Emergency Weakfish

[kENSDOCK]

The weakfish harvest in 2007 was one of the lowest ever recorded. Check out the chart on the ASMFC site. Someone in the fisheries management system believes the weakfish decline is not due to commercial or recreational fishing but is due to some mysterious unknown natural phenomenon. Obviously, to admit that the weakfish stocks are at one of the lowest points in history due to commercial or recreational fishing would indicate a horrendous mistake by the ASMFC! At this point it is not going to do any good to waste time trying to figure out what happened to the weakfish stocks. What the remaining weakfish stock needs to rebuild and not become endangered is a complete closer of commercial and recreational harvest. Is there someone that can explain why the ASMFC continues to allow commercial fishing in the wintering areas of the weakfish and the recreational harvest of spawning weakfish in the Delaware Bay and other major spawning areas of the east coast? I urge everyone to take a second to contact the ASMFC and demand a emergency closer to the weakfish season.http://www.asmfc.org/

[kENSDOCK]

Actually a lot of information has been gathered on weakfish. Included is the location of the wintering grounds off of NC where the entire weakfish stock winters. A`relatively small area. I attended a meeting at the Rutgers extension center in Cape May Court House in the early Nineties. That year after much debate they closed the wintering grounds to commercial fly netting. It was not long and everyone was enjoying the rebuilding of the weakfish stocks. At some point when few anglers where paying attention they reopened the wintering grounds to commercial fly netting without a limit on the amount of weakfish they could harvest! If you look at the decline you can clearly see the point of the reopening. I remember well the old school fish management, catch all the fish you can until the fleet has caught em up then move on to the next fish, clam or scallop and by the time you cycle around they should be rebuilt. Of coarse it did not always work some times they would fish them down so far they would never come back. So to all those that think the blowfish ,red drum in NJ just disappeared the truth is they were caught iced and sold! I will tell you the next NJ fish some will claim to be on the down cycle and the low stock numbers to have nothing to do with fishing pressure. That is the tote fish or oyster cracker. The old school fish management destroyed many of our fish stocks and also drove many commercial fishermen out of businness. Our marine resources should be managed to support a thriving commercial and recreational fisherie.

You and all of us on here can do something right now to increase the weakfish stocks ! Contact this person at ASMFC and tell them the weakfish stocks need attention today! nmeserve@asmfc.org <nmeserve@asmfc.org>