Striped Bass Regs for 2020

[Gerry Zagorski]

So it looks like we are over fishing again and there will be changes recommended to the regulations as a result.. Going through the internal draft stage now and will likely open up for public comment in August.

The stock assessments indicate a decline in the Spawning Stock Biomass which is a leading indicator of what's to come and deemed to be below the predetermined thresholds... In plain English this means there are thought to be not enough spawning Stripers to bring the fishery back to sustainable levels.

The other issue besides the stock assessments that comes into play when setting future regulations are assumed landings. You apply the "Best Science" assumptions which predicts future landings and the regulations are then decided upon that hopefully keep you under your quota and recover the Spawning Stock Biomass to sustainable levels...

Is your head hurting yet :D Are you still with me :confused::confused:

It's assumed the 90% of the recreational fish are caught and released which is the good news. The bad news is they assume a 9% mortality rate (9% die after being released) which is responsible for 49 % removals since the fish are assumed dead and the remaining 51% is what was assumed to be caught and kept/removed.

The 9% mortality rate seems high to me, not sure about others here. I believe it's less since fishermen are a lot more careful about landing and handling Stripers then they used to be... I see very few gut hooked fish partly due to circle hooks and since people are not clamming as much. I've personally revived some big fish I thought we're done only to see them swim away...

Having said that, there are some fairly detailed scientific reports and studies that would dispute my gut feel on this... Like this one https://dnr.maryland.gov/fisheries/Documents/crmortalityresearch.pdf

Not sure where everyone else is on this fishery but one thing I am sure of is we are going to be looking at more stringent regulations in 2020. And, when public comment comes around and the options to keep us in compliance are presented (bag limits, season length, slot fish etc) you need to be prepared to make your voice heard if you want your opinion to count... Belly aching here does not count :p

OK..... let's have it!!

[mjz157]

Good...i'd be all for a moratorium. Things are in very bad shape and close to the point of no return.

[AndyS]

With the amount of dead striped bass photos I see posted on here in the spring I am surprised there any striped bass left at all.

[dfish28]

Whiting,Weakfish,Flounder,Flounder??
Gillnets and Draggers out of the game? hmmmm

[WhaleFart]

I’m an avid surf fisherman and practice c&r for striped bass. It’s been really bad for the last 3 years. I know the fish get pounded in staging areas for pre and post spawn as well as on their migration. To have a chance at a fishery in a decade I would support a complete shut down on stripers and or a 1 slot fish limit. Also support the use of circle or barbless hooks only.

[Skolmann]

Keep taking the big girls out for dock shots and of course there will be a decreased in the breeding population.

[tjd24]

Keep taking the big girls out for dock shots and of course there will be a decreased in the breeding population.

Couldn't agree more.

Never understood why Captains keep the big breeders for a photo op when they rely on these fish to stay in business.

[Skolmann]

Not too many years ago the redfish population from South Carolina to Texas was on the verge of collapse. All this states imposed a strict slot and bag limit on redfish and in a relatively short amount of time the redfish population recovered to record highs levels. The slot limit in and my opinion junction with attitude of angler’s down there of not killing everything they catch-regardless if they are legal size has worked.

[TomKaye]

Agree 100% Skolmann.
Personally, I have taken one 30 something inch striper each month this past April May & June. My cousin is catching them now up in MA.
Have released multiples of same size as well as a couple I believe were over 43". Did not want to measure & stress them anymore.

Anyway, I am not bragging by any means. Maybe a striper moratorium is due. I would certainly abide by same for future fishing generations.
Heard a rumor recently that NC has declared a one year no catch no kill ban on
breeder size fluke. Anyone know details and if any truth to that ?
I can't imagine the damage that would due to our recreational and charter
community.

[WESTWIND]

Making the striper an artificial only fishery for a few years I believe would have a large impact on the biomass...

[hammer4reel]

Im glad to see it.
Stripers are fished for HARD in each and every state they migrate through.
They get less than a 1 month break each year during that migration .
While the hurting on the Chesapeake stock is mainly by states south of us during the winter staging. it would make no sense for them to have stringent regs and then we take them on their way through.

The amount of egg laden cows taken a few months before they spawn is ridicules .
.

hopefully a decent slot limit is imposed and the rebound is quick.
But with the way all our fisheries are managed im not holding my breath.

would be nice to see each and every fish protected during their spawning times, by both commercial and recreational fisherman
.

[OH HENRY II]

Losing the over 43" keeper would probably be beneficial

[AndyS]

Deck shots brings customers= $$$$

[bunkatabunka]

Deck shots brings customers= $$$$

So could shots of living fish in healthy condition just before being released. At least for the people who enjoy this as a sport and care at least a little about conserving. Deck shots bring customers until there are none.

I couldn't agree more with the first two replies in this thread. Sick and tired of these "striper slaughter!" threads. Wow, good job, you can pull a mojo and gaff a big (nasty tasting) breeder in the head.

[seazu]

STOP MAKING PEOPLE TARGET THE BIG COWS WITH THE 43 OR GREATER AND
(I KNOW THIS WILL NOT GO OVER BIG) MAKE TROLLING THEM ILLEGAL!!!!!
WHEN YOU TROLL YOU ARE MAKING A FISH STRIKE WHEN THEY NORMALLY WOULD NOT, ITS USUALLY THE BIG BASS THAT TAKE A STRIKE AND THEN SHE GET DRUG IN FROM WAY OUT AND IS EXHAUSTED AND HALF DEAD..........DAMMMMMMMMM SHAME
sorry not a fan of trolling wount even go with my friends because they do, cant bear to watch them drag her in and kill her.😢😢😢

[FASTEDDIE29]

Huge fan of the slot fish! How many lbs of meat can you get out of a 24-26 inch Striper? 3-6 lbs possibly more. That 1 slot fish is enough for me and my family. Freezing fresh fish doesn’t happen in my household! Let the big ones live!!!

[nsc_tpt]

Why do we keep big fish which is more than 43'' size... they do not taste so good... let's release all the females to keep our game going after all they are the ambassador's for the sport fishing... they deserve a life not the freezer.... i did not mean to hurt anyone.. my apologies if any one is hurt....

[courbeco]

Agree with the posts regarding keeping of the breeders. Same argument with the fluke no?

[dakota560]

Agree with the posts regarding keeping of the breeders. Same argument with the fluke no?

Yes and no. Absolutely correct about targeting larger sexually mature fish. Recreational because of regulatory size increases, commercial because of what appears to be a conscious choice to harvest recreational discards which have higher market prices. There's more happening with the fluke than most people realize causing it's decline. Massive amounts of information available to the credit of the scientific community but the decisions being made based on that data in my opinion is what's holding the fishery back.

Statistic probably very few if any on this site are aware of. Between 1982 and 1996, 91% of combined commercial and recreational landings were comprised of fish in the 0 - 2 yr. age class ranges. Higher percentage of harvest consisting of sexually immature fish or fish with lower levels of fecundity (egg capacity). From 2007 to 2017 percentage harvest of these classes fell to 15% in spite of the fact commercial size limits were never increased and remained at 14. So even though overall landings within these age classes dropped precipitously to only 727,000 fish in 2017, the population of these age in the biomass decreased from a high of 192 million in 1983 to a near low of 86 million in 2017, a 55% decrease or 106 million less fish! Worth repeating, an age class range which attained 193 million fish at its peak in 1983 has declined by 106 million fish to 86 million in 2017 representing a staggering 55% decrease in the population when these age class fish represent a negligible percentage of today's overall landings. In 2017 727,000 fish were landed compared to 44 million in 1983. What's happening to these age classes in the biomass?

I have my own opinion, everyone can draw their own conclusions. Again this is all Peer Reviewed data, not third party.

Stripers will follow the same trend. We can have a few phenomenal years or have great years every year. Decision is ours but you can't pound the spawning stock biomass every day of every month all year long and think there won't be consequences. Guess my point is everyone needs to have a more long-term focus when it comes to preserving these stocks especially in today's world with the technology available and world wide demand for fish. Fisheries management has to help guide that behavior with sensible regulations. Personally I'd prefer to see remedial steps taken too soon than too late. I remember in the 70's the hours people put in trying to land a 3,. 40 or 50lb bass, all on the night shift. Today guys who never fish before toss 40's and 50's on the docks like their trash fish for the hero shot. I know it'll piss some people off but it's sad seeing a trophy fishery which guys old enough saw collapse, then recover only to be abused again. We just all need to be smarter and focus on the stock and not the days catch.

[Adrenalinerush]

I voted for a slot in the recent survey. No need to kill the big female spawners. Sometimes we are our own worst enemy.

[penn50w]

How do you think the Big FEMALES get to be big :rolleyes: from not being taken when they are 28" - you people keep thinking about this all wrong - you keep 2 smaller fish and they don't get to spawn - raise the lower end to maybe 35"-36" and 1 larger at over 45" The 28" -> 35" are already spawning so the stocks will grow - then the ones from 37" -> 44" have produced millions of eggs although not all survive - plus the Big females no longer spawn every year.

[mjz157]

How do you think the Big FEMALES get to be big :rolleyes: from not being taken when they are 28" - you people keep thinking about this all wrong - you keep 2 smaller fish and they don't get to spawn - raise the lower end to maybe 35"-36" and 1 larger at over 45" The 28" -> 35" are already spawning so the stocks will grow - then the ones from 37" -> 44" have produced millions of eggs although not all survive - plus the Big females no longer spawn every year.

if all things were equal...but there are so many more smaller fish than bigger ones. that is why a slot works and why it has been effective in so many other fisheries.

[Capt Sal]

with the amount of dead striped bass photos i see posted on here in the spring i am surprised there any striped bass left at all.

ridiculous!!!what about the buckets of bottom fish???

[Capt Sal]

Deck shots brings customers= $$$$

So it is an attack on for hire boats? The ones that pay for this site????????Expert?

[hammer4reel]

How do you think the Big FEMALES get to be big :rolleyes: from not being taken when they are 28" - you people keep thinking about this all wrong - you keep 2 smaller fish and they don't get to spawn - raise the lower end to maybe 35"-36" and 1 larger at over 45" The 28" -> 35" are already spawning so the stocks will grow - then the ones from 37" -> 44" have produced millions of eggs although not all survive - plus the Big females no longer spawn every year..


The purpose of the slot is to keep ALL the fish ALIVE today above the slot in the breeding mass.
it has nothing to do with other age classes not making it to that size in future years as you state.

not every 38" fish is going to be caught either.
its intent is to allow the fish today that are the prime breeders the opportunity to put millions of eggs into the system instead of thousands.

those larger fish have proven their spot in the migration for many many years.
smaller fish have not done that..

if it gets to the point their is an age class missing , you change the slot in a year or two.
it has to start somewhere
.

[NoLimit]

More “Blame the Recreational Fisherman” BS?!

[bigfishy]

.


The purpose of the slot is to keep ALL the fish ALIVE today above the slot in the breeding mass.
it has nothing to do with other age classes not making it to that size in future years as you state.

not every 38" fish is going to be caught either.
its intent is to allow the fish today that are the prime breeders the opportunity to put millions of eggs into the system instead of thousands.

those larger fish have proven their spot in the migration for many many years.
smaller fish have not done that..

if it gets to the point their is an age class missing , you change the slot in a year or two.
it has to start somewhere
.
This !!!! No joke 🤯

[AndyS]

So if we take all the big ones we are screwed, and if we take all the small ones we are screwed, hey what about a Slot Limit !

I'm so glad I thought of this all on my own.