The Cooperative Recreational Angler Yellow Perch Survey is designed to obtain yellow perch harvest data that is not otherwise available to the MD DNR. The focus of the survey is to gather size data on harvested and released yellow perch. To become involved contact Paul Piavis at 410-643-6776 x110 or via email at ppiavis@dnr.state.md.us.

For every survey which anglers submit to DNR, their name will be entered into a drawing for Bass Pro Shops Extreme Rod & Johnny Morris Reel™. Also included is a tackle box filled with assorted Bass Pro Shops™ tackle.  The package is valued at $300.00.

Participate online at: www.dnr.maryland.gov/fisheries/survey/ypsurveyintro.html

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Fisheries Service recently presented the estimated 2007 blue crab harvest numbers from Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay. The estimated 2007 harvest is 21.8 million pounds, approximately 6 million pounds below last year’s harvest and slightly above Maryland’s lowest recorded harvest of 20.2 million pounds in 2000.

To view entire press release go to www.dnr.state.md.us/dnrnews/pressrelease2008/020408.html.

To read read up on Maryland's Blue Crab Program go to www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/crab/crabindex.html.

Now available online, the 2008 Fishing Guide. The guide traditionally accompanies the purchase of your fishing license and covers Freshwater, Chesapeake Bay, Coastal and Atlantic Ocean recreational fishing regulations for the State of Maryland. If your internet speed is a concern please note the file size of the 2008 guide, it is 8 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.

The Bay Weekly publication recently ran an article concerning the recycling of fishing line, many of Maryland's State Parks now participate in this recycling effort.

"...Discarded fishing line is nasty. Like other plastics that endure in the Bay and the ocean, plastic monofilament doesn’t biodegrade.  Once line falls into the water or tangles along the shoreline, it stays there.  Worse still, rogue monofilament can kill.  The strong line ensnares seabirds like gulls and osprey as well as fish and other wildlife..."  To read the entire article go to www.bayweekly.com/year07/issuexv38/leadxv38_3.html.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has an informative web site at www.myfwc.com/mrrp/implementing.htm to help get you started towards creating your own monofilament recycling program. Maryland's Fisheries Service strongly advocates the recycling of discarded fishing line.

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) are conducting a cooperative tagging study to better understand mycobacteria disease of resident striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay.

Mycobacteriosis is a bacterial disease known to be present in striped bass since at least the mid 1980s. Stock assessment analysis has not demonstrated a decline in the population of striped bass and reproduction remains high. This tagging study is designed to determine how or if the disease progresses in fish over time. Diseased and healthy fish are collected, assessed for current health condition, implanted with bright-green anchor tags and released back into the Chesapeake Bay.

“Coordination between DNR and VIMS will ensure that fish recaptured in the Chesapeake Bay are collected and analyzed in a timely manner, regardless of where they are caught,” said Howard King, Director of DNR’s Fisheries Service. “Results of this study will increase our understanding of the potential impacts of mycobacteriosis on the striped bass population.”

Fish will be tagged each spring and fall through at least 2009. Both agencies are using a bright-green colored anchor tag marked with either “VIMS” or “MD DNR” that includes a toll free number (1-866-845-3379) to report the fish. A reward is being offered for the return of tagged whole fish to biologists so that they can be examined. Fish bearing the bright-green tag are exempt from Maryland and Virginia daily catch limits and seasonal and size restrictions, provided that they are reported promptly, kept intact, kept cool or chilled (not frozen) and turned over to DNR or VIMS. Cooperation by anglers, commercial fishermen and charter boat captains is very much needed for success of this study. Tagged fish captured outside Maryland and Virginia waters should still be reported on the toll free number and the tag returned by mail.

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...