Where are the Striped Bass?

[voyager35]

That being said, however, I don't think the blues and bass stocks will ever recover without a large forage base. Continuing to decimate the bunker population can only lead to a decline in sport fish stocks, no matter how strict the recreational limits.

I think that's a good point. I saw that article you posted on the bunker. I can tell you this, we had lots of bunker in NJ this late spring with no bass under them. There were times when I took a run from Barnegat Inlet to Monmouth Beach. We would find dozens of pods of bunker, thousands in a pod, that had no bass on them. Our best success was finding the smaller pods that were isolated and picking a bass or 2 from underneath.
What that says to me is that even though there are less bunker, as the article you posted claims, there are even less bass and bluefish to eat that forage. I remember this happening last year as well. I don't have a recollection of it beiing that bad 10 years ago either.
I don't have an answer here. I do feel there are a lot of good questions raised in this thread. In my view we need more accurate numbers to be sure.

[jonthepain]

I agree with you, however, I've fished under bunker pods during the late 80s without finding any bass.


I think that, like all ecosystems, there are a lot of variables, and a change in one necessarily affects the others.

Luckily, natural systems generally return to an optimum level given a chance. The number of predators increase when the prey levels increase, until they hit the maximum sustainable population.

[DarkSkies]

SC1/Gunny posted this on his site.
www.stripercoastsurfcasters.us

I thought you might like the perspective of someone who had seen things from both the Commercial side with commercial fishermen in his family, and as a Recreational fisherman who has fished the salt for more than 40 years:


1 The typicle tactic of defending all comms as being honest and above board is still being beaten to death by an individual that either never fishes or talks to another comm, or is completely ignorant to the facts.
The number of fish sold without reporting, AKA, black market, in my opinion, and estimation, is fully equal to the reported catch....

There are way too many recs out there that have no clue as to what is happening right now. I recently talked with a boat owner about the status of Stripers, and he showed exactly what I've been saying for quite some time. He only started fishing for Bass 8 to 10 years ago. He justifies stuffing the seat cushions with fish to offset the cost of fuel. If he doesn't come in with at least 8 fish, the number he designated, then it wasn't worth leaving the ramp.

If I had not lived the crash or maintained the Bass are dollars attitude, I could easily have been making 10 grand or more a year in unreported sales. There were times when I had the boats in the water that temptation was real, and the number of times I was approached would astound you. My reputation, pre internet, was well known on the Island, and I had the same situations my old man dealt with, the armada would follow me and watch through bino's to see what I was doing.




2.
They will divert by placing blame on every other ingrediant in the stew as the cause of less Bass near shore. Same exact arguments they used nearly 30 years ago. Blame everyone else BUT THEMSELVES.
Why is it that no Comm can make a living from the surf the way we did back then. Why is it the acres of Bass no longer blitz the entire point of the Cape, Race Point like they used to? For days on end? It's not just a bait issue, its a numbers issue, those Bass don't exist in the massive schools like days gone by.

[jigfreak]

They should have done more regulations years ago, but unfortunately people did not think about the commercial fishing world of the future. It is all a number issue. If we continue to fish the way we are there will be no fish left. Catch and release rules.

[Stripercoast1]

Many years ago, Bob Pond, owner of Atom Tackle, organized Stripers Unlimited with his own money. He did this because he saw the writing on the wall. It was the beginning of the out of control Menhaden purse seining. He noticed the Bass were getting skinny and were seeking less nutritious forage. Sand eels take more effort for less gain, and were becoming the targeted food source of Bass and Blues along the North East coastal waters. Bass were also addapting to eating any and all available food sources that also take more effort but little gain. Cunner, Sea Robbins, and other rough fish were turning up in the stomachs of Bass on a more than usual occurance. To equate this to human standards, eating a bowl of saw dust will make you feel full, but little or no nutrition is gained.
I remember when Bob would arrive on a beach or the canal, and the attitude was, "Here comes Chicken Little." This was during the 70's and the research he funded was scoffed and belittled. Just a few short years later, all he tried to warn about came to fruition.
The situation now is not any differant from my eyes. We hear the warnings and ***** about lousy catch rates but wait and watch for what someone else is going to do.
The Bunker are not here. The reasons for some areas of the coast to see them, while others have none, are really almost too simple to undestand. New Jersey and New York put in regulatory controls on how and when the Bunker fleet can operate. They could not legally shut them down, so they made it hard for them to operate. North of those 2 states the Bunker are no where near the numbers we once saw. The Bass that locked up on Block this past year were on Scup, AKA Porgie. Scup do not contain the oils and fats that bunker provide for Bass to sustain good health, but in the absence of proper food they are better than nothing.
Call me chicken little if you want, in fact being grouped with Bob Pond would be a badge of honor to me. The crash is coming again, the only thing I wonder, is if we will catch it in time this time.

[plugaholic]

That was a great read stripercoast1. You are correct that people stand buy and watch without getting involved. All of a sudden the bunker are gone, the fish are gone and everyone will be walking around with the foot up their *** wondering what the hell happened. I wish more people would get involved.

[Stripercoast1]

I revisit this thread to post a notice.

Bob Pond died on December 26, 2009.

We owe a great deal to this amazing man.

I own the very last Atom 40 that he pulled from the mold when I came very close to buying the company from him. I visited him the day before he turned the keys over to the folks that beat me out. I asked him to autograph it and it is in a shadow box in my living room.

If you do not know of Bob and the work he did, look into Stripers Unlimited. As I said before he was a man ahead of his time, that showed up just in time.

I'll bet no one ever called him Chicken Little after the moratorium.

[buckethead]

Many years ago, Bob Pond, owner of Atom Tackle, organized Stripers Unlimited with his own money. He did this because he saw the writing on the wall. It was the beginning of the out of control Menhaden purse seining. He noticed the Bass were getting skinny and were seeking less nutritious forage. Sand eels take more effort for less gain, and were becoming the targeted food source of Bass and Blues along the North East coastal waters. Bass were also addapting to eating any and all available food sources that also take more effort but little gain. Cunner, Sea Robbins, and other rough fish were turning up in the stomachs of Bass on a more than usual occurance. To equate this to human standards, eating a bowl of saw dust will make you feel full, but little or no nutrition is gained.
I remember when Bob would arrive on a beach or the canal, and the attitude was, "Here comes Chicken Little." This was during the 70's and the research he funded was scoffed and belittled. Just a few short years later, all he tried to warn about came to fruition.
The situation now is not any differant from my eyes. We hear the warnings and ***** about lousy catch rates but wait and watch for what someone else is going to do.
The Bunker are not here. The reasons for some areas of the coast to see them, while others have none, are really almost too simple to undestand. New Jersey and New York put in regulatory controls on how and when the Bunker fleet can operate. They could not legally shut them down, so they made it hard for them to operate. North of those 2 states the Bunker are no where near the numbers we once saw. The Bass that locked up on Block this past year were on Scup, AKA Porgie. Scup do not contain the oils and fats that bunker provide for Bass to sustain good health, but in the absence of proper food they are better than nothing.
Call me chicken little if you want, in fact being grouped with Bob Pond would be a badge of honor to me. The crash is coming again, the only thing I wonder, is if we will catch it in time this time.

Great post, SC1. You could not have said it better if you had a window to the future. How fitting that you should put that up before he passed. You are right, the writing has been on the wall for many years. It is up to us to see that it is there. rip Mr Pond.