Morning Star Fish Report
Fish Report 2/21/07
Fish Report 2/21/07
Super Short & Repeat
Hi All,
Friday's trip has been cancelled, but the weekend looks doable. The 24th and 25th - Saturday and Sunday 7 to 3 - reservations needed - 12 head sells out the rail - Dress warm~No Heat! If you book a spot make darn sure you give a good contact phone number in case I have to cancel-- Again! And, it is possible that the water will just get too cold - a bad day of fishing!
You know, I do not think that it is possible to restore fisheries without restoring habitat, including prey. It's an issue of holding capacity. I'm including that white marlin piece again...
Regards,
Monty
Comment on Status of White Marlin: Capt. Monty Hawkins 2/19/07
On a fine day in August 1968 a charter boat, the Sunshine, put 2 white marlin on the dock. One of the fish was still alive. The fish had been caught at Great Gull Shoal scarcely 5 nautical miles south-east of Ocean City Maryland's inlet. Among the few boats trolling there that day, 7 fish were caught.
Numerous accounts of white marlin caught within sight of land can be found. Before there was an inlet, 1933, when boats were launched from the beach, marlin were a nuisance ~ to be avoided because of their ability to wreck gear.
That marlin were once common on inshore grounds must be factored into rebuilding efforts. Yes, the fishers of the earlier eras were not big on catch and release. Still, the manager must ask what else is missing besides the fish.
While overfishing remains the most common thread amidst depleted fisheries management and rightly so, here there is a case to be made for the effects of diminished habitat.
Below I have listed coordinates of some of the places where marlin were targeted before the era of 'canyon' fishing. Those coordinates are being overlaid on a GIS charting project of various nearshore seafloor habitats with Jay Odell, Gwynn Crichton and Chris Bruce of TNC's Virginia Program. Though not complete, the work already offers some insight. Using my own coordinates, there are 219.6 square miles that contain hard-bottom patch reefs, or substrates suitable for reef growth, inside the 25 fathom line between Cape May and Winter Quarter. What's striking for the purposes of this comment is the proximity of these reefs to historical marlin fishing grounds.
Why. Other than an overall increase in marine productivity, and certainly a crucial importance to demersal species, why would meadows of sea whip and other reef types influence the migratory patterns of billfish?
I think part of the answer is squid. Numerous times I have found large concentrations of squid (loligo) on hardbottom reef. I believe that their behavior indicates spawning. Spawning concentrations of any species attract predators. According to several papers, cephalopods represent a large percentage of the stomach contents of billfishes.
Squid too are depleted in the mid-Atlantic. However, if these reef's life cycles were interrupted by various fishing gears -and perhaps the occasional category 4 hurricane- then it stands to reason that spawning habitat loss could play a role in the region's diminishment of squid. No bait concentrations~ no predator concentrations.
That's one reason. Another missing piece of the food web may come from the tops of the shoals. According to the Canadian DFO's web page on sand lance (sand eel - A. americanus) these prey fish prefer shallow marine waters, especially the tops of shoals. Unfortunately, so do surf clams ~ The peak of the unregulated 'gold rush' clam fishery coincides with the loss of billfish and other species at numerous locations. Admittedly, modern stomach content analysis papers do not show sand lance as a major prey item of billfish. They are, however, consumed by many or all of the fish that marlins might eat. It's a step away.
Going back a few years brings the issue into sharper focus. Einarsson (1951) found sand eels an important prey item of white marlin. Direct observations by fishers on the inshore marlin grounds through the late 60s offer numerous accounts of sand eels being spit up by white marlin. Observations of today's offshore fishery have turned up none.
Perhaps as the shoals were hydraulically harvested for surf clam -and this beneath the 'high energy zone'- the composition of the sand was altered unfavorably for sand eel settlement/survival.
This clam fishery was not the fishery of today. No harvest caps, no permits and no end for consumers want of clam strip dinners kept a growing fleet of boats working. The fishery peaked around 1973. Clam fishers of the era have related to me how they would often see 'dozens of clam boats working within sight of one another'. It is certainly possible that the hydraulic liquification of so much bottom had an adverse effect on the benthos. Indeed, most fishers with historical experience in the bluefish, marlin, or sea bass fisheries point to clamming as the primary reason for the decline of the inshore fisheries.
The damaging sequence of overfishing and habitat loss leading to prey reduction may have led to the extirpation of nearshore marlins. Habitat/feeding/spawning site fidelity may have further exacerbated this situation. Showing up in many species; the instinctual or learned behavior of fish returning to the same areas each year is common. While unable to find works on the subject concerning billfish, it seems likely in marlins as evidenced by anecdotal accounts; especially a blue marlin that was seen numerous years on the bass grounds until it was harpooned and lost. There have been no reports of blue marlin there since.
Surely, were there a collapse of prey the marlin that remained of the inshore stock would have moved on to better feeding areas. Offshore perhaps ~ their numbers concentrating in regions with abundant prey. Once these places of improved forage were learned by -or imprinted on- the stock, they would have returned annually. When these areas were discovered by fishers it furthered the cascade.
Habitat and prey availability's function in the fisheries is poorly understood and, in this region, unmanaged.
Perhaps a closer examination of their effects could shed light on other problematic fishery declines as well.
Finally, there is water quality. Every single fisher I've interviewed about historical fisheries has decried the loss of blue water on the inshore grounds. Numerous effects of pollution and eutrophication are causing a degradation of marine waters.
We know of the oyster's ability to filter water and sequester enrichments. Water quality will remain the focus of those who are trying to restore our rivers and estuaries. Still, we do not know what similar effect a thriving tube worm colony 7 miles long by 1-1/2 miles wide might have. We do not know how much sea whip meadows might filter either. Perhaps these complex habitat forming animals offer no effect on water quality. But, if any - it could be multiplied many times over if left to flourish.
Catch location data below.
Regards,
Capt. Monty Hawkins
Historical White Marlin Catches: DelMarVa Region (Almost all can be anecdotally confirmed by fishers still alive)
NW DE Light. 38d41.5 ~ 74d55.4 Catches to late 60s.
DE Light 38d27.1 ~ 74d55.5 Catches as late as mid 80s. Rarely to present.
SE DE Light 38d22.3 ~ 74d35.3 Catches to mid 80s - possibly to present.
Great Gull. 38d16.6 ~ 75d00.0 to 38d13.5 75d03.2 Catches from 1920s (From son of surf boat fisher and another capt. that started in 1934 when the inlet was opened - both deceased) to late 60s.
Fenwick Island Shoal - Located 5 miles offshore MD/DE line. Catches to early 60s.
Bass Grounds. 38d18.6 ~ 74d52.8 to 38d16.8 ~ 74d55.2 Catches from the mid 30s/early 40s to late 60s. Last blue marlin harpooned there circa 1988. (habitat fidelity almost a certainty - fish was seen numerous years)
Second Lump. 38d16.7 ~ 74d49.6 to 38d14.7 ~ 74d52.7 Catches to late 60s.
Third Lump 38d16.7 ~ 74d46.8 to 38d15.4 ~ 74d52.7 Catches at least to late 70s - maybe some later.
SE Ridge. 38d04.6 ~ 74d54.4 to 38d08.2 ~ 74d52.2 Catches to early 70s.
Sugar Lump. 38d04.8 ~ 75d00.5 to 38d03.2 ~ 75d02.5 Catches to early/mid 70s.
Inshore Winter Quarter 38d59.9 ~ 75d00.9 to 37d58.9 ~ 75d02.5 Catches to at least mid 50s - could probably find later reports to late 60s early 70s.
Offshore Winter Quarter 37d55.7 ~ 74d55.6 Catches to early 80s.
Jackspot Shoal 38d06.0 ~ 74d45.8 SE to 38d05.1 ~ 74d44.9 SW to 38d03.2 ~ 74d48.5 NW to 38d04.7 ~ 74d49.6. Catches (rarely) to present. Was literally world famous amongst billfishers into the late 70s.
Great Eastern Reef: Constructed in mid 1990s - first marlin in 05...
posted by Monty # Friday, February 23, 2007
Fish Report 2/15/07
Fish Report 2/15/07
Cold Fishing!
Hi All,
To have had a camera Saturday last!
I'd been working on the boat the previous day and left the engines in gear to break up the ice in the marina.
Getting underway the next morning we found all the ice had piled up at the mouth of the facility. Oh, for a picture as we broke through it!
Wasn't all that - could've easily broken through it with a duck hunting scow. Still, a shot for the wall...
That morning I'd seen the constellation Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown - my daughter calls that one 'the smiley'. Just like Orion before a summer's dawn, it means a season change is coming, though perhaps not fast enough!
Anyway, we did get out the 3 days. Cold, frustrating, missed bites, dropped fish, difficulty anchoring in changing wind and current ~ some great fish in the box and tagged dandies back over the rail too! One fellow, a man who is clear about the tog he wants to catch, kept a fish of about 17 pounds and tagged a female 27 3/4 inches - just north of 16 pounds. Great fish by any definition, but not the fish he's looking for. Others share a similar goal ~ including this captain!
For the 3 days there were 33 tagged under 20 inches and 27 tagged over 20 inches, most of which occurred on Sunday's trip. Two were sublegal and we had 2 tag returns. Less than 1/2 of the anglers took 5 fish limits home.
We'll go again, but be forewarned! The water temperature is hovering close to where tog become lethargic and very difficult to coerce into taking a bait. A really bad day is a possibility - always is I suppose!
The forecast for the coming days is a slightly breezy SW to NW with daytime highs in the upper 30's. There's no heat on the boat while underway: dress appropriately with waterproof boots ~ then add another layer and bring spare gloves!
2/17 to 2/20 Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday -7 to 3 - 10 people sells out the rail. Crabs provided. You're welcome to bring your own too.
February 20th is the deadline for comment on the White Marlin Status Review. Back to work on that project. Seafloor habitat's production of FOOD ties it all together - just need to find out how!
Regards,
Monty
Capt. Monty Hawkins
mhawkins@siteone.net
Party Boat "Morning Star"
Reservations 410 520 2076
www.morningstarfishing.com
mhawkins@siteone.net
Party Boat "Morning Star"
Reservations 410 520 2076
www.morningstarfishing.com
Atlantic Coast - NOAA Fisheries Seeking Information on the Status of While Marlin
NOAA Fisheries has initiated a status review for Atlantic white marlin. To support this status review, NOAA is soliciting information relevant to the status of and threats to the species, including, but not limited to:
1) historical and current abundance and distribution;
2) potential factors for the species' decline;
3) rates of capture and release of the species from both recreational and commercial fisheries;
4) post-release mortality;
5) life history information (size/age at maturity, growth rates, fecundity, reproductive rate/success, etc.);
6) morphological and molecular information to assist in determining taxonomy of this species and congeners;
7) threats to the species; and
8) any ongoing conservation efforts for the species.
Information regarding the status of and threats to the Atlantic white marlin must be received by February 20, 2007. Send to WhiteMarlin.Info@noaa.gov <mailto:WhiteMarlin.Info@noaa.gov> .
NOAA Fisheries has initiated a status review for Atlantic white marlin. To support this status review, NOAA is soliciting information relevant to the status of and threats to the species, including, but not limited to:
1) historical and current abundance and distribution;
2) potential factors for the species' decline;
3) rates of capture and release of the species from both recreational and commercial fisheries;
4) post-release mortality;
5) life history information (size/age at maturity, growth rates, fecundity, reproductive rate/success, etc.);
6) morphological and molecular information to assist in determining taxonomy of this species and congeners;
7) threats to the species; and
8) any ongoing conservation efforts for the species.
Information regarding the status of and threats to the Atlantic white marlin must be received by February 20, 2007. Send to WhiteMarlin.Info@noaa.gov <mailto:WhiteMarlin.Info@noaa.gov> .
posted by Monty # Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Fish Report 2/19/07
Fish Report 2/19/07
Going Fishing (I think!)
White Marlin Comment
Hi All,
Well, of the 4 days that I thought we'd get out - just one. Saturday sure was a pretty day though! Calm and then building a little SWesterly set late; the day was gorgeous. And cold - cut slushy ice on the way out of the marina.
The water temp has dropped below ideal but the fish can be coerced into a bite. At each of our 3 spots they started slow and gradually came on. There were a couple decent fish - one was 13.5 pounds. Again, I don't think anyone took home a 5 fish limit. That's because the customers eat plenty of fish and realize the value of putting fish back; we tagged 39, most of which were above the legal size. If you want a limit - power to you. If you want to keep dinner and put the rest back with a tag - more power to you!
I'm going to try again on Thursday and Friday the 22cnd and 23rd. 7 to 3 - crabs provided - reservations needed - 10 head sells out the rail - Dress warm~No Heat! If you book a spot make darn sure you give a good contact phone number in case I have to cancel-- Again! And, it is possible that the water will just get too cold - a bad day of fishing!
Rats.
Anyway, Below you'll find my comment to NOAA Fisheries on the Status of While Marlin. For some (any?) a riveting document - others, well, it'll save on sleeping pills!
Regards,
Monty
Comment on Status of White Marlin: Capt. Monty Hawkins 2/19/07
On a fine day in August 1968 a charter boat, the Sunshine, put 2 white marlin on the dock. One of the fish was still alive. The fish had been caught at Great Gull Shoal scarcely 5 nautical miles south-east of Ocean City Maryland's inlet. Among the few boats trolling there that day, 7 fish were caught.
Numerous accounts of white marlin caught within sight of land can be found. Before there was an inlet, 1933, when boats were launched from the beach, marlin were a nuisance ~ to be avoided because of their ability to wreck gear.
That marlin were once common on inshore grounds must be factored into rebuilding efforts. Yes, the fishers of the earlier eras were not big on catch and release. Still, the manager must ask what else is missing besides the fish.
While overfishing remains the most common thread amidst depleted fisheries management and rightly so, here there is a case to be made for the effects of diminished habitat.
Below I have listed coordinates of some of the places where marlin were targeted before the era of 'canyon' fishing. Those coordinates are being overlaid on a GIS charting project of various nearshore seafloor habitats with Jay Odell, Gwynn Crichton and Chris Bruce of TNC's Virginia Program. Though not complete, the work already offers some insight. Using my own coordinates, there are 219.6 square miles that contain hard-bottom patch reefs, or substrates suitable for reef growth, inside the 25 fathom line between Cape May and Winter Quarter. What's striking for the purposes of this comment is the proximity of these reefs to historical marlin fishing grounds.
Why. Other than an overall increase in marine productivity, and certainly a crucial importance to demersal species, why would meadows of sea whip and other reef types influence the migratory patterns of billfish?
I think part of the answer is squid. Numerous times I have found large concentrations of squid (loligo) on hardbottom reef. I believe that their behavior indicates spawning. Spawning concentrations of any species attract predators. According to several papers, cephalopods represent a large percentage of the stomach contents of billfishes.
Squid too are depleted in the mid-Atlantic. However, if these reef's life cycles were interrupted by various fishing gears -and perhaps the occasional category 4 hurricane- then it stands to reason that spawning habitat loss could play a role in the region's diminishment of squid. No bait concentrations~ no predator concentrations.
That's one reason. Another missing piece of the food web may come from the tops of the shoals. According to the Canadian DFO's web page on sand lance (sand eel - A. americanus) these prey fish prefer shallow marine waters, especially the tops of shoals. Unfortunately, so do surf clams ~ The peak of the unregulated 'gold rush' clam fishery coincides with the loss of billfish and other species at numerous locations. Admittedly, modern stomach content analysis papers do not show sand lance as a major prey item of billfish. They are, however, consumed by many or all of the fish that marlins might eat. It's a step away.
Going back a few years brings the issue into sharper focus. Einarsson (1951) found sand eels an important prey item of white marlin. Direct observations by fishers on the inshore marlin grounds through the late 60s offer numerous accounts of sand eels being spit up by white marlin. Observations of today's offshore fishery have turned up none.
Perhaps as the shoals were hydraulically harvested for surf clam -and this beneath the 'high energy zone'- the composition of the sand was altered unfavorably for sand eel settlement/survival.
This clam fishery was not the fishery of today. No harvest caps, no permits and no end for consumers want of clam strip dinners kept a growing fleet of boats working. The fishery peaked around 1973. Clam fishers of the era have related to me how they would often see 'dozens of clam boats working within sight of one another'. It is certainly possible that the hydraulic liquification of so much bottom had an adverse effect on the benthos. Indeed, most fishers with historical experience in the bluefish, marlin, or sea bass fisheries point to clamming as the primary reason for the decline of the inshore fisheries.
The damaging sequence of overfishing and habitat loss leading to prey reduction may have led to the extirpation of nearshore marlins. Habitat/feeding/spawning site fidelity may have further exacerbated this situation. Showing up in many species; the instinctual or learned behavior of fish returning to the same areas each year is common. While unable to find works on the subject concerning billfish, it seems likely in marlins as evidenced by anecdotal accounts; especially a blue marlin that was seen numerous years on the bass grounds until it was harpooned and lost. There have been no reports of blue marlin there since.
Surely, were there a collapse of prey the marlin that remained of the inshore stock would have moved on to better feeding areas. Offshore perhaps ~ their numbers concentrating in regions with abundant prey. Once these places of improved forage were learned by -or imprinted on- the stock, they would have returned annually. When these areas were discovered by fishers it furthered the cascade.
Habitat and prey availability's function in the fisheries is poorly understood and, in this region, unmanaged.
Perhaps a closer examination of their effects could shed light on other problematic fishery declines as well.
Finally, there is water quality. Every single fisher I've interviewed about historical fisheries has decried the loss of blue water on the inshore grounds. Numerous effects of pollution and eutrophication are causing a degradation of marine waters.
We know of the oyster's ability to filter water and sequester enrichments. Water quality will remain the focus of those who are trying to restore our rivers and estuaries. Still, we do not know what similar effect a thriving tube worm colony 7 miles long by 1-1/2 miles wide might have. We do not know how much sea whip meadows might filter either. Perhaps these complex habitat forming animals offer no effect on water quality. But, if any - it could be multiplied many times over if left to flourish.
Catch location data below.
Regards,
Capt. Monty Hawkins
Historical White Marlin Catches: DelMarVa Region (Almost all can be anecdotally confirmed by fishers still alive)
NW DE Light. 38d41.5 ~ 74d55.4 Catches to late 60s.
DE Light 38d27.1 ~ 74d55.5 Catches as late as mid 80s. Rarely to present.
SE DE Light 38d22.3 ~ 74d35.3 Catches to mid 80s - possibly to present.
Great Gull. 38d16.6 ~ 75d00.0 to 38d13.5 75d03.2 Catches from 1920s (From son of surf boat fisher and another capt. that started in 1934 when the inlet was opened - both deceased) to late 60s.
Fenwick Island Shoal - Located 5 miles offshore MD/DE line. Catches to early 60s.
Bass Grounds. 38d18.6 ~ 74d52.8 to 38d16.8 ~ 74d55.2 Catches from the mid 30s/early 40s to late 60s. Last blue marlin harpooned there circa 1988. (habitat fidelity almost a certainty - fish was seen numerous years)
Second Lump. 38d16.7 ~ 74d49.6 to 38d14.7 ~ 74d52.7 Catches to late 60s.
Third Lump 38d16.7 ~ 74d46.8 to 38d15.4 ~ 74d52.7 Catches at least to late 70s - maybe some later.
SE Ridge. 38d04.6 ~ 74d54.4 to 38d08.2 ~ 74d52.2 Catches to early 70s.
Sugar Lump. 38d04.8 ~ 75d00.5 to 38d03.2 ~ 75d02.5 Catches to early/mid 70s.
Inshore Winter Quarter 38d59.9 ~ 75d00.9 to 37d58.9 ~ 75d02.5 Catches to at least mid 50s - could probably find later reports to late 60s early 70s.
Offshore Winter Quarter 37d55.7 ~ 74d55.6 Catches to early 80s.
Jackspot Shoal 38d06.0 ~ 74d45.8 SE to 38d05.1 ~ 74d44.9 SW to 38d03.2 ~ 74d48.5 NW to 38d04.7 ~ 74d49.6. Catches (rarely) to present. Was literally world famous amongst billfishers into the late 70s.
Great Eastern Reef: Constructed in mid 1990s - first marlin in 05...
posted by Monty # Monday, February 19, 2007
Fish Report 2/7/06
Fish Report 2/7/06
Caught Tog - Going Fishin
& What the heck's an HAPC?
Hi All,
Last Saturday was a decent day. Some fellows picked on 'em all day, others didn't get it going 'till late. 12 pounds or so was the pool winner with several north of 10. We tagged 5 fish over 20 inches and a bunch more over 14. For now, I'm not tagging shorts - just legal ones.
The forecasted heavy wind held off 'till the bitter end. It came on good too ~ right in the heart of the best tog bite I've seen in some while! As the wind picked up the anchors stretched tight and that was that - off the spot. Ah well, we'd had a day. I wasn't willing to stick around and see if it was really going to blow 35! Got home just a tad late.
The course home was really frustrating though. Concerns about the wind prevented me from slowing to look at 3 whales. Then, like a dagger in the heart, we went past a flock of over -way over- 1,000 gannets plunge diving into feeding striped bass. On radar the birds painted like a small thunderstorm. And, also on radar, I could clearly see that the birds were just outside the three mile line. I mean a couple hundred feet inside the protected zone ~ Darn the bad luck!
Sure was cool to see though!
We'll go again this Saturday and Sunday the 10th and 11th. It looks as though the NW winds will be somewhat diminished and temps in the upper 30s. I'm going to really restrict the rail ~ 8 people sells out the boat. This is so I can hunker everyone in the lee of the cabin - out of the wind! A reservation if you'd care to go - crabs provided - 7 to 3. There's no heat - dress in layers!
HAPC - That's guvmint speak; it's a Habitat Area of Particular Concern. Unlike an MPA -Marine Protected Area- (where those stripers were hiding last weekend) the HAPC has been used to protect habitat. If your activities don't impact habitat within one of these areas then you'll not likely have trouble with one.
The Habitat Area of Particular Concern (HAPC) is a tool in the managers kit that can be used to protect sensitive habitat. In Maryland's coastal bays the inshore clam dredging fishery offers an example. Areas that support sub-aquatic vegetation (SAV) -the grass beds- were delineated and declared off-limits to hydraulic clam dredging when it was shown that the gear damages the habitat. Commercial and recreational crabbers can still set pots there, gill nets can be set all season long, and a recreational flounder fisher can still make a drift - it's just the gear type that can be clearly shown to have an impact on sea grasses, a clam dredge, that is excluded.
For now, an HAPC is the only thing out there that can protect any of the coral bottoms in the region. It's down the road, way down, but a place we need to go.
First, I suppose, there needs to be some discovery of the corals and other bottom types that drive many local fisheries.
Might just help with that...
Looking forward to a warmer forecast!
Regards,
Monty
Capt. Monty Hawkins
mhawkins@siteone.net
Party Boat "Morning Star"
Reservations 410 520 2076
www.morningstarfishing.com
mhawkins@siteone.net
Party Boat "Morning Star"
Reservations 410 520 2076
www.morningstarfishing.com
posted by Monty # Wednesday, February 07, 2007
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