April 7, 2026 — Scalloping is usually easy pickings when the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) management area opens on April 1, and boats come from all over the northeast coast to harvest their 200-pound-a-day limit of big, clean scallops. But fisherman Brady Lybarger of Cape May, N.J., reports that catches are dropping off fast.
On the third day of the season, Lybarger had to make 6 tows to get his four buckets. “None of them more than 12 minutes,” he says. “We were in by 3 o’clock. But the scallops aren’t as thick as they were last year. On April 4, we made 9 tows, up to 25 minutes, and I heard some guys made 15.” But Lybarger notes the scallops are still good size and quality. “We’re getting U12s,” he says, referring to the scallops running less than 12 meats to the pound. “The price is down from last year, but it’s still $30 a pound. I’ll take that all day.”
Despite the drop in catch per unit of effort, Lybarger expects a short season. “Do the math,” he says. “One hundred eighty boats, 200 pounds a day, a roughly 400,000-pound quota. That’s 11 days. If we get anything over that, it’s a bonus.”