BREAKING NEWS!!! 2024 was another HORRID MD Striped Bass Spawn!!
- Thread starter Roccus7
- Start date
Results of Chesapeake Bay 2024 Young-of-Year Striped Bass Survey Show Little Change from the DNR website
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources announced results of this year’s juvenile striped bass survey, which tracks the reproductive success of Maryland’s state fish in the Chesapeake Bay. The 2024 young-of-year index is 2.0, well below the long-term average of 11.0, and marks the sixth consecutive year of poor reproduction.
“These results underscore the complexity of managing a coastal migratory species whose life-cycle is influenced by environmental conditions during a brief spawning period,” said Maryland DNR Fishing and Boating Services Director Lynn Fegley. “We will continue to explore ways to conserve and enhance the spawning population during this time when we are adding fewer young fish to the population.”
During this annual survey, fishery managers examine 22 sites located in four major striped bass spawning areas: the Choptank, Nanticoke, and Potomac rivers, and the upper Chesapeake Bay. Biologists visit each site three times per summer, collecting fish with two sweeps of a 100-foot beach seine net. The index represents the average number of young-of-year striped bass found in each sample. The juvenile striped bass average less than 3 inches long and are not usually encountered by anglers. Similar fish surveys conducted this summer in the Patapsco, Magothy, Rhode, West, Miles, and Tred Avon rivers found fewer striped bass, also known as rockfish.
Biologists use a seine net to capture fish for the annual striped bass juvenile index survey in the Nanticoke River. Photo by Joe Zimmermann, Maryland DNR
Biologists captured more than 56,000 fish of 56 different species while conducting this year’s survey. Encouraging results were documented regarding two species lower on the food chain. Menhaden abundance was nearly equal to last year, which was the highest measured since 1990. Spot abundance was the highest measured since 1988. These species are vital to the ecology of the Bay as a food source for many other species of fish and wildlife.
Efforts to rebuild the Atlantic Coast population of striped bass have been ongoing for several years. Although recent population estimates indicate improvement, low levels of reproduction will influence future conservation measures under consideration by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.
In recent years, Maryland has implemented management actions aimed at rebuilding the spawning stock, including reductions to catch limits, increased protections for spawning fish, tighter slot limits, and season closures. However, warm conditions in winter continue to negatively impact the reproductive success of striped bass, whose larvae are very sensitive to water conditions and food availability in the first several weeks after hatching. Other species with similar spawning behavior such as white perch, yellow perch, and American shad also experienced below-average reproduction this year.
The below-average year classes will likely become more apparent among the adult population of striped bass in the coming years, as the juveniles reach maturity. While environmental conditions hamper reproductive success, fisheries managers focus conservation efforts on adult striped bass so that the spawning population can produce a strong year class when environmental conditions are favorable.
The Virginia Institute of Marine Science conducts a similar survey in the southern portion of Chesapeake Bay.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources announced results of this year’s juvenile striped bass survey, which tracks the reproductive success of Maryland’s state fish in the Chesapeake Bay. The 2024 young-of-year index is 2.0, well below the long-term average of 11.0, and marks the sixth consecutive year of poor reproduction.
“These results underscore the complexity of managing a coastal migratory species whose life-cycle is influenced by environmental conditions during a brief spawning period,” said Maryland DNR Fishing and Boating Services Director Lynn Fegley. “We will continue to explore ways to conserve and enhance the spawning population during this time when we are adding fewer young fish to the population.”
During this annual survey, fishery managers examine 22 sites located in four major striped bass spawning areas: the Choptank, Nanticoke, and Potomac rivers, and the upper Chesapeake Bay. Biologists visit each site three times per summer, collecting fish with two sweeps of a 100-foot beach seine net. The index represents the average number of young-of-year striped bass found in each sample. The juvenile striped bass average less than 3 inches long and are not usually encountered by anglers. Similar fish surveys conducted this summer in the Patapsco, Magothy, Rhode, West, Miles, and Tred Avon rivers found fewer striped bass, also known as rockfish.
Biologists use a seine net to capture fish for the annual striped bass juvenile index survey in the Nanticoke River. Photo by Joe Zimmermann, Maryland DNR
Biologists captured more than 56,000 fish of 56 different species while conducting this year’s survey. Encouraging results were documented regarding two species lower on the food chain. Menhaden abundance was nearly equal to last year, which was the highest measured since 1990. Spot abundance was the highest measured since 1988. These species are vital to the ecology of the Bay as a food source for many other species of fish and wildlife.
Efforts to rebuild the Atlantic Coast population of striped bass have been ongoing for several years. Although recent population estimates indicate improvement, low levels of reproduction will influence future conservation measures under consideration by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission.
In recent years, Maryland has implemented management actions aimed at rebuilding the spawning stock, including reductions to catch limits, increased protections for spawning fish, tighter slot limits, and season closures. However, warm conditions in winter continue to negatively impact the reproductive success of striped bass, whose larvae are very sensitive to water conditions and food availability in the first several weeks after hatching. Other species with similar spawning behavior such as white perch, yellow perch, and American shad also experienced below-average reproduction this year.
The below-average year classes will likely become more apparent among the adult population of striped bass in the coming years, as the juveniles reach maturity. While environmental conditions hamper reproductive success, fisheries managers focus conservation efforts on adult striped bass so that the spawning population can produce a strong year class when environmental conditions are favorable.
The Virginia Institute of Marine Science conducts a similar survey in the southern portion of Chesapeake Bay.
This is sure to put a lot of pressure on Asmfc to do something. I just don't see what the rest of the coast can do to restore a fishery that's in the Chesapeak where they just keep taking. They're on a 19 inch fish recreationally, they have trophy seasons at will, and they take 71% of the entire east coast commercial quota from that Bay.
They have gotten everything they wanted since the beginning of the plan. Now they have destroyed their fishery yet somehow the rest of the coast is going to fix it?
If they want fish in the Bay again they need to stop taking them all and stop Omega from killing all of their bunker.
They have gotten everything they wanted since the beginning of the plan. Now they have destroyed their fishery yet somehow the rest of the coast is going to fix it?
If they want fish in the Bay again they need to stop taking them all and stop Omega from killing all of their bunker.
I thought the same thing, but I'm convinced. More and more anglers agree that there's a lack of smaller fish around. The Jamaica Bay striped bass fishery that found season long action of smaller 12-22 inch fish have been absent since June.
That's just one of many examples. Like you I've always doubted the YOY data and it's still very antiquated for the 21st century. But in this case something is obviously happening. What I don't know.
It’s the longest and most predictive data set for any fish. If you can provide a better data set spanning the last 70 years please post.
As the mean size of the fish I catch each season, and the number of smaller fish caught plummets, I’m confident that I’m validating the MD observations.
OVERBORED
Well-Known Angler
"Longest and predictive" doesn't always equate to accurate professor........... I'm sure those sampling areas don't look the way they did 10-20years ago with construction, organic pesticides, etc etc...........ln any event, I agree. Bass population has been in a decline for some time. I would assume that they are the most targeted species North of the Chesapeake. That's ALOT of pressure.
Absolutely, BUT it's the best we've got. Do you have/know of a better, more accurate data set to regarding the health of the young MD striped bass population.?
Anyone can poke theoretical holes at any survey, but without hard data to support the supposed shortcomings, it's just fluff and diverts attention from the matter at hand. Are you suggesting that because of your questioning, that the ASMFC should ignore these data on their meeting Wednesday and take no corrective actions for the future of striped bass??
One thing that fishermen of all stripes, pun intended, love to say that data sets/surveys are wrong without being able to provide any actual data. If the MD survey had gaping wounds in it why would VA, NY & ME set up their own YOY surveys patterned directly after MD's?
I'm sure that you would be quite upset if fisheries managers were to ignore these YOY data and say the striped bass population is healthy because that's what fishermen claim...
OVERBORED
Well-Known Angler
I didn't say the data sets were wrong. What I am saying is that some times we fall into a safe pattern of repetitiveness and we don't expand the way we look at things.
Quite possibly these juveniles aren't sticking around the estuaries for numerous reasons. Maybe they seeked more favorable conditions further north or in deeper, cooler waters within the bay.
Either way, the striped bass has more commercial and recreational pressure than ever. With current regs, the fishery can no longer sustain itself.
Quite possibly these juveniles aren't sticking around the estuaries for numerous reasons. Maybe they seeked more favorable conditions further north or in deeper, cooler waters within the bay.
Either way, the striped bass has more commercial and recreational pressure than ever. With current regs, the fishery can no longer sustain itself.
For years, we thought striped bass simply migrated up and down the coast. That changed with the deployment of satellite tags, which revealed that schools of stripers also migrate to Georges Bank and the canyon. (See the photo below.) It’s clear we need a better approach to understanding stock sizes and migration patterns because the current plan just isn’t working.
For the record the discovery of Georges Bank stripers is 14 year old news and I'm pretty sure it wasn't discovered by satellite tags. This one was a verified angler discovery back in 2010 when big stripers were feasting on the huge sand eel bloom out on Georges. The boats targeting smaller BFT were going apeshit because they couldn't troll their daisy chains without having 20-30 lb stripers jumping on their rigs. IIRC this sand eel bonanza lasted for a good three seasons, and besides tuna and stripers, there were other sea creatures enjoying the smorgasbord, including multiple whale species...
Of course all the stripers caught out there had to be released because they were in the EEZ...
..
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AMEN to that. Let's see what the "Brain Trust" at ASMFC come up with. I can't wait to hear the Maryland Rep rationalize things in his usual manner. He's just like Kevin Bacon in Animal House...
Bassmaster
Well-Known Angler
Yesterday I was in the ocean and there were no short stripers at all just slot size and oversized stripers. Yet when I fish near citifield it's all schollie bass I might of had 2 slot size stripers. And 4 to 6 inch bass in that water. I am hoping they don't have a moratorium. I am not a big fan of eating bass but it's my favorite fish to catch. See what happens
I was unable to listen on the ASFMC's Striped Bass Commission Meeting yesterday so I'm swiping a summary of someone who did. I left in all of his editorial comments, because this person does a pretty good job of capturing things...
From what I can figure it was basically the typical "Can Kicking" event, moving decisions to an Emergency December meeting, with MD & NJ trying to finagle through a "All is Well" tack...
NOTE: TC Task #2 has a NO TARGETING suggestion also. That means you can't even target stripers during that time period. That one should go over like a fart in church, since all the C&R operations, of which there are many in Maine, would lose that part of the season...
It was kind of a strange result.
The Technical Committee presented a number of possible scenarios, ranging from one in which 2024 fishing mortality was substantially lower than it was in 2023, and only a 4% reduction in landings would be needed to have a 50% chance of rebuilding, and one in which 2024 fishing mortality equaled 2023's, in which case a 46% reduction would be needed.
However, the TC didn't believe that either of those scenarios was the most likely. It decided that the most likely scenario would see 2024 fishing mortality to be well below 2023's, but that such mortaility would increase as the 2018 year class entered the slot in 2025, then decline again as the 2018s grew out of the slot in 2026 with little coming up to replace them. Should that scenario prove to be true, there would only be a 43% probability of the stock rebuilding under current regulations. A 14.5% reduction is needed to make rebuilding probable.
But the TC didn't tell the board what it would have to do to achieve a 14.5%, or any other, reduction. So the Board, led by Nicola Meserve of Massachusetts, voted to meet again in December to put necessary measures in place. In the meantime, they tasked the TC to come up with the information required to make the necessary management decisions, with various items prioritized based on perceived need and probabilities of use.
It wasn't a very satisfying outcome, although it was probably the best that could have emerged given the lack of information available to the Board. There is a lot of uncertainty arising out of the unknown impacts of Addendum II (it only went into effect this year, and we only have this year's data through August), what angler behavior will be in response to the 2018s and the declining availability of fish, what the availability of fish will be, etc. Some Board members tried to derail the process, with Michael Luisi of Maryland trying to initiate an Addendum that wouldn't go into effect until 2026, Patrick Geer of Virginia pushing to put recreational measures in place by 2025 but not changing commercial measures until 2026, and John Clark of Delaware complaining that no new measures are needed, as even if nothing more is done, the SSB is on an upward trajectory and the stock will be larger in 2029 than it is today, if still below target (he also tried to replace commercial quota increases with changes to the tagging process, claiming that it would yield greater benefits). The proposals all failed, the first by a vote of 6 for, 9 against, and 1 abstention, the second by a vote of 7 for, 7 against, and 2 abstentions, and the third on a vote of 8 for, 8 against.
Once all those were defeated, the motion to meet in December passed on a vote of 14 for, New Jersey against.
Below are a couple of screenshots illustrating the scenarios and the information sought from the Technical Committee.
From what I can figure it was basically the typical "Can Kicking" event, moving decisions to an Emergency December meeting, with MD & NJ trying to finagle through a "All is Well" tack...
NOTE: TC Task #2 has a NO TARGETING suggestion also. That means you can't even target stripers during that time period. That one should go over like a fart in church, since all the C&R operations, of which there are many in Maine, would lose that part of the season...
It was kind of a strange result.
The Technical Committee presented a number of possible scenarios, ranging from one in which 2024 fishing mortality was substantially lower than it was in 2023, and only a 4% reduction in landings would be needed to have a 50% chance of rebuilding, and one in which 2024 fishing mortality equaled 2023's, in which case a 46% reduction would be needed.
However, the TC didn't believe that either of those scenarios was the most likely. It decided that the most likely scenario would see 2024 fishing mortality to be well below 2023's, but that such mortaility would increase as the 2018 year class entered the slot in 2025, then decline again as the 2018s grew out of the slot in 2026 with little coming up to replace them. Should that scenario prove to be true, there would only be a 43% probability of the stock rebuilding under current regulations. A 14.5% reduction is needed to make rebuilding probable.
But the TC didn't tell the board what it would have to do to achieve a 14.5%, or any other, reduction. So the Board, led by Nicola Meserve of Massachusetts, voted to meet again in December to put necessary measures in place. In the meantime, they tasked the TC to come up with the information required to make the necessary management decisions, with various items prioritized based on perceived need and probabilities of use.
It wasn't a very satisfying outcome, although it was probably the best that could have emerged given the lack of information available to the Board. There is a lot of uncertainty arising out of the unknown impacts of Addendum II (it only went into effect this year, and we only have this year's data through August), what angler behavior will be in response to the 2018s and the declining availability of fish, what the availability of fish will be, etc. Some Board members tried to derail the process, with Michael Luisi of Maryland trying to initiate an Addendum that wouldn't go into effect until 2026, Patrick Geer of Virginia pushing to put recreational measures in place by 2025 but not changing commercial measures until 2026, and John Clark of Delaware complaining that no new measures are needed, as even if nothing more is done, the SSB is on an upward trajectory and the stock will be larger in 2029 than it is today, if still below target (he also tried to replace commercial quota increases with changes to the tagging process, claiming that it would yield greater benefits). The proposals all failed, the first by a vote of 6 for, 9 against, and 1 abstention, the second by a vote of 7 for, 7 against, and 2 abstentions, and the third on a vote of 8 for, 8 against.
Once all those were defeated, the motion to meet in December passed on a vote of 14 for, New Jersey against.
Below are a couple of screenshots illustrating the scenarios and the information sought from the Technical Committee.
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