Striped Bass Spawn

[Billfish715]

This current striped bass spring run seems better than last year's run. It has me raising my eyebrows wondering and trying to understand what might be going on. Are these bass staging to move up the Hudson to spawn? If so, aren't they a bit late for that? Maybe they are staging to move farther upstream into the Raritan to spawn? Where were they during the winter? Are any of them Chesapeake stock?

We haven't seen the migration of post spawn bass from the south so far. They usually show up later next month. So, what do any of you amateur or professional marine biologists think is going on?

It might help resolve some of the controversy about keeping early season bass or fishing for them exclusively during the spawn. If regulations have to be adjusted to protect a vulnerable resource because of changing migrational patterns, then so be it.

Maybe it has been going on for years but because of social media instead of newspaper reports, we now are more aware of who catches what and how many.
The reports make it sound like there is a slaughter going on. We are our own problem when we post and chest thump.

I would like to know if the current run of bass is being adversely affected by harvesting bass that have yet to spawn. If these are, local, Jersey fish that are being harvested, their spawning habits at least deserve a scientific evaluation, less we do more harm than good.

[AndyS]

They spawn in the Raritan, since when ???

[Billfish715]

Originally Posted by AndyS

They spawn in the Raritan, since when ???

Is there fresh water in the Raritan? Are striped bass often caught in and around Bound Brook? Is the river cleaner now than it was 50 years ago? There's a good chance there is some spawning going on. How much has yet to be determined.

Originally Posted by Billfish715

This current striped bass spring run seems better than last year's run. It has me raising my eyebrows wondering and trying to understand what might be going on. Are these bass staging to move up the Hudson to spawn? If so, aren't they a bit late for that? Maybe they are staging to move farther upstream into the Raritan to spawn? Where were they during the winter? Are any of them Chesapeake stock?

We haven't seen the migration of post spawn bass from the south so far. They usually show up later next month. So, what do any of you amateur or professional marine biologists think is going on?

It might help resolve some of the controversy about keeping early season bass or fishing for them exclusively during the spawn. If regulations have to be adjusted to protect a vulnerable resource because of changing migrational patterns, then so be it.

Maybe it has been going on for years but because of social media instead of newspaper reports, we now are more aware of who catches what and how many.
The reports make it sound like there is a slaughter going on. We are our own problem when we post and chest thump.

I would like to know if the current run of bass is being adversely affected by harvesting bass that have yet to spawn. If these are, local, Jersey fish that are being harvested, their spawning habits at least deserve a scientific evaluation, less we do more harm than good.

Billfish good question which I don't have the answer for, maybe others do. I know there's been some heated discussion about this and other matters lately so I'm replying with facts and what is intended as constructive discussion. If not, I'll deal with the consequences because I don't want to see this fishery go through what it did in the 70's and early 80's as I'm sure many here who experienced the striped bass collapse at the time would agree. I've been told fisheries management does not like use of the term "collapse" but to sugar coat it any other way just avoids the truth of what happened to a very important fishery 40-50 years ago.

When a fishery goes from 250 million pounds of spawning stock biomass in '04 to 150 million lbs. in '17 (40% reduction) and recruitment (egg production) drops from 320,000,000 in '04 to approximately 110,000,000 in '17 (approximately 66% reduction) with a low of approximately 65,000,000 in '13 there's a major problem.

This is where marine fisheries is missing the boat. Those trends are alarming and should be of concern to everyone involved with this fishery 10-yrs ago when the trend started to develop. When a fishery starts showing signs of weakness, be proactive and implement change before the chart looks like it did in the early '80's. Instead we procrastinate until states like Va. take draconian measures to close the fishery.

As I said before, any fishery showing a decline in recruitment of this magnitude, in my opinion, should close the spawn season until the problem is identified, remedial measure implemented, recruitment rebounds and the fishery is considered stable. There's two choices we all have, ignore the facts and trends and lose the fishery again for decades which will have significant social and economic impacts or take a much lesser hit in closing it for a month or so until the spawn is over to prevent those social and economic impacts from occurring. It's exactly the same situation we're going through right now with summer flounder. A major decline in recruitment and NMFS allows commercial harvest during the spawn with ZERO understanding of the impacts it's having on egg production. Absolutely senseless management.

Those decisions shouldn't fall on the public, they should be part of a comprehensive management plan by the governing councils. In fresh water, walleye season in March and April is essentially closed, catch and release only. Largemouth and smallmouth the same April 15 - June 15. They protect the spawn to sustain these fisheries, a concept salt water fisheries management has yet to comprehend. How does NOAA and the various councils look at the attached chart and continue with existing regulations that caused these trends to occur over the last seventeen years?

[AndyS]

I just want to see the written proof striped bass spawn in the Raritan river because I have been looking for over 10 years now and I can't find anything.

[Billfish715]

Originally Posted by AndyS

I just want to see the written proof striped bass spawn in the Raritan river because I have been looking for over 10 years now and I can't find anything.

Hey Andy, Maybe this will get us a few answers. Lots of people read this board and there are lots of good minds out there. I'm sure there will be some logical and valid responses.

There has to be some merit to the fact that the striped bass now in residence in the San Francisco Bay estuary are from broodstock that were relocated from the Navesink River in New Jersey. We all know that the Shrewsbury and Navesink Rivers eventually connect with the Sandy Hook and Raritan Bays. The bass were here a long time ago. There's a good chance they are still here doing what they did then.

[Billfish715]

From a few of my tagged striped bass returns I've only been able to see a north-south/south-north migration pattern. Fish I've tagged during the fall migration have been recaptured from Connecticut and Long Island waters in the spring. One tagged bass that I caught and retagged (off Island Beach) was headed south in the fall after being tagged in the upper Hudson River that spring. I have no first-hand information about tagged Raritan Bay stripers.

I'm curious about any experiences other taggers have had with tag returns from bass they tagged in Raritan Bay. It's one way to help understand patterns and trends specific to the local striiped bass population and their spawning/migrations.

[Treebeard63]

"" This current striped bass spring run seems better than last year's run. It has me raising my eyebrows wondering and trying to understand what might be going on. Are these bass staging to move up the Hudson to spawn? If so, aren't they a bit late for that? Maybe they are staging to move farther upstream into the Raritan to spawn? Where were they during the winter? Are any of them Chesapeake stock? "

Most of the fish in and around Raritan bay are staging for the spawning run up the Hudson.. and no it is not late for that.. it's right on time.. I've been fishing the Hudson spring run since the 70's.. I mostly fish the stretches 10-20 miles
either side of Kingston NY.. where much of the actual spawning takes place.. The timing of the run is pretty predictable.. I learned the ropes from a former fisheries biologist, who explained the run is triggered more by photo-period (day length) than anything else..and that has proven true over the years.. We'll see the 1st push of mostly schoolie males showing upriver about the 2nd week in April.. coincidentally, the Blueback Herring will start filtering in on their spawning mission about the same time.. by the end of the month, some of the bigger females will start showing up in numbers, and the schools continue to build up and mix through month of May.. Usually we'll see the "peak" of the run about mid May.. By the end of May, into early June temps get right for actual spawning to take place.. by the 2nd week of June most years its all over in the upper river ..as the temps get too warm and the fish drop back.. Fluctuating temps from year to year may effect how well they bite, and actual spawning times.. in warm springs it may end a week or 2 sooner, but the actual migration is very predictable.. and as usual, right on time..

[Adrenalinerush]

Originally Posted by Treebeard63

"" This current striped bass spring run seems better than last year's run. It has me raising my eyebrows wondering and trying to understand what might be going on. Are these bass staging to move up the Hudson to spawn? If so, aren't they a bit late for that? Maybe they are staging to move farther upstream into the Raritan to spawn? Where were they during the winter? Are any of them Chesapeake stock? "

Most of the fish in and around Raritan bay are staging for the spawning run up the Hudson.. and no it is not late for that.. it's right on time.. I've been fishing the Hudson spring run since the 70's.. I mostly fish the stretches 10-20 miles
either side of Kingston NY.. where much of the actual spawning takes place.. The timing of the run is pretty predictable.. I learned the ropes from a former fisheries biologist, who explained the run is triggered more by photo-period (day length) than anything else..and that has proven true over the years.. We'll see the 1st push of mostly schoolie males showing upriver about the 2nd week in April.. coincidentally, the Blueback Herring will start filtering in on their spawning mission about the same time.. by the end of the month, some of the bigger females will start showing up in numbers, and the schools continue to build up and mix through month of May.. Usually we'll see the "peak" of the run about mid May.. By the end of May, into early June temps get right for actual spawning to take place.. by the 2nd week of June most years its all over in the upper river ..as the temps get too warm and the fish drop back.. Fluctuating temps from year to year may effect how well they bite, and actual spawning times.. in warm springs it may end a week or 2 sooner, but the actual migration is very predictable.. and as usual, right on time..

Have fished the Hudson for decades for the spawners. You time tables are pretty much right on. Gonna get good soon!

[Treebeard63]

Originally Posted by Billfish715

From a few of my tagged striped bass returns I've only been able to see a north-south/south-north migration pattern. Fish I've tagged during the fall migration have been recaptured from Connecticut and Long Island waters in the spring. One tagged bass that I caught and retagged (off Island Beach) was headed south in the fall after being tagged in the upper Hudson River that spring. I have no first-hand information about tagged Raritan Bay stripers.

I'm curious about any experiences other taggers have had with tag returns from bass they tagged in Raritan Bay. It's one way to help understand patterns and trends specific to the local striiped bass population and their spawning/migrations.

A buddy and I went on a tagging spree on my boat up here on the river for a few years..He has better figures, but over the course of a few seasons in the late '90s we stuck 200-300 Littoral Society tags in Bass of various sizes.. getting 20-30 returns.. Many from the lower river/R-bay.. several off Long Island, if a recall one made it as far north as Maine, and another as far south as Delaware.. but it seems most stayed fairly local to NY/NJ southern New England..