By now I am sure you have heard that the young-of-the-year striped bass survey in the Chesapeake Bay was the second lowest ever recorded. This has mandated action from the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to reduce the mortality of striped bass until such time as the stock recovers. This is nothing new. Back in the 1970s and ’80s, the YOY went for many years with below-average numbers, then recovered nicely with well-above-average numbers. We have been catching those fish since then, and now the cycle seems to be repeating itself.
What ASMFC has done is written Draft Addendum II to Amendment 7 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Striped Bass. As you can see from the illustration with this column, there are a number of choices as to how we can reduce the mortality of striped bass. There will be a public hearing from 6 to 8 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 28, at the DNREC Auditorium in Dover, when you can express your choice of the options. You may also attend virtually or email your choice to asmfc.org.
As I said back in the 1980s, the only way to stop striped bass mortality is to stop killing striped bass. Sounds simple, but there will be lots of opposition to any plan that cuts into the taking of stripers for profit. It will come from commercial as well as for-hire fishermen, as it did back then. And who can blame them? I am sure no matter what business you are in, you wouldn’t like the government coming in and telling you that you can only make so much money and then you have to quit. But that’s the choice you made when you chose to earn your living from a public resource.
Tilefish
The tilefish regulations have also been posted for 2024. The recreational blueline tilefish season will begin May 15 and run until Nov. 14 with an Actual Catch Limit of 73,380 pounds. That breaks down to three per person from a private boat, five per person from a six-pack charter boat and seven from a head boat. There is no size limit because tilefish are pretty much dead when you crank them up from the deep water.
Golden tilefish have an ACL of 1,964,319 pounds. They too have no size limit, and the bag limit is eight per person no matter what type of boat you are fishing from.
Bluefish
The new bluefish rules have also been posted. They are a bit confusing.
There will be a drop in the number of bluefish that recreational and commercial fishermen may land in 2024 from what we were allowed to land in 2023. That number will increase in 2025, but it will still be below the number we had in 2023.
The bag limits will remain as they are now. Three fish per person for those fishing from shore or from a private boat, five fish per person if you are fishing from a six-pack charter boat and seven when you fish from a head boat.
It is unlikely that the commercial or recreational limit will be reached, since it has not been in the past few years. There are a few reasons for this. Bluefish are not a red-hot commodity in the fish market. While I have seen it priced pretty high in the Acme store, it usually sells for less than $1 per pound at the dock.
The same holds true for recreational fishermen. Some, like myself, enjoy fresh bluefish, while most do not.
Finally, there are just not that many blues around. I did catch a couple this spring out of Indian River Inlet and saw a few taken on the Angler a couple of weeks ago. There simply are not the numbers we had a few years ago. We would catch the long, skinny ones in the spring, and then in the fall it would be the fat ones coming back down the coast.
I am a fine one to say this since I sit on so many advisory councils, but I really don’t think humans can control much of what goes on in the ocean. When a species gets as low as striped bass did in the 1980s, I do think you have to take the pressure off them, but fish like blues that roam half the world, I don’t think we can control them at all.
Of course, my opinion and $5 will get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks.
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Eric Burnley is a Delaware native who has fished and hunted the state from an early age. Since 1978 he has written countless articles about hunting and fishing in Delaware and elsewhere along the Atlantic Coast. He has been the regional editor for several publications and was the founding editor of the Mid-Atlantic Fisherman magazine. Eric is the author of three books: Surf Fishing the Atlantic Coast, The Ultimate Guide to Striped Bass Fishing and Fishing Saltwater Baits. He and his wife Barbara live near Milton, Delaware. Eric can be reached at Eburnle@aol.com.
