If Ling go down???

[bulletbob]

and are regulated like everything else... I wonder??
Would the party boats be able to weather it?..
I feel bad for those guys. Winter Flounder?.. nope..
Whiting??.. Nope, all gone
Weaks in summer?.. nope, gone as well.
Mackerel?.. nope didn't show....
Ling have become a mainstay.. They help these captains fill coolers for their fares..
I have seen some pretty dismal reports this fall and winter on ling fishing.
I hope it gets a LOT better come around April or so..
If the ling fishery collapses, and the NMFS " steps in to fix the problem", I fear for the guys that depend on them for their customers.. They are on eggshells already at times..

The mainstay fisheries that have kept these guys in business decade after decade are dwindling due to regulation... If ling stocks are going south
[ I hope NOT], I really wonder how it will play for the NY NJ party boat captains... Not looking for fights or arguments, just making conversation, and I hope my concern is overly exaggerated, and is nonsense.
Its just that I didn't see a lot of good ling fishing reported the past several months, and last head boat trip I went on in Dec, not even one was caught.
It WAS a tog trip, but several of us tried for ling without a touch, using Clams and Smelt { at Scotland}..
Kept an eye out since then, and it looks like most of the past 2 months was a pretty slow pick on them.

I truly hope they swarm inshore in great hordes in March/April for the sake of we that like to fish for them, and the captains that need to find them and put us over them... bob

[frugalfisherman]

The dogfish are devestating them. If you want to save the ling don't send a single dogfish back down alive. Knife straight down between the eyes.

[blkbear]

Its true I have caught dog fish with small ling still in there mouths

[Jay]

Originally Posted by frugalfisherman

the dogfish are devestating them. If you want to save the ling don't send a single dogfish back down alive. Knife straight down between the eyes.

amen!

[NJ Dave]

We cant kill dogfish, they are endangered.

[jmurr711]

Originally Posted by frugalfisherman

The dogfish are devestating them. If you want to save the ling don't send a single dogfish back down alive. Knife straight down between the eyes.

i have seen them swim up afer hooked ling it is silly i dunno why everyone just doesnt gut em & eat em

[Jay]

Originally Posted by NJ Dave

We cant kill dogfish, they are endangered.

Exactly, there going to be in danger! LOL!

[RussA]

Here is the deal, most of those stocks of fish are healthy with the exception of the winter flounder.

You see the problem is Whiting that we used to catch in our waters are the Hudson Canyon Stock. Now with all the commercial fleets offshore they don't allow the whiting stock to overflow back into our waters during winter months same with the mackerel.

They were loading up on Mackerel about a week and a half ago by the Hudson Canyon.

I don't mind local commercial boats that bring fish to our local economy, what i don't like are the Mid-Water boats that are owned by corporations that have giant lobbies working in their favor.

I want to cut the fleet in half and cut their quota by half, then you will see those two fisheries come back to our waters within 2 years it will be crazy.

But good luck going up against them.

[Jay]

Originally Posted by RussA

Here is the deal, most of those stocks of fish are healthy with the exception of the winter flounder.

I recall catching some nice size flounders thoughout the summer last year and the previous years in the mudhole.

[Fish Tank]

Hi bob,dont know how old u r friend but years ago the commercial would shovel thousands ofling off the deck in search off a few boxes of whitting. Rememer days when dead ling could be seen floating as far as thenaked eye could see.cant treat a fishery like that and expect itto survive.stay well capt.tommy joseph