FISHERMEN/ Tied up once again!

[1captainron]

FISHERMEN/ Tied up once again!

Looks like the weather is going to kick us in the butt once again!!

NE for the next couple of days we will be taking a pass at least until Thursday.

Fish are moving out, not moving in and it's a struggle to catch 20 keepers, which is now a banner day to some. Hoping the porgies show up soon locally so we can keep it going until Sea Bass opens, then Striped Bass towards the end of October.

Going to the Striped Bass meeting tomorrow night, can't wait to see how many who Love the fishery show up or is it all fluff and BS. I'll update Wednesday about the rest of the week.

Capt. Ron

[Broad Bill]

Fluke season ends on the 25th but for all practical purposes after this blow it's over. Fish are on their way offshore, now the fate of the stock rests in the hands as it does every year of commercial netters and how much they pound the fishery between now and April of next year. North Carolina and all states commercially getting ready to wipe the bottom clean of females fully loaded with eggs and large male breeders. Sin how the stock is being managed by the federal and state fisheries agencies.

I invite anyone to go down to the fisherman's Den coops where the commercial fleet off loads and look at the size and quantity of fish being offloaded. And then envision the fish tossed back dead during that harvest process. They can talk about a moratorium on stripers because of stock and recruitment concerns yet Mark Terceiro, lead scientist from NEFSC for fluke, said for over a decade recruitment is way off BUT they don't know the reason while they allow the stock this time of year every year to be absolutely pounded during their spawn. Hundreds of thousands of breeders harvested, God only knows how many juvenile fish killed and trillions of eggs killed to harvest their Fall quotas. Why not a moratorium on commercial netting for fluke for the same reason the fall striper season is being considered. Because one is harvested at that time of year primarily by the recreational sector and one by the commercial sector.

[june181901]

Broad Bill: Since what you said makes too much sense, it is automatically rejected by the various regulating agencies and their bureaucrats!

[tautog]

All the fluke you want on the east side of the Mud Hole right now. 1 keeper for every 30 shorts, but it is literally a bite every minute or 2. They will probably be gone by the time it calms down again.

[Broad Bill]

Originally Posted by tautog

All the fluke you want on the east side of the Mud Hole right now. 1 keeper for every 30 shorts, but it is literally a bite every minute or 2. They will probably be gone by the time it calms down again.

Same as every year. They head north in shore, feed up and on the full moon and based on weather conditions, ride the full moon currents back out east. They won't be there long as their moving and the commercials are pounding the highly concentrated schools. Tragic what the powers to be allow with this stock and just about every fishery with a commercial presence.

[bulletbob]

https://www.charlestonseafood.com/Wh...r_p/fldwhl.htm

with this kind of value for whole [not fillets] flounder/fluke, it will never end. The slaughter will continue until the fish are declared ""commercially extinct"".. Then they will shut down all recreational fishing and allow something like "targeted limited harvest" to the commercials. When people will pay $45 or so bucks for 1 1/2 pounds of fish and 1/2 pound of fins,skin and bone, there will be plenty of eager little beavers that will happily drag the last few off the increasingly lifeless bottom.. It happened with Cod, Weakfish, Winter Flounder, Boston Macs, Silver Hake,.. What makes anyone think it can't happen with summer Flounder?.... bob

[Broad Bill]

Originally Posted by bulletbob

https://www.charlestonseafood.com/Wh...r_p/fldwhl.htm

with this kind of value for whole [not fillets] flounder/fluke, it will never end. The slaughter will continue until the fish are declared ""commercially extinct"".. Then they will shut down all recreational fishing and allow something like "targeted limited harvest" to the commercials. When people will pay $45 or so bucks for 1 1/2 pounds of fish and 1/2 pound of fins,skin and bone, there will be plenty of eager little beavers that will happily drag the last few off the increasingly lifeless bottom.. It happened with Cod, Weakfish, Winter Flounder, Boston Macs, Silver Hake,.. What makes anyone think it can't happen with summer Flounder?.... bob

Got you beat Bob, check these prices from the same Charleston Seafood, $63.87 for 2 lbs. of fillets.

https://www.charlestonseafood.com/Fl...t_p/fldflt.htm

Why do you think North Carolina comes up here with all the other commercial operators to get in on the gold rush every winter and wipes the ocean floor clean. Caught off the Southeast Coast, those fish are probably caught of New Jersey since almost all of North Carolina's quota is caught in the winter. And why do you think all those just short fish the recreational sector release every year never materializes to an increase in keeper / short ratios the following year.

Exactly why the summer and winter flounder fisheries were dedicated to the commercial sector years ago being they have an east / west migration meaning they're accessible year round to commercial fisheries from the Outer Banks to Gloucester. There's strong demand year round from retail consumer stores (Whole Foods / Wegmans / fish markets), restaurants and the sushi market and they carry an enormous price tag. Perfect fish for the commercial industry to fatten up on year round sadly at the expense of the recreational sector and fishery itself. We'll never learn, well done Department of Commerce and NMFS.