# Did anyone see the BS about striper fishing



## Bass_n_around (Oct 21, 2006)

Did anyone see this BS in the washington Post something about banning pre trophy fishing for stripers.Bull this is stupid lobbiest for commercial fisherman.


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

I just saw it in the Annapolis paper. This is stupidity of the highest order. Not allowing catch and release while still allowing gill netting??? *Give Striped Bass game fish status. That's the solution *


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## BlueHwy (Sep 1, 2009)

Can anyone post a link to one (or more) of the articles? 

Thanks


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## shaggy (Jun 18, 2003)

BlueHwy said:


> Can anyone post a link to one (or more) of the articles?
> 
> Thanks


http://www.hometownannapolis.com/news/out/2009/10/25-42/Outdoors-Preseason-trolling-a-hot-issue.html


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## BlueHwy (Sep 1, 2009)

Thanks!


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

In and of itself, not fishing for pre-spawn fish if you can't keep them is not a bad idea. As the Chesapeake is the spawning ground for a major population of the striped bass in the mid-Atlantic region, there should be a fisheries wide moratorium on striped bass before the season opens: no commercial fishing for them, no recreational fishing for them, no trolling, no bait, nothing. The brood stock need to be protected.


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## hengstthomas (Mar 11, 2006)

AtlantaKing said:


> In and of itself, not fishing for pre-spawn fish if you can't keep them is not a bad idea. As the Chesapeake is the spawning ground for a major population of the striped bass in the mid-Atlantic region, there should be a fisheries wide moratorium on striped bass before the season opens: no commercial fishing for them, no recreational fishing for them, no trolling, no bait, nothing. The brood stock need to be protected.


Very well said


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## RuddeDogg (Mar 20, 2004)

AtlantaKing said:


> In and of itself, not fishing for pre-spawn fish if you can't keep them is not a bad idea. As the Chesapeake is the spawning ground for a major population of the striped bass in the mid-Atlantic region, there should be a fisheries wide moratorium on striped bass before the season opens: no commercial fishing for them, no recreational fishing for them, no trolling, no bait, nothing. The brood stock need to be protected.


Yep.


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## Lipyourown (May 11, 2005)

The catch and kill season is harder on the brood stock no matter how you slice it. If we are truely concerned about the health of a fish species we would regulate the catch and kill season more and leave the c&r anglers alone. Just my opinion.


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## dreadK (Oct 10, 2009)

I'll support whatever policy is backed up by the hardest science and places the greatest equity on all classes of fishermen (e.g. catch&release, catch&kill, commercial). By equity I mean imposing restrictions on some sort of "effect" basis. If pre-season rockfishing can not be shown to have a demonstrated effect that's greater then the catch and kills season, for example, then it shouldn't be singled out. Personally, I don't fish the pre-season...but why waste time implementing a regulation that's not outcome based. I'm open to regulating most things if it's necessary, as long as its outcome based. Sometimes we have to sacrifice, but it should be for a good reason....not because someone has a hunch. I want to see more info that QUANTIFIES the impact of the various seasons and info that allows you to compare those impacts.


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

AtlantaKing said:


> In and of itself, not fishing for pre-spawn fish if you can't keep them is not a bad idea. As the Chesapeake is the spawning ground for a major population of the striped bass in the mid-Atlantic region, there should be a fisheries wide moratorium on striped bass before the season opens: no commercial fishing for them, no recreational fishing for them, no trolling, no bait, nothing. The brood stock need to be protected.


I hear what you're saying AK but that would mean NO FISHING in the bay until trophy season starts. Sorry but that's not gonna fly. Stripers aren't the only fish people target in the spring so how would DNR enforce a 'no fishing for stripers law' ?? You are always going to have bycatch. What else can you do but release them right away?

I just reviewed NOAA Fisheries data for Striped bass taken in MD and compared it to MD DNR's stats on commercial SB licenses issued. There are only 1231 commercial Striped bass fishing licenses issued period. In 2008 Comms caught 2,672,088lbs of Stripers While Recs caught 3,178,237 lbs. That means out of all the people licensed in MD (Comm&Rec) 1231 people were allowed to catch 44% of the all the Striped bass taken. Somethings broken here. Like I said earlier. You wanna protect the fishery?? Give Striped Bass *'Game Fish Status'*


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## surfnsam (Apr 28, 2008)

i think banning charter boats from going out before C&R season opens is a good idea. these guys go out with 15+ rods out, when they hook up the don't stop and fight a fish they keep going pulling the fish in while going 3-4 mph, this isn't good on the fish and they will just throw it back without reviving it. the mortality rate is something like 30%. the only thing these captains are doing is killing fish while trying to locate them. i am not saying we should ban rock fishing, just stop killing them needlessly, make these charter captains respect the rock and revive and release these breeders.


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## stonemason (Aug 4, 2006)

whats the difference in a trophy fish being killed during the spring or in the middle of the summer? fact it, neither will lay it's eggs.

so now to come out and say Marylanders cant even C&R for trophy bass, but the whole noreast can is not fair. If Noreasters didnt keep these huge fish, then they would come down and spawn too....


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## Nakedjeeper (Dec 22, 2008)

There a lot of issues that are hurting our rocks.. nasty bay water, fertilizer run off, wasting disease, over harvesting of menhaden. too few oysters.. I hope the scientists get accurate information before any laws are passed. The last thing I think anyone wants is another moretorium like we had in the 80's.


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

surfnsam said:


> i think banning charter boats from going out before C&R season opens is a good idea. these guys go out with 15+ rods out, when they hook up the don't stop and fight a fish they keep going pulling the fish in while going 3-4 mph, this isn't good on the fish and they will just throw it back without reviving it. the mortality rate is something like 30%. the only thing these captains are doing is killing fish while trying to locate them. i am not saying we should ban rock fishing, just stop killing them needlessly, make these charter captains respect the rock and revive and release these breeders.


You have a point about the huge spreads. Maybe they should limit it to say four rods. But I don't agree with eliminating it all together. But ! I do agree with eliminating commercial fishing for Stripers. It is already the law in federal waters and many states. Why not MD.

*Federal Government Confirms Red Drum and Striped Bass Gamefish Status*
Announcement affirms 2007 Executive Order signed by President Bush 

Alexandria, VA – October 17, 2008 – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service (NFMS) announced in the October 17, 2008, Federal Register that the requirements set by Executive Order 13449 which established striped bass and red drum as gamefish have been fulfilled. NMFS determined that the current rules banning the sale of striped bass and red drum caught in federal waters in the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico achieve the intent of Executive Order 13449, signed by President George W. Bush on October 20, 2007. 

“This ruling ensures that striped bass and red drum will survive and grow for generations of anglers to enjoy,” ASA President and CEO Mike Nussman said. “We are very pleased that NMFS has completed this ruling ensuring that federal waters will be closed to commercial fishing for these important gamefish.”

Executive Order 13449 established gamefish status for striped bass and red drum in federal waters. Gamefish status means that the two species are provided regulations and management measures to promote their well-being as a fish sought for recreational fishing and not for sale if caught in federal waters.

This announcement insures the recreational, economic and environmental benefits of two of the most popular gamefish in the United States. The order protects the fisheries in federal waters from commercial harvest, which include three miles to 200 miles offshore. The Order does not cover state waters, which go from the coastline to three miles offshore. Many states have conferred gamefish status for these species and the executive order encourages those that have not conferred gamefish status to do so. The announcement on October 17, 2008 signifies that the regulatory requirements of the executive order were fulfilled. 

###


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## hengstthomas (Mar 11, 2006)

stupidjet said:


> whats the difference in a trophy fish being killed during the spring or in the middle of the summer? fact it, neither will lay it's eggs.
> 
> so now to come out and say Marylanders cant even C&R for trophy bass, but the whole noreast can is not fair. If Noreasters didnt keep these huge fish, then they would come down and spawn too....


Fair ? Not much is these days regarding fish . 
The thing about this whole situation is this .. Over the years it has grown to a "TROPHY" status and is advertised that way , the result being that anyone can literally go out and possibly bag a "trophy" and all the pressure is not good .
I really dont see how anyone in MD can complain about Striped Bass anyways .. You can keep the best ones (18 to 20 inches) while we are stuck trying to find 28"+ fish all year (with the exception of the slot this year and one other year a few years ago) .
What you have to remember is that this is the largest Spawning grounds for Striped Bass and should be protected better .


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## UnknownFish (Sep 12, 2007)

AtlantaKing said:


> In and of itself, not fishing for pre-spawn fish if you can't keep them is not a bad idea. As the Chesapeake is the spawning ground for a major population of the striped bass in the mid-Atlantic region, there should be a fisheries wide moratorium on striped bass before the season opens: no commercial fishing for them, no recreational fishing for them, no trolling, no bait, nothing. The brood stock need to be protected.


Very well said.

I also think they should make it that we cant keep fish bigger then 30" as these fish are the spawning fish that do all the reproducing, just like they do with red drum. Just my opinion though.


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## Bass_n_around (Oct 21, 2006)

*What ever*

always the idiots that agree to such stupid control BS by local governments.do you think for one minute they are going to stop gill netting and our fishing to.Wake the --- up Jesus where do you people come from.I can tell some of you aren't or should i say don't have common sense or stand up for what you beleive.Just like the BS about the PCBs dont eat local fiah but its ok to eat commercial caught,Daaa they come from the same waters,


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## Bass_n_around (Oct 21, 2006)

*tracker is right*

They should ban commercial in VA just like in the bay.But the GOV needs the pocket money,They wont do it.Not going to happen until the species is in trouble again.But they are plentiful.The way they think ,We will wait until the trouble sighns and then bann it for a year or so --on sport fisherman that is.


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## Lipyourown (May 11, 2005)

I think part of the intent here is to keep the blinders on recreational fishermen. Some charters and netters want to ban pre season catch and release because they claim it hurts the stock overall.

If enough folks realized there is better fishing for fun in April than May-Sept, more folks would practice C&R tin the preseason and thus take money from the catch and kill charters.

If they were really interested in protecting the stock they would start the catch and kill season after the spawn. I'd be game but not excited about it.

Banning catch and release just makes no sense to me. I'm all for protecting the fish where they actually spawn but to shut down the bay catch and release fishery is stupid (and would hurt many baitshops and marinas). Let's not forget, the spawning run really started recently as the northern fish make their slow migration south to the Bay. It doesn't matter when or where a fish dies, it won't spawn.

Who ever said the mortality rate of trolled preseason rockfish is 30% is far from knowing the truth. Warm water summer catch and release is far harder on the stock. Also, Our spring fling at SPSP would be next on the chopping block....even though we are releasing them.


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## shaggy (Jun 18, 2003)

Me, stopped the C&R season years ago,but, once the eggs are laid and fertilized, new batch up and comming.

Prefer the 28" plus from the shore as they are better steaks and fillets.

Now if we could get Virginia to tighten up the menhadden catch, well that wouldnt hurt the species too much, may even help with the striper reproduction and overall health.


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## sand flea (Oct 24, 1999)

Interesting. Sounds like this is aimed more at trolling than all C&R. 

I understand those of you who don't do C&R during the spring season, but can anyone actually cite a study on mortality for spring C&R? It's one thing to follow your own conscience; it's another to want to shut it down for everyone else. Why stop with stripers? Why not shut down C&R for drum fishermen, too?


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## Bass_n_around (Oct 21, 2006)

*They are not going to shut it down period*

With the revenue the parks and GOV pocket off of these licenses at crazy ass cost to us.To fish waters we basically own,Our taxes pay for. They want ridiculous charges for plus charges to park and to enter parks that our money pays for,They are not going to do it.They would have so much grief over it it would benefit from it.And if you think for a minute that stripe rs are endangered again you crazy.


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## transamsam98 (Sep 21, 2009)

woa hold on here fella's I am one of those charter boat guys. I agree the C&R wont get shut down mainly due to hw many private non comercial guys would get mad about it and would hurt the politicians on getting re elected as well as cash flow. however keep this in mind whille comercial fishing we are targeting 18-26 inch fish and ye their are some 27-36 taken as well. by law we must release all 36 and over fish and our poundage is limited also. Not only this but comercial fising makes up somewhere around 45% of the quota and is shut down as soon as it is met sometimes before it is met. Take this month for example all of our 67,000lbs quota was cought in the first week and 2 days and is shut down for the month anything over our quota would have had to been cught tuesday is it happened our quota next year will be lower due to our overage. Also I am not sure why or how you guys can figure fighting a prespawn rockfsh on light tackle for 15+mins is easier on them than charter guys catch and release prospect fishing and getting them in the boat in less than 5. I personaly swim all of my throw back fish and make sure they swim before letting go of them. The big concer I have is the susquehana flats that needs to be shut down one of the major spawning grounds open to fishing yet all the rivers are shut down. I know I will not be well liked after this and I personally could care less after the ignorance I have read in this post and the horrible way you paint us comercial guys to be. either way have fun enjoy the bay. 







also I will say gill netting in january and feb and march just like any commercial fishing is heavily regulated.


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## transamsam98 (Sep 21, 2009)

Also I must ask how many of yall make the trip to va for winter striper fishing? f you do that you are catching them prespawn at just about full wieght. have any of yall looked at the egg sacks of post spawn rockfish? they stay purple and bruised for 2-5 days then revert back to orange and begin producing for next year.


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## mytmouse (Jan 24, 2009)

The only way to have a true "effect" on the striper population is to go after the commercial fishermen. Charters and regular fishermen such as myself on a GOOD day could NEVER impact the population as these commercial guys are! I think that its a great idea that fishermen even want to participate in C&R. I mean just think how hard it is hookin and fighting that trophy rock just to let em go...lol. 

If they want to make an impact go after commercial fisherman!! Oh wait, that's right, their license is much more and they get to tax all the fish they sell to distributors. I guess we will see the C&R banned soon enough then. 

MYT


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## transamsam98 (Sep 21, 2009)

felas also keep this in mind charter and commercial guys must report how many we catch where we catch how often we catch every week and only have till the end of the month to send in all of our reports or else our license gets yanked immediately. I do not believe any of the private guys are submitting reports and given the amount of private guys with boats now a days and many guys fishing from shore as well. So please tell me how the private guys are tracking their yearly catch? I really am surprised how yall jump on the commercial guys when we re so heavily regulated also we are only allowed to commercial fish mon-thursday. anyways I am done with this topic as I do not want to ruffle any more feathers than I already have but keep this in mind guys you are talking about my lively hood the way I make a living.


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## earl of DC (Jul 7, 2007)

AtlantaKing said:


> In and of itself, not fishing for pre-spawn fish if you can't keep them is not a bad idea. As the Chesapeake is the spawning ground for a major population of the striped bass in the mid-Atlantic region, there should be a fisheries wide moratorium on striped bass before the season opens: no commercial fishing for them, no recreational fishing for them, no trolling, no bait, nothing. The brood stock need to be protected.


 xcellent point. ive always said that why fish for stripers during this time period
if you cant keep them!!!!


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## BlueHwy (Sep 1, 2009)

transamsam98 said:


> felas also keep this in mind charter and commercial guys must report how many we catch where we catch how often we catch every week and only have till the end of the month to send in all of our reports or else our license gets yanked immediately. I do not believe any of the private guys are submitting reports and given the amount of private guys with boats now a days and many guys fishing from shore as well. So please tell me how the private guys are tracking their yearly catch? I really am surprised how yall jump on the commercial guys when we re so heavily regulated also we are only allowed to commercial fish mon-thursday. anyways I am done with this topic as I do not want to ruffle any more feathers than I already have but keep this in mind guys you are talking about my lively hood the way I make a living.


transamsam98,

Thanks for the information. We all have to remember there are two (or 3 or 4) sides to every issue. And there usually isn't a simple answer, or if there was we wouldn't have an issue in the first place. My view is that what ever we do, we usually screw it up worse. (Rockfish populations for the past 10 years may be the happy exception.)

As for tracking and reporting my catch to the state - I'm fine with that. 
Sept = 0
Oct = 0
Nov = 0


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## transamsam98 (Sep 21, 2009)

BlueHwy said:


> transamsam98,
> 
> Thanks for the information. We all have to remember there are two (or 3 or 4) sides to every issue. And there usually isn't a simple answer, or if there was we wouldn't have an issue in the first place. My view is that what ever we do, we usually screw it up worse. (Rockfish populations for the past 10 years may be the happy exception.)
> 
> ...




Honestly if every single recreational fisherman had to report their fish the way we are required to you may see that they are catching the same poundage we are. however this is unlikely to happen as their are simply to many recreational fishermen to keep track of. honestly I have only been able to take one personal trip this year and it was a catch and release trip only managed to catch 4 on my own time. however we have only taken 63 charter trips this year and only 6 commercial trips this year. 


on our comercial trips we got 
70lbs =30 fish
130lbs = 45 fish
190lbs = 80 fish
430lbs = 140 fish
461lbs = 47 fish
200lbs = 30 fish 



keep in mind most of our fish are cought while breaking so they have almost half a pound of bait in them sometimes. 



anyways fellas no hard feeling but it a group effort caring for these fish and the commercial guys that play bythe book are doing no more harm to them than charter or recreational guys. the only rule I think should be enfoced all over is the limit of one fish over 28 inches per person per trip.


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

transamsam98 said:


> felas also keep this in mind charter and commercial guys must report how many we catch where we catch how often we catch every week and only have till the end of the month to send in all of our reports or else our license gets yanked immediately. I do not believe any of the private guys are submitting reports and given the amount of private guys with boats now a days and many guys fishing from shore as well. So please tell me how the private guys are tracking their yearly catch? I really am surprised how yall jump on the commercial guys when we re so heavily regulated also we are only allowed to commercial fish mon-thursday. anyways I am done with this topic as I do not want to ruffle any more feathers than I already have but keep this in mind guys you are talking about my lively hood the way I make a living.


I understand where your comming from but I also fill out a survery every time I fish...Commerrcials are required too, but Reqs do it because we want to. When I was 42 yrs old I had to make a decision on weather to stay in the same career field and starve or learn something new. I chose to go back to school and learned a much more lucritive trade. It took me five years of going to school at night but now I make twice what I made before. You're never too old to learn something new.....Good Luck


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## transamsam98 (Sep 21, 2009)

Tracker16 said:


> I understand where your comming from but I also fill out a survery every time I fish...Commerrcials are required too, but Reqs do it because we want to. When I was 42 yrs old I had to make a decision on weather to stay in the same career field and starve or learn something new. I chose to go back to school and learned a much more lucritive trade. It took me five years of going to school at night but now I make twice what I made before. You're never too old to learn something new.....Good Luck


I am a full time college student as well should have included that but did not see how that changes the argument. being a waterman is no longer a trade you can truely do for a living and that is very sad given the fact that so many people on the eastern shore and southern maryland used to be able to depend on the trade.


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

transamsam98 said:


> I am a full time college student as well should have included that but did not see how that changes the argument. being a waterman is no longer a trade you can truely do for a living and that is very sad given the fact that so many people on the eastern shore and southern maryland used to be able to depend on the trade.


I understand ...I used to be a marine electroniccs tech but thats not what it use to be either. I loved working on the water too.


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## Lipyourown (May 11, 2005)

earl of DC said:


> xcellent point. ive always said that why fish for stripers during this time period
> if you cant keep them!!!!


Because many people like to go fishing more than they like eating a tasteless fish like striped bass- very little flavor. Just like most bass fishermen and alot drum fishermen prefer to release their fish. It truely becomes a more of a "sport" then.

Someone mentioned that comms keep way too many fish...but according to the authorities, rec fishermen keep more. I'm not sure what to believe because their counting methods seem very flawed.

Another thing to consider, and I could be wrong about this. There is a large group of boaters in the Bay that frown on all types of fishing besides their own method: light tackle jigging. That's a fact. These guys frown on trolling as being un-sporting. If this is so you can kiss bait fishing from shore good bye next.

Again, what is better for the fish- to be caught and released or to be caught and put in a cooler? I'm all for following the law and keep some fish myself, but to go after the catch and releasers is absurd.


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## Loner (Sep 9, 2009)

mytmouse said:


> The only way to have a true "effect" on the striper population is to go after the commercial fishermen. Charters and regular fishermen such as myself on a GOOD day could NEVER impact the population as these commercial guys are! I think that its a great idea that fishermen even want to participate in C&R. I mean just think how hard it is hookin and fighting that trophy rock just to let em go...lol.
> 
> If they want to make an impact go after commercial fisherman!! Oh wait, that's right, their license is much more and they get to tax all the fish they sell to distributors. I guess we will see the C&R banned soon enough then.
> 
> MYT


ALL CHARTERS are COMMERCIALS....they catch fish for MONEY!!
More than a FEW sports SELL their limit (legal or not) to help pay expenses..
THIS MAKES SPORTS COMMERICALS...they caught fish for MONEY!!

Either make it where I CAN catch all I WANT TO and NOT BE BOTHERED or 
MORITORIUM...EVERYONE!!!!

We will NEVER get it OUR WAY by blaming another group....WE ALL KILL FISH!!


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## mytmouse (Jan 24, 2009)

> ALL CHARTERS are COMMERCIALS....they catch fish for MONEY!!
> More than a FEW sports SELL their limit (legal or not) to help pay expenses..
> THIS MAKES SPORTS COMMERICALS...they caught fish for MONEY!!
> 
> ...


My point was not to cast blame on commercial fisherman. HOWEVER, I can without a doubt state that commercial fisherman(not including charters) will have caught more of the striper population than every other fisherman combined! If they DNR really wants to save the population attacking the C&R fisherman isn't the way to go! We don't pull up as many fish so why are we the only ones being targeted? I haven't seen any articles about changes in commercial fishing regulations. 

MYT


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## Loner (Sep 9, 2009)

mytmouse said:


> My point was not to cast blame on commercial fisherman. HOWEVER, I can without a doubt state that commercial fisherman(not including charters) will have caught more of the striper population than every other fisherman combined! If they DNR really wants to save the population attacking the C&R fisherman isn't the way to go! We don't pull up as many fish so why are we the only ones being targeted? I haven't seen any articles about changes in commercial fishing regulations.
> 
> MYT


Have you seen the piles of DEAD MEAT lying on the docks at the end of the day from Charters???....then blasted all over the net on their fishing reports??
6 man charter....16 dead bass times how many boats??....sometimes for weeks at a time....this is NOT including us sports who LIMITED OUT and just left with NO ONE taking OUR PICTURE...

NO WAY the COMMS are approaching us recs on the number of DEAD FISH...
They just have BIGGER LICKS that can be photo'ed ....

I have always believed the REAL FISH KILLS are happening in the Walmart coolers or us the ROD and REEL bunch.....


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## Lipyourown (May 11, 2005)

They are going after the trollers hard:
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisherie.../StripedBassSpringCatchandReleaseProposal.pdf

I guess chumming hard with tons of bunker on M,W&F will be better for the stripers and overall health of the Bay.


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## fishingadam95 (Oct 6, 2008)

mytmouse said:


> My point was not to cast blame on commercial fisherman. HOWEVER, I can without a doubt state that commercial fisherman(not including charters) will have caught more of the striper population than every other fisherman combined! If they DNR really wants to save the population attacking the C&R fisherman isn't the way to go! We don't pull up as many fish so why are we the only ones being targeted? I haven't seen any articles about changes in commercial fishing regulations.
> 
> MYT


auctally recreational fisherman catch and keep more than twice the amount of stripers in maryland.


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## earl of DC (Jul 7, 2007)

me personally i think striper season in md should be between nov 1 to april 15 , 1 fish per day, & over 18 inches.
also would lift the after midnite rule for stripers in md.
and if caught wrong than you pay a 500$ penalty.


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## earl of DC (Jul 7, 2007)

fishingadam95 said:


> auctally recreational fisherman catch and keep more than twice the amount of stripers in maryland.


\

true


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

fishingadam95 said:


> auctally recreational fisherman catch and keep more than twice the amount of stripers in maryland.


Not according to federal statistics. Comms catch 44% and the state only issues 1200 comm striper licenses. That means 1200 people are allowed to catch and sell almost half of the stripers taken from MD waters. So then the 3 million other people in the state have to split the rest. Sounds like BS to me


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## transamsam98 (Sep 21, 2009)

Tracker16 said:


> Not according to federal statistics. Comms catch 44% and the state only issues 1200 comm striper licenses. That means 1200 people are allowed to catch and sell almost half of the stripers taken from MD waters. So then the 3 million other people in the state have to split the rest. Sounds like BS to me


Is it 44% I couldnt remeber exactly whatv it was but I know without a dobut it cannot be exceeded and is norm shuit down with around 1000-1500 lbs of the quota still allowed and if exceeded it gets taken out of next years quota. I am sorry but off all the fisherman and fisherwoman both locol to md or any other state that catches rockfish I have a hard time beleiveing the commercial guys are out catching the private guys especialy considering the amount of under 16 year ols who are not reported due to not needing liscenses. The black sea bass is a perfect example of private guys exceeding their quota projected 150-220% of it if I remember correctly. by no means am I saying we dont impact the rockfish but all commercial fish come from the 44% drift netter pound netters hook and liners all of us pull from the same quota. keep this in mind fellas the recrational fisherman has exceeded their quota every year since the moretorium was lifted. I honestly am done with this thread now just keep those things in mind and realize their are bad commercial guys and bad recreational guys out their breaking the rules all the time hpefully no one on here is one of those scumbags though


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## Ninethourpm (Oct 4, 2009)

earl of DC said:


> xcellent point. ive always said that why fish for stripers during this time period
> if you cant keep them!!!!


Just because it hits the deck doesnt mean it has to die!
If you don't want to catch fish you cant eat then dont fish.

Recreational crabbers and fishermen didn't deplete the stocks Commercial fishermen and crabbers did. For every pound of fish you catch the take 100. They take millions of pounds every year. They kill millions of menhaden every year to turn it into old fart fish oil pills and animal food.

Of course commercial guys are all for stopping recreational fishing and crabbing. That way they can force you to pay 500-1000 dollars a day to fish on a charter or force their high prices on you to buy crabs and fish.

The only real solution is GIVE ROCK THE GAMEFISH STATUS.


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## Tracker16 (Feb 16, 2009)

*gamefish status*


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