Mid Atlantic Saltwater Fishing Facts

Fishing Boats

Saltwater fishing is one of the most popular outdoor activities in the Mid Atlantic region.

This article includes a few facts about recreational saltwater fishing in the Mid Atlantic including popular species, statistics, regulations, and other information.

Mid Atlantic Facts - Statistics

According to Fisheries Economics of the United States (FEUS) 2016:

The Mid-Atlantic Region includes Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia. In 2016, there were 2.4 million recreational anglers who fished in the Mid-Atlantic Region, with14 million fishing trips taken.

In the report, recreational fishing refers to fishing for fun rather than to resell fish (commercial fishing) or for subsistence.

Key Mid-Atlantic Region Recreational Species:
• Atlantic croaker
• Black sea bass
• Bluefish
• Scup
• Spot
• Striped bass
• Summer flounder
• Tautog
• Weakfish drum
• Winter flounder

Top Mid Atlantic Catches:
summer flounder (12.2 million fish)
black sea bass (9.3 million fish)
and striped bass (8.6 million fish)

Top Catches by State:
Virginia caught the most Atlantic croaker and spot (5.6 million fish)
New Jersey caught the most summer flounder (6.9 million fish)
Maryland anglers caught the most striped bass (5.1 million fish)

Recreational Fishing Regulations

In the Mid Atlantic region, recreational fishing regulations are set by a combination of federal and state entities.

Federal Fisheries Management

Federal fisheries are generally defined as fishing activities that take place in the U.S.Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ, between 3 and 200 nautical miles from the coastline). Generally, individual states retain management authority over fishing activities within three nautical miles of their coasts.

The authority to manage federal fisheries in the United States was granted to the Secretary of Commerce by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA).

NOAA Fisheries is the federal agency with delegated authority from the Secretary of Commerce to oversee fishing activities in federal waters.

The MSA has been reauthorized twice since its enactment, in 1996 and again in 2006.

The 2006 MSA reauthorization included a requirement to use annual catch limits (ACLs) to end and prevent overfishing.To limit ACL overages, regional fishing councils implement management measures as necessary.

In 2018, the MSA was amended by the Modernizing Recreational Fisheries Management Act, which focused on improvements to recreational fishing data and management of mixed-use fisheries.

Fishery management plans (FMPs) provide a framework for managing the harvest of fish stocks and stock complexes. FMPs are developed by Regional Fishery Management Councils (FMCs).

Federal fisheries in the Mid Atlantic region are managed by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC) and NOAA Fisheries under seven fishery management plans (FMPs).

Two of these FMPs are developed in conjunction with the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC). The MAFMC is the lead council for the Spiny Dogfish FMP; the NEFMC is the lead for the Monkfish FMP.

In addition, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) (www.asmfc.org) serves as a deliberative body of the Atlantic coastal states, coordinating the conservation and management of 27 nearshore fish species.

Highly migratory species such as tunas, mackerels, sharks, and billfish are managed by NOAA Fisheries. Several HMS species are subject to cooperative management by NOAA and international fishing organizations.

Recent Federal Actions Impacting the Mid Atlantic

In the fall of 2019, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board approved Addendum VI to Amendment 6 of the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Striped Bass.

The Addendum reduces all state commercial quotas by 18%, and implements a 1 fish bag limit and a 28”-35” recreational slot limit for ocean fisheries and a 1 fish bag limit and an 18” minimum size limit for Chesapeake Bay recreational fisheries. States may submit alternative regulations through conservation equivalency to achieve an 18% reduction in total removals relative to 2017 levels.

Addendum VI was initiated in response to the 2018 Benchmark Stock Assessment, which indicates the resource is overfished and experiencing overfishing. The Addendum’s measures are designed to reduce harvest, end overfishing, and bring fishing mortality to the target level in 2020.

Since catch and release practices contribute significantly to overall fishing mortality, the Addendum requires the mandatory use of circle hooks when fishing with bait to reduce release mortality in recreational striped bass fisheries.

Mid Atlantic Region State Agencies:

New York DEC (www.dec.ny.gov)
New Jersey Fish and Wildlife (www.njfishandwildlife.com)
Maryland Department of Natural Resources (www.dnr.state.md.us)
Delaware DNREC (www.dnrec.delaware.gov)
Virginia Marine Resources Commission (www.mrc.state.va.us)
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (www.ncwildlife.org)

Related Information

2016 NOAA USA Recreational Fishing Statistics (saltwater)

RBFF 2017 Special Report on Fishing

Mid Atlantic Striped Bass EEZ Enforcement

Management Proposals Approved for 2014 Black Sea Bass Recreational Fisheries

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board approved state proposals for the 2014 black sea bass recreational fishery in accordance with Addendum XXV to the Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan.

For black sea bass, the Board approved the methodologies used by the states of Massachusetts through New Jersey to establish their minimum size, bag limits, and season lengths to achieve a 7% reduction in the 2014 recreational harvest levels from the 2013 harvest level. The 7% reduction is in response to harvest overages that occurred in 2013.

States will be finalizing their regulations over the next couple of weeks. The Board also agreed to a send letter to NOAA Fisheries requesting a review of the 2013 final Marine Recreational Information Program black sea bass harvest numbers when determining the final rule for 2014 measures.

For more information, visit: http://www.asmfc.org/

source: Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

ASMFC Approves Regional Management for 2014 Recreational Black Sea Bass

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board approved Addendum XXV to the Summer Flounder and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan, establishing regional recreational management for both species for the 2014 fishing year.

For black sea bass, the Board approved the continuation of ad hoc regional management measures by northern (Massachusetts – New Jersey) and southern regions (Delaware – North Carolina). This approach has been used since 2011 and offers some advantages over coastwide regulations, which can disproportionately impact states within the management unit.

Specifically, regional measures address geographic differences in the stock (size, abundance and seasonality) while maintaining the consistent application of management measures by neighboring states.

States in the northern region will reduce their catch based on the region’s performance in 2013. The Technical Committee will work with the states to develop regional management measures for Board consideration and approval.

States in the southern region will implement measures consistent with federal regulations (current recommended federal measures are a 12.5 inch TL minimum fish size, 15 fish possession limit, and open season from May 19 – September 18 and October 18 – December 31).

The regulations of the two regions combined will achieve the required coastwide harvest reduction in order to not exceed the 2014 recreational harvest limit. The Board approved the ad hoc regional measures approach for the 2014 fishing year, with the option of extending it through 2015 by Board action.

Addendum XXV will be available on the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission website by the end of February.

source: Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

ASMFC Approves Regional Management for 2014 Recreational Summer Flounder

ASMFC Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Board Approves Regional Management for 2014 Recreational Summer Flounder and Black Sea Bass Fisheries

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board approved Addendum XXV to the Summer Flounder and Black Sea Bass Fishery Management Plan, establishing regional recreational management for both species for the 2014 fishing year.

For summer flounder, the Addendum creates management measures by region with the intent of providing more equity in recreational harvest opportunities along the coast, especially between New York and New Jersey.

The approved summer flounder regions are Massachusetts and Rhode Island; Connecticut through New Jersey; Delaware through Virginia; and North Carolina. For black sea bass, the Board also approved the continuation of management measures by northern (Massachusetts – New Jersey) and southern regions (Delaware – North Carolina).

Under this approach, all states within a region will be required to have the same possession limit, size limit, and season length. The Technical Committee will work with the states to develop, for Board consideration and approval, measures for each region that will collectively achieve, but not exceed, the recreational harvest limit. The adaptive regional management approach has been approved for the 2014 fishing year only.

Addendum XXV will be available on the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission website by the end of February.

source: Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

2014 Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic Winter Flounder Recreational Regulations

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) Winter Flounder Management Board recently set specifications for the 2014 recreational fishing season for the Southern New England/Mid-Atlantic (SNE/MA) stock.

The season will extend from March 1 to December 31 with a two fish creel limit. This change is an expansion of the 60-day recreational open season.

According to ASMFC, all other commercial and recreational management measures for the Gulf of Maine (GOM) and SNE/MA stocks will be maintained.

source: Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

North Carolina Black Drum Regulations

The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries recently announced new regulations on black drum which will become effective on January 1, 2014.

The new regulations include:
 * 14 to 25-inch total length slot size limit (except one fish longer than 25 inches total length may be kept)

 * 10-fish recreational bag limit

 * 500-pound commercial trip limit

For specific requirements, see Proclamation FF-73-2013 at http://portal.ncdenr.org/web/mf/proclamations.

An Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission Interstate Fishery Management Plan requires states to implement black drum possession limits and a minimum size limit of at least 12 inches by Jan. 1, 2014 and at least 14 inches by Jan. 1, 2016.

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission voted at its November business meeting to implement the more restrictive size limit to avoid confusion of another change in two years.

For more information, visit www.ncdenr.gov.

source: North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries

ASMFC Seeks Comments on Summer Flounder FMP Draft Addendum XXIV

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board has released Draft Addendum XXIV to the Summer Flounder Fishery Management Plan for public comment.

According to ASMFC, the Draft Addendum proposes to stabilize 2013 recreational fishing rules for summer flounder close to those that existed in 2012 partly to minimize the reductions facing two states (e.g., New York and New Jersey) and partly to allow for the more equitable distribution of fishing opportunities in the 2013 season.

The proposed approach is intended to allow states to capitalize on harvest opportunities that are foregone by states that choose not to fully utilize their 2013 harvest target.

Fishermen and other interested groups can provide input on the Draft Addendum either by attending state public hearings or providing written comment.

The Draft Addendum can be obtained via wwww.asmfc.org or by contacting the Commission at 703.842.0740.

Public comment will be accepted until 5:00 PM (EST) on April 12, 2013 and should be forwarded to:

Toni Kerns
ISFMP Director
1050 N. Highland St., Suite 200 A-N
Arlington, VA 22201

703.842.0741 (FAX) or tkerns@asmfc.org  (Subject line: Summer Flounder).

Source: ASMFC

2013 Scup Recreational Harvest Limit

The ASMFC Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board recently approved the following measures by states in the northern region (Massachusetts – New York) for the 2013 scup recreational fishery:

45 fish bag limit for the party and charter boat bonus season for one Wave (two month period)

10” minimum size limit for all anglers

9” minimum size limit for shore-based anglers at approved designated sites in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut

30 fish bag limit for all anglers outside of party and charter boat bonus season

The season remains at May 1 to December 31

source: ASMFC

2012 Mid Atlantic Fisheries Research Projects

The Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program (ACCSP), a state and federal partnership for marine fisheries data collection and data management, has allocated nearly $2 million to state and federal partners for new and ongoing projects 2012.

In the Mid Atlantic region, several projects will be awarded funding, including:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) has been awarded $245,084 for an observer program for the Mid-Atlantic (New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia) and Rhode Island small mesh otter trawls.

ASMFC will also receive $133,466 in conjunction with the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council to work on an extension for the observer program for the Mid-Atlantic small mesh otter trawls.

The NOAA Fisheries Service Southeast Fisheries Science Center will receive $236,440 to process and age biological samples collected from South Atlantic commercial and recreational fisheries in response to ACCSP bio-target samples.

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the NOAA Fisheries Service Northeast Fisheries Science Center will jointly receive $178,584 to further develop biological characterization and implementation of the Standard Atlantic Fisheries Information System (SAFIS) for the commercial fisheries in New Jersey.

North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries will receive $41,500 to update angler contact information for grandfathered license holders in North Carolina.

The Recreational Technical Committee of the ACCSP will receive $128,468 to increase intercept sampling levels for the Marine Recreational Information Program for-hire methodology of the charter boat fishery on the Atlantic coast (New Hampshire through Florida) and $159,573 to increase at-sea sampling levels for the for-hire survey head-boat fishery on the Atlantic coast (New Hampshire through Florida).

source: Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission

2012 Atlantic Coast Black Sea Bass Regulations

2012 Atlantic Coast Black Sea Bass Regulations

After reviewing 2011 black sea bass recreational data, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass Management Board modified the percent that states may liberalize their 2012 recreational management measures to achieve the 1.32 million pound (942,857 fish) harvest limit for the 2012 fishery.

Since the Board's approval of Addendum XXII and the resultant 2012 state recreational management measures in February 2012, new 2011 recreational harvest estimates were released by the National Marine Fisheries Service. The coastwide recreational harvest for the 2011 black sea bass fishery is now estimated at 713,478 fish.

Based on the stock projections completed in 2011, the black sea bass stock is not overfished and overfishing is not occurring. The projections indicate the stock is at about 111% of its biomass target.

source: ASMFC

2011 Tautog Stock Assessment Update Errors

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission recently reported that its Tautog Stock Assessment Subcommittee has identified and corrected errors in the 2011 stock assessment update.

Originally, the assessment indicated a 53% reduction was needed to meet the Addendum VI fishing mortality target (F target) of 0.15. The revised update indicates that a coastwide reduction of 37% in exploitation is should achieve the F target.

Despite the revised data, tautog will still be listed as overfished with overfishing occurring. The Board approved Addendum VI in 2011 in response to the poor stock condition.

In order to end overfishing and initiate stock rebuilding, Addendum VI lowers the F target and requires states to implement measures to achieve this target by January 1, 2012.

According to ASFMC, the tautog's slow growth rate, late age of maturity, and spawning site fidelity makes it particularly susceptible to overfishing.

The Tautog Management Board is expected to complete a conference call over the next few weeks to review the revised assessment results and determine the reductions needed by each state to achieve the Addendum VI.

source: ASFMC

ASMFC Expands Recreational Black Sea Bass Season

The ASMFC's Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass Management Board has modified the 2010 season length for the black sea bass recreational fishery. The season will now run from May 22 to October 11, 2010 and from November 1 to December 31, 2010.

The newly approved season is anticipated to achieve a 26% reduction and allows for a reasonable conservation buffer to account for uncertainty in the harvest estimates and the effectiveness of regulations. The season was further expanded into November and December to allow for increased access by party/charter
boats and private boat/shore-based anglers that did not have a late fall/early winter season last year.

source: ASMFC press release

ASMFC Finds New Jersey Shark Regs Out of Compliance

Last week at its Winter Meeting, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission found the State of New Jersey out of compliance with the mandatory management measures contained in the Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Atlantic Coastal Sharks. The Commission has notified the Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior of its finding.  This action was taken pursuant to the provisions of the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act of 1993.

The State of New Jersey has not implemented the regulations of the Interstate FMP for Atlantic Coastal Sharks. The implementation of these regulations is necessary to rebuild depleted shark stocks, ensure sustainable harvest of others, and provide protection for sharks in state nursing and pupping grounds.  The Technical Committee has identified Delaware Bay as one of the most important nursing grounds for depleted sandbar sharks on the Atlantic Coast. Included in the 22 commercial and recreational regulations in the FMP is a seasonal closure from Virginia north through New Jersey to protect pupping sandbar sharks.

In order to come back into compliance the State of New Jersey must implement all measures contained in the FMP.  Upon notification by the Commission, the Secretary of Commerce has 30 days to review the recommendation and determine appropriate action, which may include a federal moratorium on fishing for all 40 species of coastal sharks managed under the FMP in New Jersey’s state waters.  For more information, please contact Robert Beal, Director, Interstate Fisheries Management Program, at (202) 289-6400.

source: ASMFC press release