October 20, 2026 — Striped bass reproduction in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay showed signs of improvement this year but remained below average for the eighth consecutive year, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
The department’s annual juvenile striped bass survey recorded an index of 5.5, the highest since 2018. That is up from 4.0 in 2025 and 2.0 in 2024, but still well below the long-term average of 10.8.
Biologists say they collected 723 juvenile striped bass during sampling at 22 sites in the Choptank, Nanticoke, and Potomac rivers and the upper Chesapeake Bay. The upper Bay and Choptank River produced the strongest results, according to researchers.