If you enjoy fishing for flounder, then 2024 is not going to be as much fun as 2023. The fine folks at the National Marine Fisheries Service have declared the quota for recreational fishing must decline by 28%. That is a quarter drop in the catch, and while we don’t know how that will be taken from the current regulations of a 16-1/2-inch total-length size and four-fish bag limit, I did suggest at the advisory council meeting that they drop the bag limit to three fish or raise the size limit back to 17 inches. Raising the size back to 17 inches would be the best option, as it would give the angler the opportunity to harvest four fish. The downside of that would be the removal of four larger flounder that would most likely be females. A three-fish bag limit would be difficult on the for-hire business. Would people still pay money to only take home three flounder?
The good news for 2024 is the bean counters have decided to leave the black sea bass alone. They will remain status quo for 2024.
Everyone on the advisory council has been screaming that there are more black sea bass out there than anyone can count. My Nov. 30 trip on the Angler out of Ocean City, Md., certainly proved the point. From my first drop at 8:30 a.m. until my last at 1:30 p.m., I caught at least one or, more often, two black sea bass. I had one drop when they cleaned my hooks, and I caught one dog shark. I ended the day with 20 over the 13-inch minimum size. We were fishing at the Del-Jersey-Land Reef that has been pounded since May 15. This certainly proves that the biomass of black sea bass is two-and-a-half times the acceptable level for sustainable fisheries.
At the council meeting, I suggested that we drop the minimum size limit for black sea bass to 12 inches. A 12-inch sea bass is a decent size and has plenty of meat. Just ask the seagulls that sit off the stern of the boat and gobble them down as quick as we throw them back. A 12-inch minimum would make it quicker for us to fill out our 15-fish bag limit and cut down on the dead discards. Also, many of the 13-inch fish are males, so we are taking prime spawners out of the system.
The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council has given the states from Maine to Virginia the guidelines to make their regulations under conservation equivalency rules. Delaware, Maryland and Virginia have always had the same regulations for summer flounder, black sea bass and scup (porgies). There will be a meeting of the department heads from all three states to decide on those regulations, and before that meeting, there will be a period of public comment. If you don’t make your voice heard during the public comment period, you have nothing to complain about when the final rules come down.
Wind farms
It seems that wind farms will be coming to Delaware in one form or another in the near future.
While one offshore wind company has pulled up stakes and quit, another is moving into our area. The new builder has been checked out by NOAA and they have found that while building an offshore wind farm will have a negative impact on the environment, it will not be so bad as to call off the project.
The biggest impact to hit Delaware directly will be the cables that will run from the windmills under the ocean floor to 3Rs Road, then they will come ashore and run under Indian River Bay to the current electric plant where the power from the turbines will connect to the grid.
The windmills will be located off Ocean City, Md., and while they will be visible from our southern beaches, I don’t believe they will be as big a deterrent as some think.
I am more concerned about a study done in Europe that showed bottom-dwelling fish such as flounder avoided areas where underground cables were planted. I don’t expect them to halt the wind farms because it might upset my flounder fishing, but it is something we will have to deal with.
Fishing report
Big striped bass continue to be caught inside the three-mile limit by folks trolling Mojos with shads. Jigging with big lead heads with large plastic shads has also worked on the big rockfish. While most are well over 31 inches, a few fall inside the 28- to 31-inch slot. Everyone I spoke with said the amount of bait is spectacular.
Don’t forget, your Delaware fishing license expires Sunday, Dec. 31.
Happy New Year!
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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.
