PROWLER V; BIG OCEAN FLUKE-SEA BASS REPORT MONDAY JULY 26, 2021.

[Prowler 5]

Hey gang, we were out today with 14 customers. The ocean settled down very nice. We we took the long ride where we've been going the last 3 weeks but it was a little slow this morning. So we had to go a little bit further east. Found some big fluke and sea bass there. Had a 22 mile ride back to the dock. But whatever it takes to get it done. No more Wreck Trips until the fluke season is over. We are totally in a fluke and seabass mode lately. Sailing everyday, No reservations are needed. The fare is $85 dollars. We sail 730am sharp . See you guys in the morning. Thanks Captain Scott.

[hartattack]

Nice to see Hammer Tom on them!

[Detour66]

Way to go Capt. Taking the long ride for the BIG FISH with only 14 on board! Don't see that to much these days! Tight lines!

[Togfather2530]

Crazy nj boats running 22 miles just to be 3 miles off the coast of Long Island and5 miles from Jones and rock away inlet in an artificial reef just to catch fluke. I’ve been fishing the same grounds a few times. It’s been decent but not great. Way more action 10+ years ago with nonstop bites and keeping 161/2” fish. The fishery is going to hell. I don’t think I filleted a male all year. 👎👎👎. These boats probably are and certainly should be driving right over millions of fluke on the way there. We need to wake up with this fishery. Hats off to the captain for making the run. I personally think it’s sickening to me when I ran there and realized the amount of fuel(natural resources) burned and pollution just to get there. Sorry for the rant. Same with the offshore tuna bs. 100s of boats burning hundreds of dollars each to get to the grounds and many coming back with 0. A lot to think about if u open your mind to more than just what u want to do for your weekend. Fluke is turning into a 50$ a pound fish when it used to be something anyone could do reasonably. Also saw a bunch of bluefin busting up bunker pods just south of rock away inlet last Saturday on the way back.

[Togfather2530]

By the way the action I’m talking about 10years ago was in the bay lol

[dakota560]

Crazy nj boats running 22 miles just to be 3 miles off the coast of Long Island and5 miles from Jones and rock away inlet in an artificial reef just to catch fluke. I’ve been fishing the same grounds a few times. It’s been decent but not great. Way more action 10+ years ago with nonstop bites and keeping 161/2” fish. The fishery is going to hell. I don’t think I filleted a male all year. ������. These boats probably are and certainly should be driving right over millions of fluke on the way there. We need to wake up with this fishery. Hats off to the captain for making the run. I personally think it’s sickening to me when I ran there and realized the amount of fuel(natural resources) burned and pollution just to get there. Sorry for the rant. Same with the offshore tuna bs. 100s of boats burning hundreds of dollars each to get to the grounds and many coming back with 0. A lot to think about if u open your mind to more than just what u want to do for your weekend. Fluke is turning into a 50$ a pound fish when it used to be something anyone could do reasonably. Also saw a bunch of bluefin busting up bunker pods just south of rock away inlet last Saturday on the way back.

Capt Scott,

Don't mean to hijack your thread but want to reply to Togfathers post. Congrats on running that far for so few fares,
only so much you control and you can only make the effort.

This fishery has been on a decline since 2010. The decent fishing were seeing this year in my opinion is the result of foreign and domestic markets being closed most of last year and Covid giving the stock a temporary reprieve.

A few facts marine fisheries doesn't really discuss. Female population of this stock declined by 36 million from 2010 to 2017. Why, recreational size minimums have caused 90% or more of recreational landings to be females and a lesser percentage but still significant proportion of commercial harvest to be females as well. A fact NMFS and the Monitoring Committee outright deny but one their data completely supports.

Female fluke are said to average 400,000 eggs when they attain sexual maturity, increase production as they grow and the oldest and largest will produce over 4,000,000 eggs annually. For the last 30 years, if you compare new recruits to females, the ratio is .5 to 1.5 new recruits per sexually mature female, an unimaginable statistic considering tens of trillions of eggs are produced every year. Yet we continue harvesting exclusively sexually mature fish, most females and provide zero protection to the spawn. Recruitment classes have essentially failed, are at late 80's levels, and will continue failing because we're killing off the female population of this stock. Elevated recreational size minimums and the consequential impacts they've caused the stock are killing this fishery.

Two more statistic kept close to the vest. In 2018, there were 8.6 million angler trips, trips where fluke were specifically targeted. Over 7 million or 81% of those trips ended up with no fish harvested. Can't begin to comprehend that statistic. Of the remaining 1.6 million trips, 67% ended up with one fish harvested and 24% ended up with two. Recreational angler trips since 2010 have declined by more than 4 million a year as regulations continue getting more restrictive.

Second, between 2009 and 2017, the recreational sector is charged with catching 450 million fish in the process and harvesting 45 million! A 90% release ratio and why over 30% of the recreational harvest limit is exhausted on discard mortality. How can regulations targeting the harvest of the spawning stock, a disproportionate amount females, killing millions of younger and older age class fish while destroying recruitment be benefitting this fishery?

NMFS reports up under the Department of Commerce. Someone tell me what impact 4 million less recreational trips has on the economy, small businesses, party and for hire operators and shore communities. We're talking billions of dollars less in spending because of increasingly more restrictive regulations resulting in 81% of 2018 trips with anglers going home with empty coolers. Commercial quotas as with recreational have been slashed and truthfully a once thriving fishery has been turned into a complete mess in the throes of a free fall decline. If size minimums don't revert to the 90's regulation, 15 to 16-inches, if management doesn't start protecting females and the spawn, this fishery will continue its decline until irreparably damaged.

[Prowler 5]

@togfather
its all good. we fish all different places. didnt mind the rant at all, i liked your comment.

[howardrf]

In 2018, there were 8.6 million angler trips, trips where fluke were specifically targeted. Interesting. Where did you get your trip stats? Info appreciated.

[dakota560]

In 2018, there were 8.6 million angler trips, trips where fluke were specifically targeted. Interesting. Where did you get your trip stats? Info appreciated.

Research. Memorandum dated November 27, 2019 from Kiley Dancy to the Council and Board regarding Summer Flounder Recreational Measures for 2020 which included another Memorandum dated November 6, 2019 also from Kiley Dancy to Chris Moore, Executive Director Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council re Summer Flounder Recreational Management Measures for 2020 on pages 12 and 20 of the 23 page document which includes the data shown in the two attachments. 8.6 million directed Summer Flounder trips, 1.6 Angler Trips with keepers harvested totaling 2.4 million fish. 7 million recreational anglers paying all in probably $250 between boat cost, food, ice, gulp, jigs, transportation, rod rentals, possibly hotel accommodations, maybe even taking a day off from work without a single keeper. It's inconceivable how bad this fishery's been managed and how a once thriving fishery in the 90's has been decimated for both sectors for the past decade or more. Even worse the declines will continue until recreational size minimums are adjusted and we stop killing off the female population of the stock. So many stocks the regulations protect the breeders realizing without healthy recruitment you don't have a sustainable fishery. In this fishery, we target the spawning stock exclusively with a greater proportion being females because of their size differential and economic value. Absolutely ludicrous. And management insists more males make up combined harvest which their data proves wrong while they wonder why after thirty years of sacrifices by both sectors and severe quota cuts recruitment levels have reverted back to late 80's levels which were the lowest levels of the stock over the past five decades.

If you want the entire document, pm me your email and I'd be more than happy to send you the entire document.

[Togfather2530]

Well they will certainly have to make keeping anything over 18 illegal since we all know 99% of the fisherman would still keep the big fish. Those artificial reefs are strategically placed near inlets so recreational fisherman can access them without burning fuel and polluting the oceans. What happened to nj fluke. Anymore the normal old spots off the hook are beat. Even the beat up rattlesnake is a long run for what we catch and bring back. It’s disappointing to say the least. Very little fluke around anymore as far as quantity. U really have to hope you drift over a good body of fish and get lucky. The other week I took a handicap guy out in a wheelchair and wanted to show him a decent day of fishing. He didn’t want to go too far so I started off at the swash channel. That was beat with very little action. I headed out to the Fishermans area and had very little action. No keeper fluke, hardly any shorts, and three keeper sea bass. 3 guys fishing 🤣. It was a perfect day with a perfect drift I’ll add. It was pretty disgusting to say the least. The black fishing has been going downhill for us as well the last few years. I don’t know if that’s because of pressure or what. They seem to be doing better down south with that.

[dakota560]

I've spent an inordinate amount of time reading everything I could get my hands on regarding the summer flounder fishery and its obvious to most what the problem is and the change that's taken over the stock due to the regulations being used to constrain recreational catch. You don't need a PHD or three letters behind your name. We went from harvesting young age classes which made up over 90% of the stock in the 90's, many immature fish and more males than females. Recruitment levels were strong and the spawning stock wasn't the target of harvest between sectors. When size minimums were in the 14 to 15.5 inch range, balance existed in the fishery.

Today we target exclusively sexually mature fish. recreationally over 90% females because we have to, commercially I'd bet 70% or more females and or larger sexually mature males because they carry a higher price tag back at the docks. Prime commercial fish targeted range between 16 to 20 inches, high percentage females. Commercials aren't the problem, they're catch is also a product of the regulations.

Target the spawning stock, discard levels 12 to 14 times landings, insane amounts of waste in discards, remove 36 million females and 71 million fish from the population in 8 short years between 2010 and 2017, destroy recruitment and no fishery survives that pressure. We're far into that cycle and if fisheries management continues ignoring the facts and struggles this fisheries been going through over the last century, the fishery won't survive and there will be devastating socio-economic consequences to the recreational and commercial sector as well as small businesses and shore based economies.

For 30 years the commercial and recreational sector has been asked to sacrifice for more liberalized regulations long-term, the fishery today arguably is in worse shape than it was in the late 80's / early 90's. Female population and recruitment were barely keeping pace with the early 90's levels in 2017, today they're probably under those levels because we continue harvesting the wrong age groups representing the future of the fishery. We had successful regulation in place in the 90's resulting in the strongest and most sustainable growth in this fishery over the last 50 years. When NMFS continued increasing size minimums, everything changed in this fishery and it's been on a prolonged decline since.

I'd challenge anyone on this site when they report their catch to include how many are males and how many females. For anyone who might not know, in females you'll see the orangish egg sac. For NJ @ 18 inches, NY, CT and RI @ 19 inches, I guarantee the female percentages are over 90% in NJ and over 95% in the three other states. Very simply, the regulations worked against this fishery when size minimums went beyond 16 inches and if they're not changed, the long-term viability of the stock is what's at stake.

[Togfather2530]

Thanks for the insight Dakota. Your knowledge his vast on the subject. I do the butchering for my crew. I don’t pay that much attention to it but if I have to think about it I think just about every one is a female. When I read posts here, no matter what it is (flounder tuna black fish) I always have to laugh how 95% of them say “excellent fishing today”. I guess we have to wonder what are we comparing to LOL. The fluke fishery is definitely not in good shape in my opinion

[dakota560]

I really would appreciate if people started posting gender in their catch reports. Think it will be very telling and it's the single biggest issue threatening this fishery. Below are three files from the 2016 Rutgers Sex and Length Study which encompassed nine ports and four states, RI, Ct, NY and NJ. The study was included in Peer Review for building a gender based model but rejected from what I understand because the sample size was too small and the time period too short.

Either way you can see the raw results from the study and a summary I made by port and in total. At the time of the study in 2016, all four states had recreational size minimums of 18 inches. In 2017, RI, Ct. and NY were increased to 19 inches so even more females are being harvested today. Including all ports, of 693 fish landed, 586 or 85% were females. The only port under 80% was Point Judith, most likely because males tend to prefer colder water and Point Judith is the port furthest north but even their female proportion of landings was 61%. All ports excluding Point Judith landed 582 fish of which 518 or 89% were females. All other ports other than Point Judith had female proportions for fish landed of 86% or greater, 5 of those ports 89% or higher. And keep in mind this was when size minimums for all four states were 18 inches as opposed to 19 today in all but New Jersey.

NMFS maintains their position that most fish caught in the recreational and commercial fishery are males. They're wrong. They also maintain that most fish over 24 inches are females, but up to that point it's 50/50 males and females. They're also wrong in that statement and their own data proves it as well as on water evidence and their own trawl studies. Almost every fish over 18 inches is female and 99% of fish over 19 inches are females. Until that key fact is acknowledged, accepted and regulations changed to address the issues size minimums are causing this fishery with insane discard rates and numbers, decimation of the female population and the spawning stock and lowest recruitment levels the fishery's seen since the 80's, the stock will continue declining.

Knowledge is everything. Think it would be helpful getting that point across which has been brought up by many before and ignored. We're getting to a tipping point in this fishery and management either addresses the issue now by accepting the story the data is telling or they continue down the path we're on which nobody's going to like the consequences of that decision.

One last graph from the Rutgers study tells all, last file. Look at the gender proportions based on size. Again minimums were used as a short term policy decision to constrain recreational harvest without understanding the long term consequences of that decision when they were raised beyond the size that created an enormous gender imbalance in harvest and the stock. We need to work our way back to the regulations in place in the 90's to save this fishery from it's own regulations.