Morning Star Fish Report

Fish Report 6/26/09

Full Stop - Then Picking Up

How Nice For Them

 

Hi All,

For several days last weekend through Tuesday; while that low was stuck to our north, we had the lousiest, slowest fishing possible - and this over some of the biggest schools of cbass this year. Cold water? Cbass's equivalent to what goes on in Ocean City's popular night clubs? Bellies full? Maybe to all of them: Ripping current from the NE had to be colder; Colors of male cbass very bright - spawning time coming or happening; Fish were at times 50 to 60 feet off the bottom - indicative of krill & plankton feeding.

All at once? Derned if I know.

Most customers barely caught dinner during the period.

Glad that's over!

I hope..

Much improved, it's now sea bass with a few flounder. Except when there's more flounder than cbass.

This is summer fishing - have fun, nick a few for a family fish fry, throw a bunch back. Best I can do with it.

It can be made better in the future.

 

Capt. Greg took another step in that direction on Thursday with the siting of a 20 x 50 barge at Kelly's Reef in the inshore Bud Bower reef set. Cabled to the barge were many reef units welded by Parkside High and another by Mumford's Sheet Metal.

This particular Mumford unit was the second "Gun Reef." Millsboro Delaware PD must destroy their confiscated weapons. The guys at Mumford's incorporate the pieces into their reef units - grows coral.

Betcha there's more guns confiscated/scrapped over on the 'restore the oyster' side of Maryland..

 

We are getting our recreational teeth kicked-in by management in these difficult times. Regulations MUST be set that will rebuild whatever stock of fish you care to name by next year or the year after. 12 1/2 inch sea bass.. 18 inch flounder.. And these fish populations are increasing - big time. Just not enough to suit their best guess as to previous populations.

So I was pretty proud of the surf-clam community -- from the MAFMC press release: "..It was also recommended by the Council that the minimum size requirement for surfclams be suspended." 

At a MAFMC meeting a while back I saw an ecologist testify that he'd seen surf clams stage an incredible comeback; wasn't concerned in the least that catches and biological assessments were trending down.

Same quotas - no size limit.

How nice for them.

 

I see present day management of our reef fisheries as if a squirrel management team stood square-center of a Nebraska cornfield pondering how to restore them to the area using only hunting controls.

Seafloor habitat has to get found and protected; habitat fidelity must be factored into regional management or stocks will, through ignorance, continue to oscillate without apparent cause.

Sea bass in 2003 -the best I've ever seen- were still far below their 1950s  population, yet I'm confident that we were nearing the remaining habitat's holding capacity.

Ain't many trees in that cornfield...

 

Regards,

Monty

 

Capt. Monty Hawkins
mhawkins@siteone.net
Party Boat "Morning Star"
Reservation Line 410 520 2076
http://www.morningstarfishing.com/

 

 

Fish Report 6/14/09

Fantastic Bite & Not So Much

MSP & MARCO

 

Hi All,

Backslid.

Little bit anyway. Most days sea bass were very cooperative. Not all - most.

And the keeper to throwback ratio is mostly painful.

Its one of the best Junes I've ever seen, honest. Getting 'em across that 12 1/2 mark is what's tough.

Throwbacks are the healthiest fish - plump. Hope that leads to a great spawn.

Seeing some flounder too.(aka - fluke, flatties, summer flounder) Not many keepers yet. Could have tagged 60 or 70 a few times were it not for my paperwork reduction act - stopping at 20 tags no matter what.

Fishing's generally not bad at all - just don't plan on filling freezer bags!

 

Snuck away to a "Marine Spatial Planning" workshop last week. (Couldn't possibly have considered going 'cept Tucker ran the boat dern near free.) The focus was on GIS mapping with pin-point precision for every layer of data that can be had.

Lots and lots of very smart people and one fisherman.

A leading scientist scoffed at the idea of reef-forming corals on clay in the canyons.

Fish Report 6/9/09

Sea Bass

Timers

Hi All,

Cbass bite has improved this week. Keeper ratio hasn't, but when you can work on 'em awhile you'll end up OK.

High hook's been in the mid/upper teens and that ain't bad this year.

Were the size limit unchanged from last year we'd be limiting some out nearly everyday.

Back up the clock to the 11 inch limit and we could be home for lunch..

No time machines - 12 1/2 inches.

Laid a base for sea bass release mortality in this neck of the woods on Monday. Fisheries staff from MD & DE timed the exit from the water through hook removal and then 'float' time as they drift away, reequalize their air bladder and swim down. It was a perfect day for low mortality - cool, little breeze - only three didn't make it down. Even in 120 feet the majority went straight down with no float.

Will do it again in July - right thru November probably.

One of the biologists aboard anticipated a lot of mortality from gut hooking with small J hooks. Kahle --AKA 'wide gap' or 'flounder' hooks-- are all I use. Performing very much like a circle hook; we get 4 or 5 gut-hooked small cbass a year.

NJ/NY should do a 'hook to the protruding stomach' study. Seems a lot of anglers from up that way pop the belly with their fish hook. You'd have to tag 'em - a lot of 'em - to see whether they survive that wound long.

Bad way to vent I expect.

Did nick a few flounder, couple keepers - mostly taggers.

Not many, but a sign.

Flounder closure still stands for September 13. Hope to get a good lick on 'em before the shore fishers start stacking 'em like cordwood on the piers and jetties.

MRFSS has shore fishers getting zero fish some years and as high as 53,488 in 2007 - party boats didn't kill 10,000 fish in all of the same 4 year period put together.

Miserable data makes for bad management; creates irritated fishers.

Fishers that then lose faith in the system..

Those spikes in private/rental and shore catches did not happen.

Needs to get fixed.

Soon.

Regards,

Monty

Capt. Monty Hawkins
mhawkins@siteone.net
Party Boat "Morning Star"
Reservation Line 410 520 2076
http://www.morningstarfishing.com/