Chesapeake Stripers - Headed to a full Moratorium?

[Johnsfolly]

More bad news for the stripers in the Chesapeake. Are we looking at another complete moratorium in the Bay/Eastern seaboard like back in the eighties?

https://www.wboc.com/news/more-striped-bass-restrictions-possible-for-chesapeake-bay-fisheries/article_abca55b6-9231-11ef-ab45-97bc3b3c59ef.html

[Quillback]

Do they have a reason for the decline?  Overfishing?  Loss of spawning habitat?  Blue cats?

[Terrierman]

The biologists will figure it out.  Hope the politicians get on board with taking care of a fishery.  Sometimes, just knowing the answer to a question isn't enough.  Other times we humans do OK.

[dpitt]

That's a bummer, had a chance to take a fly fishing trip in Chesapeake  bay,  got caught in a wicked storm on way back to the boat ramp, very Nautical, giant swells.  We where in a 20' skiff, new it was dicey conditions, guide had to work the throttle to handle the swells and following seas. He was cool as a cucumber, kind of like when you check out the body language of a flight crew when things get wonky on a flight.  That is  until we got back the ramp, where he admitted he was a bit worried, we where all soaked   Other than that, very beautiful and fishey place.

 

 

[rps]

Michner wrote a book on the Chesapeake. His introduction were always the most interesting.

[Johnsfolly]

On 10/25/2024 at 5:17 PM, Quillback said:

Do they have a reason for the decline?  Overfishing?  Loss of spawning habitat?  Blue cats?

Jeff looks like all the above and more. A recent study showed up to 49% mortality from catch and release. I've heard from a reliable source that blue cats were seen having a feeding frenzy on striper spawn after the cats followed the bass up the spawning creeks. Recruitment has dropped dramatically over the last ten years. There has been higher recruitment in the populations spawning in the Hudson River than the bay. Menhaden, aka bunker, overfishing in the mouth of the Bay in VA has dropped the numbers that reach the upper Bay that are a high energy forage for juvenile and adult stripers. 

[Quillback]

The mortality thing is certainly true with Beaver lake stripers when the water is warm.  

You'd think they could get some kind of commercial fishery going targeting those blues.  I don't know about the Chesapeake blues, but the ones I've caught in Grand lake are excellent eating.  I'd take them over crappie or walleye.

[dpitt]

Have not caught many, but man they seem to be very aggressive predator.

[Johnsfolly]

3 hours ago, dpitt said:

Have not caught many, but man they seem to be very aggressive predator.

They are fun to catch and I haven't caught any big ones.

[FishnDave]

Bummer to hear.  Weren't the Blues intentionally stocked?  Not native to the area...