish."

[Billfish715]

Last March I made 2 trips on the Roanoke River in NC for stripers. Regs allowed 2 bass per day @ 18" with 1 of those over 27". Two of us caught 60+ and 40+ respectively each day. Released all.

That fishery is the only show in town in Roanoke Rapids. The stripers certainly do spawn there and the confines of the upper river hold lots of small 12-18 inch bass that eventually drop out and into the estuaries. You'll see all kinds of fishing techniques used there, including and often preferred, live bait rigs.

[pectoralfin]

I agree that a slot fishery would be good for the fish and us. But only if the commercials are held to the same size limits as we are. It just annoys the crap out of me that we have to release a fish that someone else can kill.

[bunkatabunka]

Absolutely would be all for this. Sick and tired of the hero shots at the dock with multiple 40 pound dead stripers laid out, that we all know taste like crap and are big breeders. Enough's enough. Take care of the fishery or one day there won't be one.

[Capt. Lou]

Finally someone down there got a brain , big step in right direction ! Practice CPR easily done then ever today !!

[AndyS]

You will still see the charter boats "limits with bass to 50 lbs, c'mon down, spend $$$$$$"

[NoLimit]

Absolutely would be all for this. Sick and tired of the hero shots at the dock with multiple 40 pound dead stripers laid out, that we all know taste like crap and are big breeders. Enough's enough. Take care of the fishery or one day there won't be one.

We release all females that are not spawned out but after that, they taste fine plus guess what. The reason there are not too many big fish is because they die of old age. Why does everyone think taking old fish for the table is a sin? Everyone passes on young bucks and does - its the same thing to a great degree.

[Capt. Lou]

Most don't release big fish , and your to be commended for doing so. In my view the issue is majority keep and kill bigger fish for their clients , it's a business model that should change for the good of all affiliated with this business .

[bulletbob]

We release all females that are not spawned out but after that, they taste fine plus guess what. The reason there are not too many big fish is because they die of old age. Why does everyone think taking old fish for the table is a sin? Everyone passes on young bucks and does - its the same thing to a great degree.

I have my doubts.. Die of old age?... Some I imagine, but probably not as many as you think.. Don't forget, the pressure you see in the Raritan/Sandy Hook complex plus Upper Bay/NY Harbor is only part of the equation.. those bass are hunted relentlessly throughout the entire Hudson River all the way up to Albany..

The area from the Tappan Zee up past Kingston gets hammered all spring long, and support lots of charter captains that fish hard for them daily with customers from all over the North East.. Striped Bass get pummeled during spawning and if guys keep taking the big ones, its only a matter of time before there simply won't be a lot of big ones, or little ones for that matter.. Many guys here weren't around in the 70's and 80's.. There were NO striped bass to be caught for most except a few experts that knew when and how...It can happen again with the pressure put on those fish.. Years ago, most anglers in April and May were fishing for Winter Flounder, Ling,Whiting, Mackeral and Blackfish,, Now Striper are the only thing around in numbers, and they get hit very hard.. Throw the big ones back, keep a 10 pounder to eat... bob

[WESTWIND]

Many who release the big bass don't take the time to fully revive them. If caught on light tackle can take up to 10 minutes. A few yrs back when there was an incredible bite in the Seaside Heights area, a diver told me the bottom was littered with large dead bass....

[Capt.Yasar]

Some thoughts:

1) Having slot limits will save breeders and small fish which will eventually generate enough slot fish for people to catch and release OR take home for dinner. I hope we can have a slot fish limits of 2 fish 28" to 38" (OR whatever experts agree on).

1) Our minds are trained to be proud of catching BIG Fish which is okay IMHO for CPR (no killing). Our tournaments give prizes to killing BIG fish which should change. Tournament organizers may change rules to discouraging the killing of BIG fish. For example the winners may be having a 2 fish combined weight (one between 28" to 38" (example), and one bonus fish with tag). The one with heaviest 2 fish within the slot could be winner.

As someone mentioned above people should train themselves for reviving and releasing the big breeder fish. There maybe youtube videos on how to carefully revive and release a fish.

And then there is a question on commercial fishing in loads what recreation fishermen try to save one fish at a time...:(

Just my 2 cents.

[abbashaya]

Totally agree.. any fish over 34 inches should be set free to fight another day!

[Aaron_Jasper]

This is a tough one. The number of spawning female fish is far below the threshold set in the Striped Bass Restoration Act. It’s past a slot limit. That would have been a great option three through five years ago when the fishery started to decline. The latest stock assessment data is up on the NOAA site. The fishery needs “fish.” I know that sounds simple, but the small fish are not making it to maturity. The attachments will show what is taking place. We need to give the fish a break for a few years ie let them swim. The irony here is that the ASMFC and NOAA both worked to make this fishery what it was in the late 90’s up until 2011 when things started to go south, however there was no stopgap to prevent what happened in the last three years.

[reason162]

It’s past a slot limit. That would have been a great option three through five years ago when the fishery started to decline.

Yeah, the notion of not one but two daily slot fish limits...wayyy past that point.

[Aaron_Jasper]

For all of the enjoyment people get out of catching those fish, it’s almost a “karma” thing to let them go for a while. Yes regulations are what they are, however that does mean someone has to keep the limit every time. It’s a decision.

It’s good to see all of the ideas. With the numbers in real decline and no magic schools past the 3 mile line, keeping fish in the population is the only way to make it work.

The fishing in the Hudson for the spawning fish and the culling that goes on there is terrible and a is the slaughter that’s been taking place off of BI and MTK all summer. The inputs are not equaling the outputs and that’s the problem.

This is maybe a few years from going to the 1980’s.

[Capt Sal]

Just plain WRONG!!Just an opinion from a person that thinks he knows. Fact is there are a tremendous amount of striped bass outside the three mile line.Fact-Most private boat owners that fish a lot for stripers are into catch and release.People that go on a head boat or charter once or twice a season want a few fish to eat and will keep there limit and they should.I believe in conservation my friend but do not think or preach the striped bass industry is a few years away from being like the eighties.That is total nonsense.

[hammer4reel]

Just plain WRONG!!Just an opinion from a person that thinks he knows. Fact is there are a tremendous amount of striped bass outside the three mile line.Fact-Most private boat owners that fish a lot for stripers are into catch and release.People that go on a head boat or charter once or twice a season want a few fish to eat and will keep there limit and they should.I believe in conservation my friend but do not think or preach the striped bass industry is a few years away from being like the eighties.That is total nonsense.

Normally I would agree with you ,as our thinking is the same on most aspects of striper fishing .

But the proof of lack of fish staging into their breeding areas is showing a drastic decline.
I agree many fish pass us outside the 3 mile line.
But the bass are getting crushed east of us for 5 months and south of us for 4 months.
The slaughter of egg filled breeders in VA is unreal again due to a warmer winter .
And I like they want to decrease the amount of large breeders .
Having a constant breeding stock will allow more smaller slot fish to be taken without hurting future stocks .

Now if we could just push the bunker boats off the beach a few miles we could have the fishery back we had just 5 years ago.

.

[reason162]

Fact is there are a tremendous amount of striped bass outside the three mile line.

Ah, the BS mythical offshore bass run.

Where's your evidence of this abundance?

[hammer4reel]

Ah, the BS mythical offshore bass run.

Where's your evidence of this abundance?

It’s not mythical .
Because the bunker boats constantly deplete a lot of the inshore bunker schools in the spring many fish stay on the bigger schools of bunker off the beach.

Many more fish take that route every fall unless we get a good bait run down the beach

[Aaron_Jasper]

Capt Sal

I have to ask the questio, how do you know there are so many fish out there? Are you fishing for them? Or do you go with the, “we are fishing for bluefish” excuse?

I was at striped day and I can tell you that there was no one there saying that the fishery is NOT in trouble. I was surprised by it. These fish are valuable, not only for Sportfishing, but also for the charter boat fleet as well.

When the charter boats keep on taking boat limits of fish multiple times a day, all they are doing is putting themselves out of business. It is not a sustainable business model as the fish do not fall out of trees at 30 plus pounds.

If you would like the PDF of the latest stock assessment send an e mail to aaron@westbranchholdings.com I will be more than happy to send it to you or anyone on the forum who would like to read it.

[barbarian]

I'll back Sal up, I've fished with him many times and have had many memorable trips landing cows. The stripers are so thick past 3 mile you can walk on the water steaming out the blackfish grounds. It's a little late now but they were there week between Christmas and New Years. I don't want to be rude your PDF's are Fake News, I'm trying hard to be stigma free and inclusive.

Good Luck with your pdf's....

[reason162]

I don't want to be rude your PDF's are Fake News

Lol we're doomed.

[reason162]

It’s not mythical .
Because the bunker boats constantly deplete a lot of the inshore bunker schools in the spring many fish stay on the bigger schools of bunker off the beach.

Many more fish take that route every fall unless we get a good bait run down the beach

I was referring to the mythical offshore bass population that people love to fantasize about...the teeming schools 20-30 miles offshore all the way to the canyon that plague any discussion of conservation whenever the topic comes up.

In other words, if the surveys show weak numbers...it's because bass are congregating out in the blue yonder, no need to panic (or reduce the take)!

If Sal was just talking about 3 miles, apologies. Those fish obviously exist, and get pounded by unscrupulous boaters who drift in and out of the marker.

[Capt Sal]

Ah, the BS mythical offshore bass run.

Where's your evidence of this abundance?

Been there done that saw them.It is fact.Many charter boats run into them on the way out to the tuna grounds.I have also did you?If you never leave Raritan Bay you will not see this.

[Capt Sal]

Capt Sal

I have to ask the questio, how do you know there are so many fish out there? Are you fishing for them? Or do you go with the, “we are fishing for bluefish” excuse?

I was at striped day and I can tell you that there was no one there saying that the fishery is NOT in trouble. I was surprised by it. These fish are valuable, not only for Sportfishing, but also for the charter boat fleet as well.

When the charter boats keep on taking boat limits of fish multiple times a day, all they are doing is putting themselves out of business. It is not a sustainable business model as the fish do not fall out of trees at 30 plus pounds.

If you would like the PDF of the latest stock assessment send an e mail to aaron@westbranchholdings.com I will be more than happy to send it to you or anyone on the forum who would like to read it.

Maybe we should ban charter boats?Bluefish excuse?NO! That hurts the PB boats because if they have one striper in the box they can not cross the three mile line and chase bluefish.

[Capt Sal]

[QUOTE=hammer4reel;523940]Normally I would agree with you ,as our thinking is the same on most aspects of striper fishing .

But the proof of lack of fish staging into their breeding areas is showing a drastic decline.
I agree many fish pass us outside the 3 mile line.
But the bass are getting crushed east of us for 5 months and south of us for 4 months.
The slaughter of egg filled breeders in VA is unreal again due to a warmer winter .
And I like they want to decrease the amount of large breeders .
Having a constant breeding stock will allow more smaller slot fish to be taken without hurting future stocks .

Now if we could just push the bunker boats off the beach a few miles we could have the fishery back we had just 5 years ago.

.[Striper fishing changes year to year.The great June run you guys use to have every year is undependable.This spring may bass went straight up the Hudson and did not stage in Raritan as good as some years.Bunker has alot to do with it.I also believe in conservation.The fact is the limit has been reduced!It was two bass 28'' or better plus a trophy tag.Three bass per person is way to much.

[Aaron_Jasper]

Captain Sal

The limit is still up to three per person.

Regarding the three mile line, if you are targeting striped bass it is what it is.

I mean look at the bluefish populations, when I was a kid they were a nuisance, now you hope to see them in good numbers. Do you think a 10-15 fish per day, per man has anything to do with their scarcity?

The fact is there are are far less bass now than there were 8-10 years ago.

Everyone needs to make sacrifices now or its going to be really rough in the not too distant future. A keeper size striped bass just does not come out of the air. Party and Charter boats need to stop trying to shift blame to commercial fishing and take some responsibility along with the average angler as to the decline we are seeing over the last nearly ten years.

[Capt Sal]

Captain Sal

The limit is still up to three per person.

Regarding the three mile line, if you are targeting striped bass it is what it is.

I mean look at the bluefish populations, when I was a kid they were a nuisance, now you hope to see them in good numbers. Do you think a 10-15 fish per day, per man has anything to do with their scarcity?

The fact is there are are far less bass now than there were 8-10 years ago.

Everyone needs to make sacrifices now or its going to be really rough in the not too distant future. A keeper size striped bass just does not come out of the air. Party and Charter boats need to stop trying to shift blame to commercial fishing and take some responsibility along with the average angler as to the decline we are seeing over the last nearly ten years.
No bonus tags in the spring.How many ''overs'' 43' stripers did you get in Raritan Bay?? At times not often it would be possible to take three stripers but rare.As i have said before i am all or conservation but please get the facts. Blaming charter and party boats for the decline in the striper population is wrong.

[AndyS]

The slaughter of egg filled breeders in VA is unreal again due to a warmer winter

Hasn't stopped snowing "down there". Manasquan river has ice on it ???

[Billfish715]

Hi Andy, The words "egg-filled breeders" got me thinking about the issue from a different angle. True, the striped bass are fished for and caught over hundreds of miles of coastline on their migration north and south. They are sold at market in many states and their tasty flesh keeps them in high demand. Adding to the commercial harvesters we then include the recreational anglers who all add to the total tonnage of dead fish. Even though I know it's not true, maybe the stripers have figured out that it's better to migrate farther off the beach where they can be safer.

The "egg-filled" breeders do not pass our way north on their way from Virginia, North Carolina and Maryland. Yes, they do migrate from the south in the spring but they have already spawned in the rivers where they spend the winter. Many, if not most, of the bass we catch in the spring are Hudson River bass and those that winter over in the N.Y. Bight. Raritan Bay and the Shrewsbury Rocks areas are staging grounds for them prior to their spawning.

We can't control what happens to the fish in Virginia and North Carolina and Maryland (Where size limits are much more liberal than ours are). Those states have to realize the effect their laws and regulations have not only on their own fisheries but on ours as well. N.J. anglers only put a slight dent in the "egg filled" breeders that pass by. We have to be most concerned with the fish that call our area "home". The harvest of large females in the Hudson River and Raritan Bay should be at the top of our discussion about regulating striped bass.

We need the help from all of the states along the seaboard especially those in the traditional spawning areas. The numbers of bass that are procreated in our area is only a portion of the entire population of all striped bass but that is still a large number. They have to be protected, even if it means changing some of the existing regulations for our spring run. Many of the anglers who catch a big spring striper even know that it is probably a female with eggs until it's on the cleaning table. Very few Saturday Morning Fishermen will ever release a ripe "hen" and herein lies the problem. Unless there are some regulations in place, WE may be causing our own demise.

There are ways to reduce the mortality numbers that might include the use of landing nets only, circle hooks, limited spring seasons, extending the coastal limits for bunker reduction boats, eliminating the sale of wild striped bass in neighboring states, an established quota for availability of trophy tags, the sale of a limited amount of tags for "trophy bass" (over 42"), increased efforts to inventory the number of harvested trophy bass.

I'm sure there are more and I'm sure this will spark some resentment, but if we keep killing the breeders that live in our waters, we'll be destroying all of the good that helped restore the striped bass population. If Virginia and North Carolina and Maryland clean their own houses, we can all benefit, but for now, let's take care of our own house.

[Capt Sal]

[QU E

The "egg-filled" breeders do not pass our way north on their way from Virginia, North Carolina and Maryland. Yes, they do migrate from the south in the spring but they have already spawned in the rivers where they spend the winter. Many, if not most, of the bass we catch in the spring are Hudson River bass and those that winter over in the N.Y. Bight. Raritan Bay and the Shrewsbury Rocks areas are staging grounds for them prior to theiHudson River and Raritan Bay should be at the top of our discussion about regulating striped [/QUOTE]

The Hudson Striper may go up the river in the fall and winter over until they spawn but do not hold over the winter in the NY Bight.Many Hudson fish winter over off Virginia and NC.When they come up the beach in the spring and are full of eggs they are Hudson fish.The bass oeanside in June after spawning are Chessy bass.The bass hanging round the NY bight in June and July are usually Hudson fish.

.

[Aaron_Jasper]

Capt Sal

We can go back and forth all day and no where did I blame the charter and party boats. However, there are party and charter boats in certain areas of NY that beat up on the fish for an insane amount of time.

I think the recreation catch should be regulated the same as the commercial catch. There should be some way these boats report their catches and a formula used to compute some quota system to ensure the fish are not being overfished as we have found out they are in the latest stock assessment.

What it all comes down to at the end of the day is how much do we value the resource? I have twins that just turned one on the 16th of January and I want to do my part to make sure the fishery is in good shape for them. The sad part is that some interests do not align with long term goals, which should be the goal of everyone. it should not be a nearsighted game at this point. People know too much and too many fishermen and women including myself have seen this fishery make a comeback. What we had in the late 90's through 2012 was nothing short of amazing. Of course there were some bright spots and amazing fishing even this year, however, the data is not wrong. The science backs up the "scattered" pockets of good fishing that we have had. The fall run used to last from September through January, now its a month at best with scattered action on both ends.

[Short Cast]

The True reason for their decline is WE DON'T LEARN FROM OUR MISTAKES.
the reason stripers get hammered in the spring & fall is there is noting else to fish for. We start with stripers in the spring and everybody fishes for them. Then we wait for fluke to open and everyone fished for them and when that closes we all go back too stripers. Does anyone see a pattern here? way back when, and I'm going to show my age, we use to fish for Flounder, Cod, Whiting, ling and mackerel, they are all but gone. I remember being able to pick up whiting off the beach after a storm. and they would fish for them at the Long Branch pier all winter. I caught large 12" Boston mackerel and not just one or two, on a commercial pier in Erie Basin in Brooklyn using a browed pole from a longshoreman who got tired of catching them during lunch hour. My dad us to tell me of catching boat loads of tuna at what turned out to be 17 fathoms.
What happened to all these fish WE (both commercial & recreational fisherman) killed them all. The great Atlantic giveaway to the foreign fishing fleets didn't help either.

The problem is pressure, back then it was spread out over several different fisheries and none of them got overfished. You can't have everyone fishing for the same fish at the same time and expect them to survive. We have to rebuild ALL the fisheries at the same time. Right now we have a whole group of different agencies trying to control all the fisheries and all of them setting different regulations all for their own benefit, and they could care less about the other guys sharing the ocean. Right now we are just like the government in Washington we can't do anything together, everybody is out for themselves.

It's not going to be easy, we have to learn to work together and not just think about ourselves. We are all going to have to take a hit bot do it for the greater good. The problem we all are going to have is getting it thru the heads of all these self appointed management experts that you can't learn everything about fishery management by kissing someone's ass so you can get appointed to a nice high paid government position where it is not what you know but who you know that counts. Look at New Jersey, we keep voting in the same bunch of clowns every election. Sometimes we get what we deserve.

I hope this can change, but we will see.

[Capt Sal]

Capt Sal

We can go back and forth all day and no where did I blame the charter and party boats. However, there are party and charter boats in certain areas of NY that beat up on the fish for an insane amount of time.

I think the recreation catch should be regulated the same as the commercial catch. There should be some way these boats report their catches and a formula used to compute some quota system to ensure the fish are not being overfished as we have found out they are in the latest stock assessment.

What it all comes down to at the end of the day is how much do we value the resource? I have twins that just turned one on the 16th of January and I want to do my part to make sure the fishery is in good shape for them. The sad part is that some interests do not align with long term goals, which should be the goal of everyone. it should not be a nearsighted game at this point. People know too much and too many fishermen and women including myself have seen this fishery make a comeback. What we had in the late 90's through 2012 was nothing short of amazing. Of course there were some bright spots and amazing fishing even this year, however, the data is not wrong. The science backs up the "scattered" pockets of good fishing that we have had. The fall run used to last from September through January, now its a month at best with scattered action on both ends.
The fact of the matter is this-Charter boats are bragging they ''limited out''.That means one fish per person.In Raritan Bay there are not too many''overs''43''being caught.Compare that to the 2000 era!There are way more private boats that charter boats now as compared to twenty years ago.The Party Boats don't even make a dent in the striper population because they can not troll with that amount of people.Some so called ''charter'' boats can only take two or three anglers on there 23' or 25' pleasure boats.They are not out every day and do not take tons of fish.The stocks may be down but so are the limits.Just read the posts but read between the lines.I know i was guilty of it myself but dock shots SUCK! A pile of dead fish with there throats cuts is horrible.Take the time to snap a few action pictures and some released fish.

[the directa]

one keeper one short a day that's enough

[Capt Sal]

one keeper one short a day that's enough
It is less than that now.No bonus in the spring ad very few bass over 43''. As i have posted before ''WE LIMITED OUT" means one fish per customer.I am not an advocate of keeping more stripers but keep it reasonable. Enjoy the day and take home a nice 32'' bass for dinner. The days of filling the freezer and supplying the neighbors are over.

[Skolmann]

The days of filling the freezer and supplying the neighbors are over.

Thankfully

Hopefully the New Jersey/Northeast angler can learn from the example that Florida anglers set with reference to slot size and catch/release with reference to both redfish and snook.