Saving Seafood

Record Cobia Tournament Shows a Chesapeake Predator Thriving Alongside Menhaden

August 31, 2026 — Congratulations are in order for the winners and participants in the 2026 Big Man’s Cobia Bonanza.

The ninth annual tournament was held August 14–15 in the Chesapeake Bay, with events based in Norfolk and weigh-ins at Little Creek. By the organizers’ account, it was a record year, with more than 100 boats participating and a top prize of over $38,000, and two runner-up $12,000 prizes. The organizers summed up the weekend with the declaration: “We put Virginia Cobia fishing in the Chesapeake Bay back on top!”

That is worth celebrating. It is also worth considering in the continuing debate over whether the Chesapeake Bay has enough menhaden to support its predators.

Cobia are large predators that spend the summer feeding in Chesapeake waters. Menhaden are part of their prey base and an important forage fish in the same waters where cobia thrive. Scientists and Bay fishing organizations alike have identified menhaden as an important prey species for cobia, and menhaden have traditionally been a preferred cobia bait.

That makes this year’s tournament particularly interesting; the success of a major Chesapeake predator that consumes menhaden is difficult to reconcile with sweeping claims that the Bay lacks sufficient forage for its predators.

The contrast with striped bass is instructive.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission currently classifies Atlantic cobia as not overfished, with overfishing not occurring. Striped bass are also important predators of menhaden, but their stock has followed a different path. In 2024, the peer-reviewed striped bass stock assessment found the stock was overfished. The stock is currently managed with restrictions designed to reduce fishing mortality and rebuild the population.

That history does not mean forage is irrelevant to striped bass, but it does mean discussions about their condition should acknowledge a well-established factor: fishing mortality on striped bass themselves was too high for years.

Menhaden, meanwhile, are already managed with their ecological role in mind. The ASMFC uses ecological reference points specifically designed to account for menhaden as forage and the needs of predators. The Atlantic menhaden stock itself is classified as not overfished, with overfishing not occurring.

Taken together, these facts suggest Chesapeake predator dynamics are more complicated than simply claiming there are not enough menhaden. Cobia and striped bass share the same broader ecosystem and both consume menhaden, yet their stock conditions are very different.

That comparison does not mean menhaden are evenly distributed throughout the Chesapeake Bay or that every predator has equal access to forage at all times. Menhaden are highly migratory schooling fish whose presence in any particular place changes with season, movement and environmental conditions.

Questions about local menhaden movement, seasonal abundance and predator access deserve continued study. And that work is happening.

The federal government, Virginia, and the menhaden industry are all supporting research to better understand menhaden movement, seasonal abundance, predator consumption and fishery interactions in the Chesapeake Bay. Congress has funded Bay-specific research, Virginia has committed funding for work led by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS), and the industry is supporting collaborative research involving VIMS, the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory and NOAA.

That is how unresolved questions should be addressed: through cooperative science, not through simple assumptions.

In the meantime, what happened at this year’s Cobia Bonanza deserves attention.

Congratulations to the winners. Their success is a reminder that the Chesapeake Bay forage story may be considerably healthier than some of the rhetoric surrounding menhaden would have us believe.

MAINE: Maine’s Department of Marine Resources reopens menhaden harvest on August 31

August 28, 2026 — Maine’s Department of Marine Resources announced that commercial menhaden (pogy) harvesting will reopen at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, August 31, using quota transfers from other Atlantic states.

On August 20, the DMR had announced that it was discontinuing commercial pogy harvesting under the Episodic Event Set Aside effective at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, August 21.

Working through the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission with other Atlantic states, the DMR is arranging quota transfers, which will allow the fishery to reopen on August 31.

Read the full article at The Weekly Packet

States Schedule Public Hearings on Atlantic Menhaden Draft Addendum II

August 27, 2026 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic coastal states of Maine through Virginia have scheduled hearings to gather public input on Draft Addendum II to Amendment 3 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Atlantic Menhaden. The Draft Addendum considers options to reduce the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap (Bay Cap) by up to 50% and distribute the cap more evenly throughout the fishing season. The options aim to alleviate a concentration of effort that may be affecting other fisheries within the Bay and other potential ecological impacts.

The Board initiated the Draft Addendum in response to concerns regarding declining pound net harvest and catch per unit effort in the Bay in recent years, coinciding with an increase in the concentration of reduction harvest in the summer months, and the possible downstream effects on menhaden predators.

The Draft Addendum also includes options that link the Bay Cap to the coastwide total allowable catch to maintain a more fixed proportion between the two, as well as options to distribute the Bay Cap into three quota periods to prevent a concentration of reduction harvest in the spring and summer of the fishing season.

Some hearings will be conducted in-person, some will be hybrid, and others will be conducted via webinar. If you are unable to participate in your state’s scheduled hearing, you are welcome to participate in any of the virtual or hybrid hearings. The public hearing details follow. Please note that the hearing location for the MD/PRFC hearing has not been set. The Commission will issue another press release once the hearing details have been confirmed.

Webinar Instructions

For all virtual and hybrid hearings, please click HERE and select the hearing(s) you plan to attend from the dropdown menu to register for a public hearing webinar. Hearings will be held via GoToWebinar, and you can join the webinar from your computer, tablet or smartphone. Please note that in order to comment during virtual webinar hearings you will need to use your computer or download the GoToWebinar app for your phone. If you are new to GoToWebinar, you can download the software by (clicking here) or via the App store under GoToWebinar. We recommend you register for the hearing well in advance of the hearing since GoToWebinar will provide you with a link to test your device’s compatibility with the webinar. If you find your device is not compatible, please contact the Commission at info@asmfc.org (subject line: GoToWebinar help) and we will try to get you connected. We also strongly encourage participants to use the computer voice over internet protocol (VoIP) so you can ask questions and provide input at the hearing. If you are unable to participate in your state’s scheduled hearing, you are welcome to participate in any of the virtual or hybrid hearings.

Hearing Presentation Recording

For those who cannot attend any in-person or virtual hearings, the Commission will also post a recording of the hearing presentation on the Commission’s YouTube page so that stakeholders may watch the presentation and submit comment at any time during the comment process. This recording will be available by early September.

Submitting Comments

The public is encouraged to submit comments at any time during the public comment period but no later than 11:59 PM (EST) on October 9, 2026. You can access the Draft Addendum, public hearing schedule, and ways to comment on the Atlantic Menhaden Draft Addendum II Action Tracker .

We accept public comment in several forms (at public hearings, an online public comment form, an online public comment survey, and via mail or email) and all forms are equally valued. However, we strongly encourage the use of the public comment survey as it allows users to select specific preferred options in the Draft Addendum and provides space for open-ended comments at the end.

  1. The public comment survey, which was developed to facilitate the gathering of input on the Draft Addendum’s specific options
  2. Written comments via Atlantic Menhaden Action Tracker or comments@asmfc.org
  3. Written comments submitted via snail mail to James Boyle, FMP Coordinator, at 1050 N. Highland St., Suite 200 A-N, Arlington, Virginia 22201
  4. Verbal comments provided at any of the scheduled public hearings

If your organization is planning to release an action alert in response to the Draft Addendum, please contact James Boyle at jboyle@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740, so he can work with you to develop a unique subject line to enable us to better organize and summarize incoming comments for Board review. For more information, please contact James Boyle, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at jboyle@asmfc.org.

Meeting Summary and Motions from the August 12 Joint Meeting of the MAFMC & ASMFC Management Boards for Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass, and Bluefish

August 21, 2026 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The meeting summary and motions from the August 12th joint meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and Commission Management Boards for Summer Flounder, Scup and Black Sea Bass, and Bluefish can be found at https://asmfc.org/resources/management-quarterly-meetings/meeting-summary-and-motions-from-the-joint-meeting-of-the-mafmc-asmfc-management-boards-for-summer-flounder-scup-and-black-sea-bass-and-bluefish-august-2026/

Atlantic Herring Eastern Maine Spawning Closure in Effect Starting August 28, 2026 through October 8, 2026

August 21, 2026 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic herring Area 1A (inshore Gulf of Maine) fishery regulations include seasonal spawning closures for portions of state and federal waters in Eastern Maine, Western Maine and Massachusetts/New Hampshire. The Commission’s Atlantic Herring Management Board approved a forecasting method that relies upon at least three samples, each containing at least 25 female herring in gonadal stages III-V, to trigger a spawning closure. However, if sufficient samples are not available then closures will begin on predetermined dates.

There are currently no samples from the Eastern Maine spawning area to determine spawning condition. Therefore, per the Addendum II default closure dates, the Eastern Maine spawning area will be closed starting at 12:01 a.m. on August 28, 2026 extending through 11:59 p.m. on October 8, 2026. The Eastern Maine spawning area includes all waters bounded by the following coordinates:

Maine coast 68° 20’ W
43° 48’ N 68° 20’ W
44° 25’ N 67° 03’ W
North along the US/Canada border

Vessels in the directed Atlantic herring fishery cannot take, land or possess Atlantic herring caught within the Eastern Maine spawning area during this time. The incidental bycatch allowance of up to 2,000 pounds of Atlantic herring per trip per day applies to vessels in non-directed fisheries that are fishing within the Eastern Maine spawning area. In addition, all vessels traveling through the Eastern Maine spawning area must have all seine and mid-water trawl gear stowed.

For more information, please contact Emilie Franke, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at 703.842.0740 or efranke@asmfc.org.

The press release can also be found at https://asmfc.org/news/press-releases/atlantic-herring-eastern-maine-spawning-closure-in-effect-starting-august-28-2026-through-october-8-2026/

ASMFC Stock Assessment Happenings Upcoming Meetings: Atlantic Striped Bass Assessment Workshop, Cobia Methods Workshop, and Spot Stock Assessment Committee Planning Webinars

August 20, 2026 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s stock assessment staff, working in conjunction with state and federal stock assessment scientists, continue to make progress on a number benchmark stock assessments. Additionally, in the coming month, the Commission will post a species-specific Benchmark Stock Assessment Tracker webpage, much like our Action Trackers, to increase transparency in our stock assessment process by enabling stakeholders to track benchmark assessment development and where we are in the assessment process. A press release will announce their availability. In the interim, here’s a snapshot of recent and upcoming assessment activities.

Atlantic Croaker
The Atlantic Croaker Benchmark Stock Assessment Peer Review was conducted July 27-30, 2026, in Arlington, VA. The results of both the benchmark stock assessment and peer review will be presented to the Sciaenids Management Board for consideration in November 2026 at the Commission’s Annual Meeting in Newport, Rhode Island.

Atlantic Migratory Group Cobia
In March and April of this year, the Commission conducted a series of Data Workshops for the upcoming Cobia Benchmark Stock Assessment. At the first three workshops, the Technical Committee, Stock Assessment Subcommittee, and federal data partners focused on data sources for commercial and recreational fishery removals, biosampling, and life history; and available fishery-independent survey data and initial literature review findings. The final workshop included a discussion about indices of abundance, tagging data, preparation for the next workshop on assessment methods, and other items as needed from the previous workshops.

A Methods Workshop, to be held September 22-25, 2026, in Raleigh, NC, will include an evaluation of models and analyses developed to estimate stock status, with the Stock Assessment Subcommittee making final selections regarding data and model structure. The Assessment Workshop is scheduled for December 2026, with the peer review being conducted through the SouthEast Data, Assessment, and Review (SEDAR) process in May 2027.

Atlantic Striped Bass
A Data Workshop was held in October 2025, followed by a Methods Workshop in March 2026. The
Atlantic Striped Bass Stock Assessment Workshop will be held August 24-28, 2026, at the Commission office at 1050 N. Highland Street, Suite 200 A-N, Arlington, VA. This workshop, which is accessible online and in-person, will focus on evaluation of models and analyses developed to determine stock status. The Commission’s stock assessment meetings are open to the public, with the exception of discussions of confidential data, when the public will be asked to leave the room. Public comment will be allowed if time permits at the discretion of the Stock Assessment Subcommittee Chair. More information on the Workshop can be found here.

The peer review will be conducted through Northeast Regional Stock Assessment process in May or June 2027, with the Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board scheduled to consider the benchmark assessment and peer review in August 2027 at the Commission’s Summer Meeting.

Atlantic Sturgeon
In July and August of this year, the Commission conducted a series of Data Workshops for the upcoming Atlantic Sturgeon Benchmark Stock Assessment. At these workshops, the Technical Committee and the Stock Assessment Subcommittee reviewed and evaluated available data sources for the assessment, including indices of abundance, life history information, bycatch estimation, and tagging data.

The Methods Workshop will be conducted in early 2027, and the Assessment Workshop will be held in early fall 2027. The assessment will be peer-reviewed through the Commission’s external peer review process in 2028.

Spot
The Commission first initiated a benchmark stock assessment for spot back in 2023. An initial Data Workshop was held in 2023, but the assessment process was put on hold so that the Atlantic Croaker Technical Committee and Stock Assessment Subcommittee, which consists of many of the same members as the Spot Committees, could focus on the Atlantic croaker benchmark assessment and peer review. With the completion of the Atlantic croaker peer review in July, the Spot Stock Assessment Committee has reinitiated the spot assessment and will conduct its first two meetings on August 31 and September 3. The focus of these meetings will be to review available data sources, as well as discuss potential models for development. Next steps, including additional workshops, will be scheduled following these two meetings; information on future meetings will be posted to the Meetings page of the Commission’s website.

ASMFC StoryMap Highlights Newly Updated Commission Guide to Fisheries Science and Stock Assessments

August 18, 2026 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Commission has updated its popular publication on the science of stock assessments. The new edition of the Guide to Fisheries Science and Stock Assessments (Guide) is currently available in StoryMap format and will be available in PDF format in the coming weeks. The new version of the Guide substantially revises the prior version, updating and streamlining content to be approachable and accessible to those interested in learning more about stock assessments and their use in management. Following is an excerpt from the Guide:

“Management of coastal and marine resources is a complex process that balances what we know about the fish populations we are managing (like the size of a fish population, its habitat, and the food it relies on, and the factors that affect its growth, reproduction, and life span) and the people that use the resources. The tricky part is we can’t easily count how many fish are in a population, so we have to use stock assessments to calculate these numbers. That’s why we created this guide – to show you what goes into a stock assessment, from what types of information are collected to how various models work to how the assessment results are considered for management.”

Commission could revisit how menhaden quota is divided among states

August 17, 2026 — Atlantic menhaden management could face another major discussion this fall, this time over how the coastwide catch is divided among East Coast states.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) is expected to consider in November whether to begin a process to reallocate state menhaden quotas, according to the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP), which is pushing for changes to a system based largely on historical landings.

TRCP argues the current allocations no longer reflect where menhaden are being found or how fishermen use the resource today.

Virginia receives more than 75 percent of the state allocation, supporting the East Coast’s only remaining large-scale menhaden reduction fishery, operated by Omega Protein and supplied by Ocean Harvesters. Farther north, menhaden are an important bait source for lobster, crab and other commercial fisheries, with states relying in part on set-asides and quota transfers to meet demand.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

After gauge fight, lobster managers rethink strategy

August 14, 2026 — After the collapse of controversial lobster gauge changes, managers are taking a different approach to the future of the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank fishery. This time, they are starting with a broader question: What should lobster management be trying to accomplish?

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) is beginning a process that is expected to bring fishermen and other industry members into the conversation before any new major management measures are proposed.

At the American Lobster Management Board’s Aug. 4 meeting, ASMFC staff outlined how that process could work. Eventually, it could lead to what is known as a Management Strategy Evaluation (MSE), which essentially allows managers to test different management approaches on paper before putting them into practice.

But ASMFC isn’t there yet.

First, managers want to hear from the industry about what the future of the fishery should look like and what needs to be protected, from the lobster resource itself to fishermen’s businesses and coastal communities.

The discussion comes as managers continue to watch changes in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank lobster stock. The 2025 stock assessment found the stock was not depleted, but lobster abundance had fallen 34 percent from the high identified in the previous assessment.

That decline raised concerns and led the Lobster Board to begin looking at what might need to happen next.

Rather than immediately developing another set of regulations, however, ASMFC’s Technical Committee recommended first figuring out what fishermen and managers actually want future management to accomplish.

ASMFC’s Caitlin Starks called that a “critical first step” during the Aug. 4 meeting.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

ASMFC petitioned to consider menhaden reallocation, will make decision on fishery cap in Chesapeake

August 13, 2026 — The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) is being petitioned to initiate a reallocation process for the menhaden fishery as it also considers its options to reduce the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap by up to 50 percent.

The menhaden fishery is spread across the U.S. east coast, and allocated across several U.S. states, with each state getting a different share of the fishery. Historically the U.S. state of Virginia has received the largest portion of the quota, and has also been the largest fisher of the species, with companies like Omega Protein and Ocean Harvesters processing and harvesting most of the catch, respectively.

Now, conservation groups are petitioning the ASMFC to reallocate the quota of the fishery, claiming the shifting patterns of the species mean the quotas should shift too.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource