When I first started my guide business over 27 years ago, I knew switching professions from a field biologist that strived to conserve salmon, to becoming reliant on the health of a natural resource for consumptive use, was a risk. I was willing to accept that risk because, hey, I was skipping out of work […]
Top photo by Capt. Dave Monti The Chesapeake Bay produces most of the migratory striped bass on the Atlantic Coast, and about two-thirds of those Chesapeake bass are spawned in Maryland’s waters. Maryland spawning success is so important to the overall health of the striped bass stock that, at the November 2022 meeting of the […]
Joel Johnson, the President and CEO of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, joined the Marine Fish Conservation Network and host Tom Sadler for an online Waterside Chat on September 22, 2023. The foundation is a leading voice for U.S. protected waters, working with communities to conserve and expand those special places for a healthy ocean, […]
About a year ago, I found myself in immediate need of a new boat. Someone at my marina had just put his 32-foot Topaz on the market, and after a quick conversation with my wife and a far longer inspection by a marine surveyor, I made it my own. At that point, I needed to […]
This piece is reprinted with permission from the latest edition of the Wild Oceans Horizon newsletter. Last year, the Pacific Fishery Management Council recognized that increasing climate variability and changing ocean conditions could adversely affect West Coast fisheries and communities and began Fishery Ecosystem Plan Initiative 4 to incorporate ecosystem information into council decision-making. A […]
The Chesapeake Bay is an iconic marine ecosystem that inspires stories, songs, and lifelong memories. I’ve fished, hunted, and raced sailboats in and around the bay. And while now I live in the headwaters of the bay watershed, I continue to be closely connected to it. This summer, members of Congress in the Chesapeake Bay […]
It’s impossible to count every fish caught by recreational fishermen, yet accurate recreational catch and landings data are an essential part of the fisheries management process. Thus, saltwater fisheries managers are constantly seeking better estimates of anglers catch, landings, and effort. Currently, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) employs the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP) […]
Top photo by John McMurray At its May 2023 meeting, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s (ASMFC’s) Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board (Management Board) learned that recreational striped bass landings had nearly doubled in 2022 and that, unless fishing mortality was reduced, there was little chance that the striped bass stock would be rebuilt by […]
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