November 22, 2016 — The whale spotted in the Hudson River Thursday in Friday was likely led there by food, the head of a local whale research group said.
Photos of the humpback whale showed it “lunge feeding,” said Paul Sieswerda, president of Gotham Whale.
“That’s when they come up and break the surface and consume these bait balls of menhaden,” he said.
Predators drive menhaden, sometimes known as bunker fish, into tight balls. This allows whales to open their mouths and eat them all at once.
November 15th, 2016 — Interstate fishing managers are hosting public hearings about the future of the menhaden fishery, which they say is in good shape.
Atlantic menhaden, or or pogies, are small fish that swim in large schools and represent a key piece of the ocean’s food chain. They are also fished commercially all along the East Coast, in part because of their use as a dietary supplement and for use as bait.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission says menhaden are not being overfished and their reproduction is good. The commission is holding a series of hearings about the way it regulates the fishery.
Fishermen typically catch more than 500,000 tons of the fish every year. The fishery was worth more than $114 million in 2014. The largest fisheries are in Virginia, Louisiana and Mississippi.
The hearings are set to take place between Nov. 30 and Dec. 20 in cities from Florida to Maine. Regulators are seeking input from fishermen and other stakeholders about how the fishery is managed.
Read the full story from the Associated Press at The Gloucester Times
November 10th, 2016 — With 500 years of fishing in his family’s lineage, the second interviewee of the day spoke longer than most.
He explained how his Swedish parents emigrated to New Jersey in the 1950s, assuming that America was “the place to be” to solidify their fishing future. They made their new home in Cape May at the southern tip of that state, home to a robust fishing economy and history. Their catch would include scallops, loligo squid and mackerel — the area was, and still is, rife with seafood.
This fisherman was talking with me about Atlantic menhaden. This small oily fish represents a critical piece of the food chain for many fisheries, a source of bait for lobstermen and crabbers, and an essential ingredient for omega-3 oil products, such as human supplements, animal feeds and even lipstick.
I had made the trek from Raleigh to Cape May to better understand the socioeconomic dimensions of the Atlantic menhaden fishery, tracking the fish from its Atlantic Ocean home to its final form as fish food, health product and other uses. My goal is to inform the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, or ASMFC, menhaden board about the role that fish plays for fishermen and the folks that process, distribute and buy it. The ASMFC funded the study to provide socioeconomic data on the menhaden industry.
November 9th, 2016 — Commercial fishermen can breathe a sigh a relief, as interstate fishing regulators say that the population of menhaden, a fish only topped by herring as the most popular type of bait for Maine’s lobster industry, continues to be healthy.
According to the Associated Press, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is reporting that menhaden fishery isn’t experiencing overfishing and continues to reproduce at a healthy rate. Atlantic Menhaden Board Chairman Robert Ballou added that the healthy population levels will give regulators a chance to reevaluate how to manage the fishery, which is typically worth more than $100 million annually, the AP reported.
The good news about the menhaden population comes on the heels of Maine’s menhaden fishery being closed by regulators for a week and a half in August, following reports that the annual landings quota for Maine, Rhode Island and New York, had been exceeded.
November 3, 2016 — Meeting in Bar Harbor, Maine, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission voted to allow a 6.5% increase in the harvest of menhaden. The fish are used to make animal meal and health supplements and as bait to catch crabs, striped bass and other fish. But they’re also considered a vital link in the marine food chain and a staple in the diet of striped bass and other predators. For all of those reasons their management stirs intense passion.
The commission, which regulates near-shore fishing from Maine to Florida, had deadlocked in August over whether to raise the allowable menhaden catch next year. It began its final meeting of the year discussing the need to set some limit or there would be no cap at all in 2017.
Fishing interests have been pushing for a substantial catch increase, arguing that recent studies showed there were plenty of fish in coastal waters and no risk of taking too many. Yet, conservationists urged the commission to stay the course saying the fisheries panel should first figure out how many menhaden are needed as food for other fish and then look at reallocating the commercial harvest to spread the catch around more.
This is the latest round in a debate that goes back to December 2012, when the commission cut the catch 20% coastwide after a stock assessment indicated the fish population was overfished. It was the first time the commission set a coastwide harvest limit for menhaden.
A subsequent study finished last year, which used new models and new information, contradicted the earlier one finding that menhaden weren’t overfished. Further analysis by the commission’s technical advisory committee suggested the fish were abundant enough that catch limits could be raised by as much as 40% without any risk of taking too many.
Commercial fishing interests pressed for an increase of at least 20% from the current coastwide cap of 188,000 metric tons, arguing that it would ease the economic pinch that fishermen have had to endure the last four years because of a cut they said the science showed was unwarranted. But conservationists resisted, pointing out that the commission already raised the catch limit 10% last year in response to the more optimistic stock assessment and that it had not yet figured out how many menhaden should be left uncaught to feed other species.
Bill Goldsborough, senior fisheries scientist with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and a member of Maryland’s delegation to the commission, appealed for the panel to hold the line on the harvest cap. There are signs menhaden are increasing in number and showing up in waters off New England where they haven’t been seen in years. But while surveys show increases in juvenile fish along much of the coast, sampling has not found a similar upswing in the bay, one of the primary nursery areas.
November 1, 2016 — The following was released by the ASMFC:
Arlington, VA – The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Menhaden Management Board releases for public comment the Public Information Document (PID) for Draft Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden. As the first step in the amendment process, the document seeks input from stakeholders and those interested in Atlantic menhaden about changes observed in the fishery/resource and potential management measures.
Draft Amendment 3 was initiated following Board review and acceptance of the 2015 Stock Assessment and Peer Review report, which found the menhaden resource in good condition — not overfished nor experiencing overfishing. Population fecundity, a measure of reproductive capacity, was estimated to be roughly double the threshold value (86.8 trillion eggs). Additionally, total fishing mortality was estimated to be 0.22, below both the fishing mortality threshold (1.26) and target (0.38).
“The healthy condition of the resource combined with our expanding knowledge of ecosystem-based fisheries management has provided us a unique opportunity to reevaluate how this important fishery and resource can best be managed,” stated Robert Ballou, Atlantic Menhaden Board Chair.
The PID outlines a number of issues in the fishery and solicits feedback on how the resource should be managed. Specifically, the PID presents a suite of tools to manage the menhaden resource using ecological reference points and provides options to allocate the resource among the states, regions, and user groups. In addition to the specific issues identified in the PID, commenters are welcome to provide input on all aspects of the fishery and resource, including recommendations for future management.
Stakeholders are encouraged to provide input on the PID either by attending state public hearings or providing written comment. The PID can be obtained athttp://www.asmfc.org/files/PublicInput/AtlMenhadenAmend3PID_PublicComment.pdf or via the Commission’s website, www.asmfc.org, under Public Input. Public comment will be accepted until 5 PM (EST) on January 4, 2017 and should be forwarded to Megan Ware, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, 1050 N. Highland St, Suite A-N, Arlington, VA 22201; 703.842.0741 (FAX) or at comments@asmfc.org (Subject line: Menhaden PID). If your organization is planning to release an action alert related to the Amendment 3 PID, please contact Megan Ware at 703.842.0740 prior to its release.
It is anticipated the majority of states will be conducting public hearings over the next couple months. A subsequent press release will provide the details of those hearings. The Management Board will meet at the Commission’s 2017 Winter Meeting to review and consider public comment and provide direction to staff for items to be included in the Draft Amendment 3.
October 31st, 2016 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:
The Commission’s Atlantic Menhaden Management Board approved a total allowable catch (TAC) forthe 2017 fishing season of 200,000 mt, a 6.45% increase from the 2016 TAC. According to Technical Committee analysis this increase has a zero percent probability of resulting in overfishing. The TAC will be made available to the states/jurisdictions based on the state‐by‐state allocation established by Amendment 2 (see accompanying table).
“Given the healthy condition of the resource, this modest increase provides additional fishing opportunities while the Board proceeds with the development of Draft Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan.” stated Board Chair Robert Ballou from Rhode Island.
Additionally, the Board approved the Public Information Document (PID) for Draft Amendment 3 for public comment. As the first step in the amendment process, the PID provides stakeholders with an opportunity to inform the Commission about changes observed in the fishery and provide feedback on potential management measures as well as any additional issues that should be included in the Draft Amendment. Specifically, the PID presents a suite of tools to manage the menhaden resource using ecological reference points as well as options to allocate the resource among the states, regions, and user groups.
The PID will be available on the Commission website, www.asmfc.org, early next week. It is anticipated that the majority of states will be conducting public hearings over the next couple months. A subsequent press release to provide the details of those hearings. For more information, please contact Megan Ware, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at mware@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.
View the full release at: http://www.asmfc.org/uploads/file/58113785pr32AtlMenhaden2017TAC.pdf
October 28th, 2016 — After failing two months ago to come up with a 2017 quota for commercial harvests of menhaden, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission this week finally settled on a number: 200,000 metric tons, a 6.45 percent increase from this year.
The commission struggled for 3-1/2 hours at its meeting in Alexandria in August to set next year’s quota, with a half-dozen proposals for various limits failing to win enough votes. On Wednesday in Bar Harbor, Maine, the commission’s menhaden management board settled on a number much quicker.
Still, the new limit was criticized by environmental groups, including the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Chris Moore, the foundation’s senior scientist in Virginia, said in a prepared statement that the fish – a staple in the diets of numerous marine creatures, from striped bass to whales – are “not abundant throughout their geographic range.”
Moore said that keeping the quota unchanged for the small, bony, oily fish “would have helped ensure a healthier menhaden population for all users.”
In most of the states from Maine to Florida under the commission’s watch, menhaden are harvested for bait.
Virginia is the exception. It’s the center of East Coast harvests, with next year’s quota allotting the state nearly 169,000 of the 200,000-ton limit. The overwhelming majority of Virginia’s catches will go to a plant in Reedville on the Northern Neck, where they’ll be reduced into products ranging from fish oil pills to cattle-feed supplements.
Read the full story from the Associated Press at Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star
October 28th, 2016 — At a meeting in Maine this week, Atlantic coast fisheries managers agreed to increase the catch for menhaden, a fish considered crucial to birds, other fish and by commercial watermen to catch crabs. It’s also key to the remaining fish oil plant on the East Coast here in Virginia.
In August, Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission members couldn’t decide how much harvest to allow. The tiny schools of fish travel from Florida to Maine., stopping to spawn in places like the Chesapeake Bay. On Wednesday, menhaden management board chair Robert Ballou made it clear this time a decision would be made.
“Now, if any board member wishes to pursue a different course of action. That can happen and the process can go on and on and on. But my hope is that the board will see fit to proceed in the manner just described.”
October 27, 2016 — After failing to agree on an increase in the 2017 Atlantic menhaden catch limit at an August meeting, regional managers voted Wednesday to increase it by 6.45 percent.
But it’s not a surprising move, said John Bull, commissioner for Virginia Marine Resources.
“I believe the Atlantic Marine Fishery operates on sound science, and the science was not just sound,” Bull said.
The Atlantic Menhaden Management Board — a board within the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission — passed the vote 16-2 at a meeting Wednesday. Pennsylvania and the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife dissented, hoping to keep the status quo.
“That was overwhelmingly approved because the stock is in good shape,” Bull said. “An increase of even up to 40 percent would have carried minimal risks that the harvest could’ve resulted in overfishing.”