Help Save The Striped Bass - Take The Pledge

[Hemingway]

I am sure most of you are aware that this fall's striper season was one of the worst in decades. To make matters worst the Maryland DNR is proposing a 14% increase in the 2014 harvest. The CCA (Coastal Conservation Association) is an organization to protect the interests of recreational fishermen in the region. I am a new member of this group (joined at the Crisfield tournament), and they are doing some great work on all of our behalf. They are asking all of us to become vocal and active in order to prevent a population crash like the region had in the 70's. Let DNR know how you feel about their new proposal, attend any hearings on the subject, and above all be a conservation example by taking the below pledge.

http://www.mylimitisone.com

[Pinch]

my limit is ZERO. I remember just two years ago it was 30-40 fish a day over 20" at the bay bridge. HRBT was on fire at night. There were still cows at kipto. Now kipto is dead, hrbt is dead and the best days at the bay bridge are 15 fish days.

[Jambone]

I am and have been a member of the Patuxent River Chapter since it's foundation. The Executive Director, Tony Friedrich, will be the guest speaker at our meeting on 20 January at Stoney's Restaurant in Solomons and will probably talk a bunch about this new pledge and also detail the stock assessment. I would recommend attending this meeting if you can make it to Solomons and are interested in what CCA Maryland is doing right now to help maintain the striped bass stock and improve the quality of our fishing. The meeting starts at 7PM but people usually show up early to tell fishing tales and eat some great food.

[Mark]

In point of fact the 14% increase in the 2014 striper harvest set by the MD DNR is a combined increase for commercial and recreational fisherman. It is not a 14% increase in the commercial harvest alone.

Recreational anglers are slated for 2.6 million pounds or 58% of the 2014 catch with the remaining 1.9 million pounds (42%) reserved for commercial fishermen.

Since the majority of the 2014 harvest is allotted for recreational anglers (not commercial interests) we can indeed make a difference if we choose to do so by refusing to keep our daily limit.

[Hemingway]

In point of fact the 14% increase in the 2014 striper harvest set by the MD DNR is a combined increase for commercial and recreational fisherman. It is not a 14% increase in the commercial harvest alone.

Recreational anglers are slated for 2.6 million pounds or 58% of the 2014 catch with the remaining 1.9 million pounds (42%) reserved for commercial fishermen.


Since the majority of the 2014 harvest is allotted for recreational anglers (not commercial interests) we can indeed make a difference if we choose to do so by refusing to keep our daily limit.

Thanks for the clarification on that.

[Slobber Bob]

This is a tough one because me and the wife eat a lot of fish over the course of a year, with bass being a stable, but I'll be doing my part for the better of the fishery and reducing harvest. Keeping more dogfish instead, I guess...

[Jambone]

In point of fact the 14% increase in the 2014 striper harvest set by the MD DNR is a combined increase for commercial and recreational fisherman. It is not a 14% increase in the commercial harvest alone.

Recreational anglers are slated for 2.6 million pounds or 58% of the 2014 catch with the remaining 1.9 million pounds (42%) reserved for commercial fishermen.

Since the majority of the 2014 harvest is allotted for recreational anglers (not commercial interests) we can indeed make a difference if we choose to do so by refusing to keep our daily limit.

Some of the information you're stating is true but there are some other important things to consider. First, I'm not sure you are correct in stating that there is a 14% increase in overall harvest from last year for Maryland. That may be a little confusing. The pounds of recorded catch for each state is set by the federal government, not Maryland. Striped Bass is a federally controlled fish because of it's migration throughout the eastern states. My guess it out of the total federal allotted harvest numbers, Maryland and Virginia settle on harvest numbers for each of the two states in the Chesapeake Bay. The big problem is that the commercial guys are very corrupt and fish that show up on the market doesn't reflect the actual report catch. This is the big problem. Maryland has been trying to come down harder on poaching as well as the federal government but they are not making much headway. You would go crazy if you saw some of the reported pounds of rockfish pulled out of the pound nets in Maryland, and the dead loss found in those nets. The recreational catch is typically far below the allotted numbers and towards the end of the year I believe Maryland will allow the commercial guys to eat into the recreation allocations. I really don't think that us limiting our catches will have an environmental impact but will send a big message up to Annapolis to potentially change some policy. My guess is that CCA is just trying to put more pressure on the commercial market, which is a good thing. It is sad that the recreational fishing in Maryland provides a large amount of revenue in as compared to the commercial market but typically gets the short end of the stick. The bottom line is, the commercial guys will take their share and more if they can and will until there's nothing left. A simple example of this is the commercial oyster industry in Maryland/Virginia, with exception of oyster farming. The population of the oyster is now about at 1% of the known population high. It should make everyone sick to know that and that without serious management of the rockfish, we could see similar population issues. The big problem for rockfish is that it's going to take more than Maryland and Virginia to fix this problem. North Carolina has had huge fish kills due to commercial fishing policies and regulations.

Ok, enough venting, sorry for the long message. I just hope that in about 10-years my two boys will be able to catch rockfish in the bay. It's getting harder and harder to find them and increasing harvest numbers on an already struggling population is just stupid. We can have a sustainable balance between commercial and recreational fishing but the commercial guys are just looking for the buck now without consideration for the future.

[DOGFISH]

I also agree, my limit is zero. It was zero in 2013 and will be in 2014. The biomass of striped bass along the Atlantic coast has steadily gone down in the past several years. If the 2011 spawn is decimated, it will be along way back for the species. I don't care if it is commercial or if it is recreational, there should be no increases. If for nothing else, there should be cuts in limits. Moreover, a slot limit would be best for management of the species. That way once a fish reaches a certain size, it is a spawner for the rest of its natural life.

PS: There should be no nets allowed in the Chesapeake.

[averagejoe]

I am and have been a member of the Patuxent River Chapter since it's foundation. The Executive Director, Tony Friedrich, will be the guest speaker at our meeting on 20 January at Stoney's Restaurant in Solomons and will probably talk a bunch about this new pledge and also detail the stock assessment. I would recommend attending this meeting if you can make it to Solomons and are interested in what CCA Maryland is doing right now to help maintain the striped bass stock and improve the quality of our fishing. The meeting starts at 7PM but people usually show up early to tell fishing tales and eat some great food.

Ironic.....unless there is new ownership. See below=
By Candy Thomson, The Baltimore Sun
5:09 p.m. EST, November 9, 2012
A Solomons Island charter boat captain was one of five men indicted on federal charges for allegedly catching and selling striped bass from an off-limits area of the Atlantic Ocean, the Department of Justice announced.

David Dwayne Scott, 41, of Lusby, the captain of Stoney's Kingfisher, was charged Thursday with trafficking in illegally caught striped bass and destruction of evidence while he was operating out of Rudee Inlet in Virginia Beach in February 2009.

In March 2011, federal agents seized electronics and records from a number vessels that primarily operate out of the Northern Neck and Rudee Inlet in winter to take advantage of the migration of large striped bass, also known as rockfish. Officers posing as clients were able to take photos and videos of illegal fishing; those materials helped build the case, a source who has been briefed on the investigation said.

The maximum penalty for a violation of the Lacey Act is five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and forfeiture of the vessel.


Read more: http://www.baltimoresun.com/features...#ixzz2pfUototA

[Gregtokoolman]

I dont understand why they cant just farm the Stripers like any other Fish. even tho they are "migratory" there is a group of stripers that only stay in the Chesapeake.

[PigPen]

There could be a question of ecology. Do stripers reproduce throughout their lives or do they dry up? Also, is water quality hurting feed stock for the stripers. Judging from colonial accounts unless we address what's limiting the shad populations the stripers will be competing with lots of other predators. Maybe we should be targeting males and catch and release females like I understand is done for crabs. I heard that LMB add a few thousand extra eggs per pound that the female gains so sending a fat sally back should help. I agree that nets should be a concern for small waterways. I also wonder how effective politicians will be if they'd rather order a striper and pay the market price rather than catching their own.
Just vsome food for thought. I'm typically a catch and release fisherman but if the fish comes in wrecked I don't mind taking it.

[Mark]

Jambone,

I know this is an important topic to those of us who like to fish and you do not have to apologize for venting.

MD and VA set the quotas for the Bay in accordance with reference points (lower than those for the Atlantic Coast) set by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC.) Those reference points are being reviewed by the ASMFC with an eye toward reducing them in 2015 along the Atlantic Coast and perhaps in the Bay. MD's approach for 2014 falls within current ASMFC guidelines.

The statistics I mentioned and other metrics are found in this MD DNR document which explains MD's authority for increasing the 2014 harvest, its rationale for doing so and how the harvest was apportioned between recreational and commercial interests:

http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries...Bass_Quota.pdf

I suspect based on your comments that you dispute the MD DNR's metrics due to unreported commercial catches. On that point we'll have to disagree. I trust (my naïve nature perhaps) that the DNR is diligently accumulating data in a complex environment that is as statistically sound as possible. Mind you, I am not defending the decision. I wish the DNR had taken a more conservative approach for the 2011 class of fish which will become "legal" this year.

But my point remains that MD analyzed its data and has allocated most of its 2014 quota to recreational anglers. We can blame commercial interests but clearly the MD DNR assumes and has publicly stated that recreational anglers will kill more stripers in the Chesapeake in 2014 than commercial fishermen.

Whether you believe that or not, no one, including the DNR, is forcing recreational anglers to keep their limit.

Evidently others agree. Hence the establishment of the "My Limit is One" movement.

I think recreational anglers can make a difference.

[Redfish12]

Mark,

I appreciate your comments on this issue. One of the major things I struggle with is the way in which the recreational harvest is calculated. To me it is certainly a challenging number to derive since we as recs do not report our catches. I think the way in which a small survey size is extrapolated to come up with an overall number is flawed because of the increase in catch and release fishing. I believe they account for C&R with a 9% mortality figure? Seems high.

Have you seen a better explanation of how the rec numbers are calculated?

[Runnin]

I'm a fisherman. I like the resource to be protected. I'm not a fisheries biologist, and from what I have seen, Maryland and Virginia have pretty good fisheries biologists. I think the Striped Bass has been managed conservatively over the last 10 years or so. The Crab fishery has been under more pressure. There are a number of folks that say the Striped Bass population is putting the crab population at risk.

I think we have to give some latitude and trust the DNR to know what's best until they prove that they are succumbing to political pressure to raise quotas to levels that would damage the fishery.

I think MD and Va.'s bigger issue is the Largemouth Bas fishery in the Tidal Potomac. The Tidal Potomac from all accounts I've heard had a dismal year in 2013. Maybe the exception was Mattawoman. We need to do more surveys and study what's going on there. I think something bad may be up, and I think we may need to curtail some of the Tourneys, and pressure on sewage discharge to improve water quality. The Tidal P is all about the grass and SAV has been declining.

I'm normally a C and R guy. I might take a striped bass here and there for my dinner. That's about it. I never keep my limit and I will continue to fish in that way.

[mango]

"Eat more chicken", "got milk",......."eat more WP". Great open discussion going on here and I appreciate the opportunity to participate though not all will agree with me. Couple of things I will be considering as I try to observe the "one fish limit". It will come down to how many times a season I can get out on the water to fish. Also, I have to consider that I have a family of five to feed. We love seafood, all types. I, as we all have, spent a lot of mulah on yaks, rods, reels, FF's, bait, gas for the car and my license in Del, VA and NC. Does this not help keep our mom and pop tackle shoppes and bait stores open. So, for me as an example, I hauled in twice last season my 2 fish limit and on 2 other trips brought back one fish for the table. On the other hand, I spent most of my time targeting WP. I found peace of mind on the water while fishing for them and quantity to suit our families taste for fish leaving the rockfish alone. WP are in the striped bass family and great to eat. This works for me and mine. I hunt deer, not horns, for meat and although I can harvest many more, I only take one per season because thats all we can eat. Some guys can fish every other day. If I Could do that, C & R and or the the one fish limit would be observed. So for me as I see, it comes down to how many times I can get out vs the cost I have put into kayak fishing or my wife would send me up to WholeFoods to buy fish and tell me to sell the yak. Can you ever put a value on the exercise and the beauty of the bay though, really the second best stress relief I know of. I am going to try some ray/ skate this year and you never know, might keep my nest of baby birds happy.