fluke regulations - what about different zones?

[mazzgolf]

NJSFSC  published their July 2022 newsletter. Did anyone read the article "Should NJ Have New Zones or Regions for its Fluke Fishery?" by John Toth ??

He explains the situation we have now and how we got here pretty succinctly:

Quote

The new fluke regulations for 2022 are two fluke between 17 and 18 inches, and one at 18 inches and over. The preferred option of the Council was three fluke at 17.5 inches which would have given the southern anglers more opportunity to catch fluke. Also, this preferred option of three fluke at 17. 5 inches is easier for anglers to comprehend and more favorable for enforcement, since officers only have to look at one size to determine if the fish is legal. The Council moved away from its preferred option to the new regulation after receiving so many calls from southern anglers to adopt the 17-inch minimum size so that they have a better opportunity to catch and keep more fluke. While this helps anglers in the southern region, it does not help anglers fishing for fluke in the ocean who can catch fluke at 18 inches and more. These anglers were quite upset with the new fluke regulations passed by the Council . . . Big fluke are mostly caught in the ocean. How many anglers will take their boats out to the ocean when only one legal fish can be kept and with the price of fuel being so expensive? Many anglers want the opportunity to catch several big fluke in the ocean to enjoy the day, and the new regulations deny them this opportunity. With only one 18-inch fluke and above allowed for keeping, some anglers will no doubt throw a big fluke back into the water when they catch a larger one. That will increase mortality, especially as these larger fish are usually breeding females.

I don't know who the author is, but he says in the article he is part of a group that are advisors to the NJ Marine Fisheries Council (maybe he just means the NJSFSC?)... and he says they have been discussing this issue of different zones... an interesting idea:

Quote

 

Our NJ fluke regulations have had an 18-inch minimum size for fluke for several years, and that size limit has been very difficult for southern anglers that fish in the bays and rivers. As an Advisor to this Council, we struggle to address how our fluke regulations could be more equitable for these anglers.

At the advisor meetings, we have discussed setting up new zones for our fluke fishery, with the more southern part of our state having its own zone to better address the fluke fishery in its region. This would require setting up boundaries to delineate new zones. We have discussed this issue at a number of our advisor meetings. Consideration should be given to create them, especially given the new 2022 fluke regulations that were recently passed by this Council on April 7.

 

Without knowing all the pros and cons, on the surface it sounds like a good compromise to me.

I wonder why that wasn't considered the best option (compared to what we have now with the slot fish)??

[hammer4reel]

2 hours ago, mazzgolf said:

NJSFSC  published their July 2022 newsletter. Did anyone read the article "Should NJ Have New Zones or Regions for its Fluke Fishery?" by John Toth ??

He explains the situation we have now and how we got here pretty succinctly:

I don't know who the author is, but he says in the article he is part of a group that are advisors to the NJ Marine Fisheries Council (maybe he just means the NJSFSC?)... and he says they have been discussing this issue of different zones... an interesting idea:

Without knowing all the pros and cons, on the surface it sounds like a good compromise to me.

I wonder why that wasn't considered the best option (compared to what we have now with the slot fish)??

Plain and simple . We were sold out for the longer season . It could have been one fish at 30 inches and a few members of the council  were still going to change the preferred option .

many guys didn’t call into the meeting as they were happy with regs going to 3 fish over 17 1/2” , them changing the preferred option at the beginning of tge meeting was never done before . 
it was a PUBLISHED. Option .

‘The amount of fish we are throwing back Oceanside to find slot fish is unreal .

many fish going back from 20-22” each trip .

‘realistically we are catching over 10 fish in that range to every slot fish we are catching .

 

we lost 66% of our catch of fish from year age classes 3-10 years old to be able to keep those fish between 17” and 17 1/2” .

and for the most part we haven’t seen a 17” fish , all our slots have been between 17 1/2” to 17.99” 

 

the earlier season is beneficial to back water anglers , river anglers etc .

There should be a split season to allow those areas to fish earlier , and end earlier 

Oceanside -sides season should start  later and end later .

 

split season some of us suggested was 5/1 to 9/1 rivers and bays .

6/1 to 10/1 Oceanside .

 

season also made half of the raritan bay (NY waters ) a loss as you can only keep one fish meeting both NY and Nj requirements before needing to move back to strictly fish NJ waters and keep the slot fish .

 

 

 

 

[JHbowhunter]

Hammer nailed it. I have nothing to add. It’s insanely illogical on every level 

[smittty]

 I would like to ad something. This is what I’m seeing. All this past winter the Hudson canyon fishery was mostly male fish between 14-17 inches all the big females were from block canyon east. Previous years the smaller males dominated tom’s south. And now this summer there’s a ton of theses smaller males inshore. The bigger females are from Shinnecock east out all the way to Nova Scotia. That being said this is all documented so I would expect to see more changes in the regs in the next year or two. It wasn’t that long ago that the feds said the three year old year class in grave danger. Don’t know what gonna happen with the regs but there is definitely something going on with the higher age class moving  east I’ve been saying this for a long time anyone that spends anytime on the ocean that can’t see this is blind. I would bet ten years or less all the fluke will be from Montauk East  just like the black backs weakfish and whiting to name a few  

 

[Cousin Brown]

Split season .......sounds like waterfowl.

[mazzgolf]

What about the zone idea with different size limits per zone? The slot fish regs as we have now for the bays and rivers in the south, 17.5" limit ocean side up north?

[SPEARFISH]

It's pretty ridiculous.  

[MGHunter66]

Has anybody every mentioned making RB communal waters like the Delaware? Just asking

[hammer4reel]

31 minutes ago, MGHunter66 said:

Has anybody every mentioned making RB communal waters like the Delaware? Just asking

It’s bern brought up as has the split season .

The council tried to say it would be a FG NIGHTMARE. To enforce different regs .

so of course now we have three different sets  of regs  .

yet FG  has no problem with enforcement of many more splits in the hunting season zones .

 

if they can’t split the season it should go to 3 fish over 17” statewide for a 125 day season .