AndyS
03-05-2025, 01:51 PM
GA DNR: Recreational Bluefish Fishery to Temporarily Close in March and April
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will temporarily close the recreational Bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) fishery in state waters for the months of March and April 2025. This action is necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of the Bluefish population along the Atlantic coast.
The closure applies to all recreational anglers, including those fishing from private boats, charter boats, and shore-based locations. Possession of Bluefish during the closure period will be prohibited.
This temporary closure aligns with management measures approved by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which oversees the management of Bluefish along the Atlantic coast. While other ASMFC-member states have been required to reduce year-round bag limits to three fish for private and shore anglers, and five fish for charter trips, Georgia has been able to keep its 15-fish bag limit by closing the fishery for two months a year.
DNR's Coastal Resources Division will continue to work with the ASMFC to develop long-term management strategies. The recreational Bluefish fishery will reopen in May.
And................
The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) has suspended the season for harvesting striped bass by hook-and-line in the Roanoke River Management Area, which runs from March 1 through April 30, 2025. This includes the Roanoke River and its tributaries from Roanoke Rapids Dam downstream to the mouth of the river at the Albemarle Sound, as well as the Cashie, Middle and Eastmost rivers.
Despite reductions in harvest over the past three years, the Roanoke River striped bass population has shown little improvement. In 2024, NCWRC biologists observed a continuance of the declining trend in abundance of striped bass during the spawning grounds survey. Low abundance and the impacts of high mortality have resulted in poor spawning success over the past seven years, even when Roanoke River conditions were considered optimal for spawning.
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will temporarily close the recreational Bluefish (Pomatomus saltatrix) fishery in state waters for the months of March and April 2025. This action is necessary to ensure the long-term sustainability of the Bluefish population along the Atlantic coast.
The closure applies to all recreational anglers, including those fishing from private boats, charter boats, and shore-based locations. Possession of Bluefish during the closure period will be prohibited.
This temporary closure aligns with management measures approved by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which oversees the management of Bluefish along the Atlantic coast. While other ASMFC-member states have been required to reduce year-round bag limits to three fish for private and shore anglers, and five fish for charter trips, Georgia has been able to keep its 15-fish bag limit by closing the fishery for two months a year.
DNR's Coastal Resources Division will continue to work with the ASMFC to develop long-term management strategies. The recreational Bluefish fishery will reopen in May.
And................
The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) has suspended the season for harvesting striped bass by hook-and-line in the Roanoke River Management Area, which runs from March 1 through April 30, 2025. This includes the Roanoke River and its tributaries from Roanoke Rapids Dam downstream to the mouth of the river at the Albemarle Sound, as well as the Cashie, Middle and Eastmost rivers.
Despite reductions in harvest over the past three years, the Roanoke River striped bass population has shown little improvement. In 2024, NCWRC biologists observed a continuance of the declining trend in abundance of striped bass during the spawning grounds survey. Low abundance and the impacts of high mortality have resulted in poor spawning success over the past seven years, even when Roanoke River conditions were considered optimal for spawning.