Striper Action

[billwrubel]

many of you have no doubt read the comments under the fishing thread about concerns over the striper population and ideas to fix it. Thought a separate thread would be a good idea. I, for one, am ready to tackle this issue. Contact people, write, etc. But let's start by finding out what people think
. One good example was the idea that Spring be closed to any keepers. What do we think

[RobS]

I definitely believe the spring river fisheries need to be shut down.

One thing about getting breeders in ocean, but when they are enroute to/from doing the jiggy, leave them alone.

We already have a winter shutdown due to historical snagging of overwintering bass, in the back. Time to protect the spring spawning as well.

[NJ Dave]

I think this is more a common sense issue. We as fisherman know what needs to be done and should apply to our concerns.
Problem is if NJ closed it but bordering states don't we are just allowing other states to have a better shot at landing more fish.
If something is done it must be across the board for all states.
By all means I do harvest fish to eat but i let more fish return to the ocean than hit the grill.

[crookedfellas]

I agree a shutdown needs to happen in the spring as well as better protecting the big girls. But, it needs enforced and the violations need to have stiffer penalties. The other night that I was out, guys were keeping more than their limit, I politely told them the regs, but on the end of a jetty thats about as far as I'm going to go, especially after getting in a shoving match out there a couple years ago, there's too many crazy people in the world anymore.

I attended a couple of the meetings a few years ago and many guys there voiced their concerns for the comms and for a 1 fish at 35" for the rec's, but what happened seems every other state was in agreement except for NJ, where you can still bag three fish.

I think a crash needs to happen as sad as that is for any real change to take place.

[bluesrule]

I love this new thread and I hope we can keep it going.
There are groups out there that would be happy to have our support.
This group, in particular, has been advocating for years that Striped Bass be designated a sportfish only- https://www.stripersforever.org/

I would like to second what Bill said about change being possible. If you need evidence, some of us put a lot of effort into contacting Congressman Pallone in regard to recent restrictions at SH, and guess what? He took action and it worked.

Let's do something.

[J Barbosa]

Originally Posted by NJ Dave

I think this is more a common sense issue. We as fisherman know what needs to be done and should apply to our concerns.
Problem is if NJ closed it but bordering states don't we are just allowing other states to have a better shot at landing more fish.
If something is done it must be across the board for all states.
By all means I do harvest fish to eat but i let more fish return to the ocean than hit the grill.

NJ is a huge part of the problem! We are the only state that allows an individual to keep more than 1 bass per day (up to 3 a day here!).

FYI, NEW YORK'S STRIPED BASS SEASON IS CLOSED UNTIL 4/15 EVERY YEAR!!!

[Art Vrola]

All of us are familiar with the saying: "The first thing to do when you want to get out of a hole is stop digging."
We all agree that we are in a hole. Why not just stop digging.

#1: Disallow the taking of any bass both in the Spring and Fall. While everyone's taste is different, I don't believe most of us wake up with a desire to eat a striped bass. Do the Tarpon and Bonefish thing like in Florida.

#2: Require only circle hooks for the bait fishermen. Also regulate the size of the circle hook that would cause the least amount of damage. Not sure what size, but, there are more knowledgeable folks that can make that determination.

#3: Ban all treble hooks on lures & plugs. In fact, some might take it one step further and require the removal of the tail hook on all artificials. Unlike bluefish, bass normally hit the front of the offering anyway.

As disheartened as I am with all aspects of today's society, I am somewhat optimistic that a concerted effort to preserve and enhance the bass fishery is achievable.

[HookI]

There is a lot more to it than the obvious. It all has to do with development of clean water for reproduction . In short the life cycle of the Striped Bass has major problems on land that interfears with birth & growth of habitat where the Life Cycle chain begins .

[Joseph C.]

I think Art's #1-3 all have merit. Even if we could push through one or two of these ideas we'd be making improvements.
I just wish I could catch my first "keeper" this year so I might feel virtuous when I set her free.
Happy Thanksgiving, all!

[Kroc]

Really great stuff from everyone. Please excuse my ignorance but aren't there still some states that allow commercial netting of striped bass? If this is the case shouldn't that be the main focus before tightening the rod & reel rules and regs?
I would hate to affect anyone's livelihood but if commercial netting is still allowed isn't it pointless to limit a surf angler to one fish instead of two?
As NJ Dave pointed out it can't be a NJ specific thing, I mean stripers are migrating fish, what happens hundreds of miles from NJ affects NJ.

[billwrubel]

remember, we can only do what we can do; other States, etc are part of the problem but at least we can take some steps to communicate our concerns

[yarddog]

So many great ideas from very good fishermen! We need hundreds more like you. To the ones I have met on the sand and the ones I have met here, Happy Thanksgiving to all you good men. Paul

[BassTracker]

It has been years since I have kept any striper. I think the 30 inchers are the life of the line for years to come and are too big for my family to eat. I liked the idea of the slot fish in the 24-28 inch range, but think all states should limit the daily take to ONE FISH! There is no good reason to slaughter all you can catch, but that goes for all of us. Take them home and put them in the freezer for a couple of months before your wife throws them out? Give them to friends who likely don't need them and may not even eat them? Happens all too often.

I don't really know the commercial regulations, but it bugs the hell out of me to go to my local fish stand at market and see fillets that are obviously cut from fish that were a lot less than 28 inches.

[Frank N]

According to the ASMFC, it's not the comms.

[Frank N]

What is this, the slow season so all the bass are gone concept? Maybe they are partying in the EEZ....

Here is the YOY results out of the Chessy...and the entire article.