So… where are all the small striped bass?
July 20, 2010
This is a question many of my guide friends have been asking for the past couple of years. The fishing in the Boston Harbor area has been excellent this season. Many keeper size bass (over 28″) including some very large fish in the 20 – 30+ pound range are being caught and released, and in some cases kept for the grill. Today, the average striped bass that we see in our waters is typically from 24 to 30″. However, we are not seeing the small or juvenile bass that were common place in the 90′s and early 2000′s. The concern is that this may reflect depleted or smaller young of the year stocks of striped bass and if so, it does not bode well for the future of recreational striper fishing. And if recreational and commercial striper fisherman continue to take the larger breeder fish, we could be dealing with a double whammy! Now, I’m not a scientist. I’m just reporting on my observations as a fishing guide who has fished Boston Harbor and Mass. Bay waters for many years.
So, what do you think? Any guess as to why we are not seeing smaller bass? Should we be concerned???
Capt. Wayne
