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2010 Management Options for Blue and Flathead Catfish – Feedback Due by June 1, 2009 |
The Department of Natural Resources is considering management options for blue and flathead catfish for 2010. These options are currently being discussed at the Inland Fisheries Public Meetings and will be further discussed at future public scoping meetings.
Currently, the Department is considering the following management options for future proposal:
- Allow the angling and harvest of blue catfish in the tidal Potomac River, with no movement of the species to other waters.
- Allow the angling and harvest of flathead catfish in the Susquehanna River at the head of the Chesapeake Bay, with no movement of the species to other waters
- Removing the minimum size limit (10 inches) on catfish for blue catfish and flathead catfish.
Pre-Proposal: Blue catfish and flathead catfish are invasive species that have become established in some tidal waters of Maryland. Fishing for these species will be allowed within those areas, but regulations are being considered to prevent anglers from moving these species to new areas.
Discussion: These are invasive species that either migrated into Maryland waters or were mistakenly stocked. They are large, highly efficient predators which may have significant impacts on other species through predation, and competition for food and habitat. Measures are being taken through a variety of avenues to reduce the chances of new species knowingly or unknowingly being introduced into Maryland waters.
Blue catfish in the Potomac and flathead catfish in the Susquehanna River have established populations and their removal is not considered possible with current available methods. Both species are listed in Maryland regulations as “Nuisance and Prohibited Species” and are on the “No transport” list which prohibits anglers from moving them to other waters of the state. However we recognize that significant fisheries have developed on these species. Language is being crafted which would allow these fisheries to continue while assuring that these species are not spread to new waters or new areas of a drainage.
To read more about the options or provide feedback, go to www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/regulations/draftregulations.html and look for the blue and flathead catfish section.
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Maryland Volunteer Angler Surveys Kickoff! |
 Recreational Anglers, here is your chance to participate directly in fisheries management. Help MD DNR characterize recreational catch and harvest by submitting data from your fishing trip.
The Maryland Fisheries Service has various Volunteer Angler Surveys in which you can participate, what better way to keep track of your fishing experiences and help determine numbers and size structure of various species at the same time. In addition, your data will be used to augment and enhance existing data sets.
MD DNR relies on data from your catch to manage the following species: striped bass, summer flounder, bluefish, yellow perch, blue crabs along with smallmouth and largemouth bass. So go to our Volunteer Anglers Survey Web Page, click on the species of choice and follow the instructions!
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Maryland Fisheries Service Announces 2009 Recreational Summer Flounder Regulations |
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The new 2009 recreational summer flounder regulations will be:
Creel and Size Limit (Split Management):
- Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays (3 fish @ 18 inch minimum size)
- Chesapeake Bay (1 fish @ 16.5 inch minimum size)
The 2009 recreational summer flounder season will run from April 15 until September 13.
DNR is required to reduce the 2009 recreational summer flounder catch in Maryland by 32%. This reduction is necessary to mitigate exceeding harvest targets last year. DNR believes that these regulations will achieve the required reduction in the fishery, attain the recreational harvest target of 61,000 fish and minimize the impact both on recreational anglers and businesses that rely on the summer flounder fishery.
Various options for the 2009 recreational season were approved by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and presented to the Coastal Fisheries Advisory Committee, the Sportfish Advisory Commission and the general public at an informational meeting held in Ocean City, Maryland last month. Approximately 100 people attended the meeting.
For more information, please contact Steve Doctor at 410 – 213 -1531 or Carrie Kennedy at 410-260-8295.
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Marylander's Grow Oysters - Govenor's Pilot Program Kicks Off on the Tred Avon River |
If you live along the Tred Avon River, you can be part of an exciting pilot project to grow oysters at your pier and to help create a living, diverse, oyster reef community. Not only will more oysters be placed in the Chesapeake Bay as a result of your efforts, but the rejunentated oyster reef will become a natural underwater ecosystem for all sorts of aquatic life.
The goal is to place 1,000 oyster cages at piers by the end of October, with four cages per pier. There is no charge for those who participate in this 2008 pilot project, but there are rewards both personal and ecological.
The Marylanders Grow Oysters Project was established by Governor Martin O’Malley, and is being managed by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources in conjunction with Talbot County, the Oyster Recovery Partnership, the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science and the Maryland Department of Corrections.
To read more about the Marylanders Grow Oysters Project or to sign up for some oysters, go to www.dnr.maryland.gov/oysterproject/.
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ASMFC Approves Maryland’s Request to Extend the 2008 and 2009 Recreational Striped Bass
Seasons |
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Striped Bass Management Board (ASMFC) has approved Maryland’s request to extend the 2008 and 2009 recreational striped bass seasons. The decision also approved an alternative non-quota based management strategy for the fishery’s spring season. The ASMFC approved this strategy for the first time in 2008, but limited this only to the 2008 fishing season.
“Every year, hundreds of thousands of anglers take to the waters of the Chesapeake Bay in pursuit of Maryland’s favorite catch, striped bass,” said Maryland Department of Natural Resources Secretary John R. Griffin. “Extending the striped bass fishing seasons increases the opportunity for visiting and resident anglers to catch the big one and support local charter boat captains, fishing guides, tackle shops and other sportfishing related businesses.”
Click here to view the public notice announcement.
To read entire press release please go to www.dnr.state.md.us/dnrnews/pressrelease2008/102008a.html.
The following proposals were submitted to ASMFC with regards to the striped bass recreational fishing season:
Maryland Fisheries Services "Proposal for December season extension of Maryland’s recreational striped bass fishery".
Maryland Fisheries Services "Proposal to manage Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay spring trophy striped bass fishery by creel, size and season limits".
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Maryland, Virginia and Army Corps of Engineers Agree to Preferred Alternative
for Chesapeake Bay Oyster Restoration |
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The Chesapeake Bay Oyster Restoration Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) Executive Committee yesterday announced their agreement to identify a native-only restoration strategy as the preferred alternative in the final PEIS due to be published in late June. The Governors of Maryland and Virginia praised the decision.
"Over the past two years, the State of Maryland and the Commonwealth of Virginia have built an unprecedented partnership to restore the health of the Chesapeake Bay and its living resources," said Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley. "I am extremely pleased that, together with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, we have reached an agreement on a preferred oyster restoration alternative, one that will not threaten the Bay's already stressed ecosystem. We look forward to finalizing this process over the next few months, and to collaborating with our partners in Virginia to use new science developed through this extraordinary study to support both the ecological restoration of our native oyster and the revitalization of our oyster industry with emphasis on new aquaculture opportunities."
Click here to read the entire press release. If you like to read more about the PEIS please go to our InFocus page at www.dnr.state.md.us/dnrnews/infocus/oysters.asp.
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The Maryland 2009 Fishing Guide Available Online! |
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 Now available online, the 2009 Fishing Guide, the guide includes summaries of this years regulations along with predicted tides and much more! The guide traditionally accompanies the purchase of your fishing license and covers Freshwater, Chesapeake Bay, Coastal and Atlantic Ocean recreational fishing and crabbing regulations for the State of Maryland. If your internet speed is a concern please note the file size of the 2009 guide, it is 2 megabytes, if you would rather not download the file please visit your nearest license retailer for a hard copy.
To view and download the entire fishing guide book click this link.
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2008 Young-of-Year Striped Bass Survey Shows Below Average Reproduction |
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Service recently finalized the 2008 striped bass (rockfish) juvenile index, a measure of striped bass spawning success in Chesapeake Bay. The 2008 index is 3.2, below the long-term average of 11.7. During the survey DNR biologists collected 422 young-of-year (YOY) striped bass.
“Healthy striped bass populations are known for such highly variable spawning success,” said Eric Durell, DNR Fisheries Biologist. “This is just the third time in the past decade that striped bass reproduction in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay has been below average.”
 Two of the most successful spawning years ever documented (2001 and 2003) also occurred during this period. Typically, several years of average reproduction are interspersed with occasional large and small year-classes.
Poor reproduction was also observed for other spring-spawning species such as white perch and American shad, leading biologists to suspect that large-scale environmental factors may be responsible. Heavy rains in early May resulted in decreased water temperatures on major striped bass spawning grounds.
“This spring water temperatures fell below levels known to be lethally cold to striped bass eggs and larvae,” explained Durell. “Survival of these sensitive life stages is a major determinant of spawning success.”
The underlying spanwing stock is still healhty and is watched closely by DNR biologists and monitored and in partnerhsip with other coastal states through the Atlantic State's Marine Fisheries Commission.
DNR biologists have monitored the reproductive success of striped bass and other species in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay annually since 1954. Twenty-two sites were surveyed in the four major spawning systems: Choptank, Potomac, and Nanticoke Rivers, and the Upper Chesapeake Bay. Biologists visit each site monthly from July through September, collecting fish samples with two sweeps of a 100-foot beach seine. The index is calculated as the average catch of YOY fish per sample.
For more information visit www.dnr.maryland.gov/fisheries/juvindex/index.html.
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Don’t Play Johnny Appleseed with Fish! |
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You may think stocking your favorite fish in a local stream or pond is a great idea, but think twice! Moving fish to waters where they were not historically found may disrupt the ecosystem and damage existing fish populations in that area. Like snakeheads, non-native fish can be very damaging. Maryland Fisheries Service is concerned about the potential impacts of two non-native catfish – the blue catfish and the flathead catfish. Both have been found in some Maryland waters.
Click here to view an advisory on these species and learn about the impacts of introducing these species. To learn more about the laws and regulations governing fish movements in Maryland, view our fact sheet “What Can I Stock or Release into Maryland Waters?”
To learn more about invasive species or what steps Maryland's Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has taken to help prevent invasive species from being introduced go to www.dnr.state.md.us/invasives/index.asp.
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National Saltwater Angler Registry |
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On June 11, 2008, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries released a proposed rule on the National Saltwater Angler Registry. The proposed rule outlines the process NOAA Fisheries will use for registering saltwater recreational anglers. It also addresses the qualifications and procedures for exempting states and their anglers from the federal registration requirement. Click here to see what this means for Maryland anglers.
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Fish for the Future: Promoting Sensible Growth While Preserving Fish Habitat |
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Check out what Maryland's Fisheries Service is doing to define the effect of habitat on fish populations.
Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Fisheries Service initiated studies examining impacts of land development on fisheries in the Bay. These studies indicated that when impervious surface (rooftops, roads, sidewalks, parking lots and compacted soils) covers 10% or more of a watershed, fish habitat is significantly impaired and fish populations decline...
To view complete story go to the following web site http:www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/management/ecosystem/futurefishindex.html.
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