Striped bass, one of the most prized fish swimming in Vineyard waters, the focus of fishing tournaments and the dish on many dinner tables, is in decline here, that much is agreed. But what to do about it? That is not, and the divided opinions are lining up around new restrictions proposed to protect the fish.
Legislation was filed in January this year on Beacon Hill, calling for the state to end commercial fishing for striped bass and to limit recreational fishermen to one a day. Filed by Rep. Matt Patrick, a Democrat from Falmouth, the legislation has broad support from the recreational community on the mainland.
The Vineyard fishing community, however, is divided on the plan.
The Dukes County/Martha’s Vineyard Fishermen’s Association opposes it. Its cochairman Warren Doty said, “Our position is we have a very good management plan in place for striped bass.”
Menemsha charter fisherman Scott McDowell, however, said that for most of his 19 years in the business, “I thought there was room for both commercial and recreational fishermen. But now what I am seeing . . . the Rhode Island fishing boats near Gay Head, they are ruthless. I am solid for game fish status, if the state doesn’t come up with a better way to manage fishing. There is no enforcement out there.”
Next month the state joint committee on environment, natural resources and agriculture will hold a hearing on the game fish bill.
Other states have made striped bass a game fish, including Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C. and South Carolina.
Meanwhile, this summer Massachusetts commercial striped bass fishermen landed 1,160,453 pounds of fish.
The legislation proposes not just closing of all commercial striped bass fishing in the state, but further limiting recreational fishermen to one fish a day; today the limits are two fish per day, each no smaller than 28 inches. The new legislation proposes to limit future recreational fishermen to one striper between 20 to 26 inches long, or one “trophy fish” of 40 inches or greater.
Fishermen who participate in the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby would not be affected, other than some kind of change in the minimum size allowed at the weigh-in station. The derby has a self-imposed minimum size of 32 inches, more restrictive than the state 28-inch minimum.
Consumers looking for locally caught striped bass would not be able to purchase it. Only out of state striped bass would be shipped in.
The Martha’s Vineyard Rod and Gun Club holds a spring striped bass catch and release tournament; organizers have tracked fish caught and released since it began 18 years ago. In 2009, this year on May 30, 234 anglers caught and released 270 fish. In 2008, 193 fishermen caught 146 striped bass. In 2007 some 200 fishermen caught and released 484 fish.
But in 1996, 272 fishermen caught and released 879 fish.
Cooper A. Gilkes 3rd, of Edgartown, is an avid fly-fisherman who owns a tackle shop and has been a co-chairman of the fishing tournament since it started. “We have a striped bass fishing derby in the spring and in the fall, the numbers are declining like a staircase,” he said.
“All you have to do is read the stats that are coming in . . . . Biologists are saying all is fine, that there is no overfishing, and they know more than I do. But when we have derbies like we have been having … I feel something is wrong.”
Mr. Gilkes said he favors gamefish status.
Fishermen on both sides of this political fence are concerned about the decline in both striped bass and the fish they feed on.
Striped bass are one of the most watched species of fish swimming along the Atlantic seaboard. Every year fisheries scientists do a water sampling at a number of spots in the Chesapeake Bay in the summer to see how many fish were spawned that year. It is called the young-of-the-year index, and for several years the numbers have been poor.
This fall the index reported below-average recruitment of juvenile Chesapeake striped bass. The 2009 index came in at 7.9, better than last year’s low of 3.2, but below the average of 11.7.
Advocates of more protection for the striped bass argue that the numbers reflect a decline in future stocks over several years.
Massachusetts fisheries managers argue that the variability is worthy of note, but not severe enough to close commercial fishing in the state.
Fisheries managers with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which oversees the health of striped bass along the coast, state that striped bass are not being overfished, but their scientists do report that there are not as many juvenile striped bass swimming along the coast.
Mr. Doty said the management plan for striped bass “is based on scientific stock assessments for the entire East Coast. Massachusetts cooperates completely with that plan. We want to stick with that plan.”
He said the Dukes County/Martha’s Vineyard association is made up of 75 active members, mostly commercial but also some recreational fishermen.
Mike Armstrong, a fisheries biologist with the state Division of Marine Fisheries, said the striped bass numbers are down all along the coast, and not due to overfishing. He believes the decline is tied to several years of poor recruitment of juvenile striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay, where most of the Vineyard fish originate. “I point the finger at Mother Nature,” he said.
All it takes is just one strong year class to assure the future of the stocks, fisheries managers report — but there hasn’t been a strong year class of juveniles since 2001 and 1996. Those fish are adults now and represent the bulk of the big fish that are out there. Anglers are concerned that without a good year class ahead, the future of the fishery is in trouble.
But Lev Wlodyka, a West Tisbury commercial striped bass fisherman and derby-winning legend, said protecting striped bass requires more scientific attention and is more complex than just shutting down the commercial fishing in this state.
“When a fisherman isn’t catching a fish, he says: ‘Somebody has killed all the fish,’” Mr. Wlodyka said. He blames the decline on the scarcity of spawned fish over many years, and the availability of bait.
Bait fish that used to bring the striped bass into our waters — including river herring (alewives), menhaden (also called bunker), sand eels and scup — have been in decline here, too.
“Look, it is a bigger problem. If people were as passionate about the other species in our waters, they’d have seen this problem solved years ago. It is delicately balanced,” he said.
Mr. Wlodyka said he has angler friends who have gone to the usual hot spots, the herring runs and the jetties, and they just aren’t seeing bait. “We’ve seen a lot of striped bass gulping down krill. They are eating like whales because there is nothing else to eat.”
Massachusetts is into the fourth year of a statewide moratorium on the catching of river herring. There are also moratoria in Connecticut and Rhode Island.
Mr. Armstrong said in the past two years he has seen an increase in the number of herring returning to spawn. The recovery coincides with action taken in the Gulf of Maine to kick out fine-mesh draggers targeting sea herring, a different but similar species. The state wide moratorium is to expire in January of 2012.
Sen. Robert O’Leary and state Rep Tim Madden sit on the committee that will hold next month’s hearing on the striped bass proposal. Senator O’Leary said he is opposed to the bill. Mr. Madden has said he is leaning against the gamefish status.
Coincidentally, the state’s Marine Fisheries Advisory Commission, which sets the rules and is responsible for managing the stocks in the state, will take up the decline in striped bass at its Jan. 14 meeting. The chairman of the commission, Mark Amorello, wrote a letter opposing the legislation.
The advisory commission is charged with coming up with the state’s fisheries regulations for the coming year. Even if the gamefish legislation fails, state regulators may enact new restrictions for commercial and recreational fishermen here.
Mr. Armstrong said they are closely aware of the concerns being expressed by anglers about the striped bass in these waters.
This article appears in December 11, 2009.
Scup and Menhaden are in decline?
Local abundance of scup and menhaden is steady and increasing.
Perhaps the local bass numbers are off because there are too many striped bass fishermen? For years those of us who actually earn our living as commercial fishermen have asked the state to limit entry to striper fishing ( and other fishing too) and have complained about all the firemen and plumbers who had permits and treated the fishery as a way to supplement an expensive hobby. DMF director Diodati has even stated that it’s the MA DMF’s “policy” for this fishery, that it is ” away for men to justify a very expensive hobby to their wives”(audio available).
Personally I think the DMF should lower the daily landing limit to 10 fish and limit entry to only persons who earn 2/3 of their income from fishing. No more subsidized hobby fishery, no more $100,000 boats chasing the fish and enforce the limit.
We might win this time around but until the DMF is willing to address the way this fishery is conducted and by whom, this battle will continue. The way it is conducted now is a disgrace and an insult to the real working fishermen of Massachusetts.
John is right on…Here in Ny we have the same problem with”Part timers”I say make it 100% of your income,it will get rid of more fishermen
I don’t think there is a more regulated commercial fishery than Bass 7-10% of TAC? and to say we’re the problem?..time to look in the mirror.
What a surprise having John of Harwich and Dan of NY make elitist type comments. Only they should be allowed to fish commercially. It’s the old island way for many islanders to supplement their incomes with scalloping or striper fishing . And the hard evidence is that the bunker and most bait fish stocks are way down. Perhaps it’s time for “YOU” to find another line of work. That would cut back on guys that think it’s their exclusive right to harvest like it’s a never ending supply.
i agree with lev. the bait just wasnt as plentiful in the season, but later in the summer it showed up pretty good. we just had to travel a little farther to get it. the state cant shut down commercial with such the lack of scientific evidence. catching fish just got harder, no whining
We need to reduce overall fishing pressure. The marine fisheries folks have a job to do, i.e., preserving a commercial fishery. The problem is that this is an impossible task. No marine fishery has been managed so that its numbers are above where they were only a few short decades ago. When you see evidence of improvements in the stock, you are generally seeing small changes that in no way impact the the health of the ecosystem as a whole. The only problem with closing the striper season is that another species will take its place as the fish of choice for harvest– until that species is at the brink of extinction as well. The fact is stripers are a great fish, but it is also high in PCBs. It is time to leave the stripers alone- to help the fish survive and to keep environmental toxins our of our diets.
If the Striped Bass Bill (HD 245) passes and takes away the commercial striped bass fishery from historical small-working harbors like Menemsha, it will be another nail in the coffin for the commercial fishing heritage, culture, and history of our New England coast.
I can understand the instinct to err on the side of conservation. When we think of commercial fishing, the images of the mega factory trawlers that destroy the ocean’s floor probably comes to mind.
Please know that the small-boat commercial fishermen hold no resemblance.
We hold stern solidarity to the waters and fish that we dedicate our lives to. We consider it a privilege to make a living from the sea and want nothing more than to see our fisheries thrive sustainably forever. The striped bass fishery is sustainable as long as our estuaries stay clean for reproduction and our regulations reflect current stock assessments. If there are too many commercial boats, then let the Department of Marine Fisheries (DMF) use their already existing control date to reduce the permit holders, and to limit out of state boats from crowding our waters. If striped bass becomes over-harvested then let the DMF reduce the quota. However, it is important to understand that the commercial quota only makes up 17% of the recreational catch.
The misguided and politically minded legislators who have no understanding of the fishery should not determine its future, let alone write the script for its demise. We ask to work together with you and the DMF on rational, science-based regulations allowing striped bass, as well as other fish species to thrive sustainably, so our kids and grandkids can share the privilege of fishing, for work and for pleasure.