Sand eels?

[Billfish715]

Back in the good old days, when there were no intrusive fishing restrictions, we seldom complained about a lack of gamefish to catch. Striped bass, however, were few in numbers. One constant to the numbers and variety of fish in our area was the abundance of sand lances/sand eels. Those of us who were around to remember the quality of fishing and the good health of the fishing industry will remember the sand eels!

Mackerel? Spring and fall runs were common with short rides to inshore high spots from every inlet.

Ling/Whiting? They were staples of the party boats for three of the four seasons. Yes, the foreign fleets put a big dent in the populations but they were not wiped out. Those fish were also caught from the Long Branch pier and local jetties.

Yellowfin Tuna? They were all over the Mud Hole area during part of the 80's.

Bluefish? The local ridges were as far as you had to go to find them especially at night.

Weakfish? Tide runners were included in every fall run.

The constant was the abundance of sand lances/ sand eels! No bait=No fish. The bluefin tuna bite 30-40 miles out is a result of the sand eels out there. Find the sand eels. Find the tuna!

Fish gotta eat! We need more sand eels!

[NoLimit]

Maybe another victim of the draggers

[Billfish715]

You may be on to something. Ask any of us who remember the bluefish fleets fishing on bottom pieces like The Klondike, Manasquan Ridge, The Annex, Augies, Barnegate Ridge what the fleets looked like. What do you hear about those pieces now? The draggers raked the bottom and destroyed much of what attracted sand eels and the game fish which preyed on them. The high spots on the old charts are not what they once were and neither are the sandeel populations. I think there's a correlation.