Fish science at its best

 

Ed Lombardo with a 20” trout caught during the Hex Hatch (mayfly hatch) on Wood River Monday.

Mahi-mahi and eight other species are now included in the Block Island Inshore Fishing Tournament.

Fish science at its best

Woods Hole and Sea Grant reach out to Falmouth youth

Last month, nearly 250 seventh graders from Falmouth Public Schools visited Woods Hole for an amazing day of ocean science.

Students enjoyed hands-on science activities at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and NOAA’s Northeast Science Center Woods Hole Lab.

At the Science Center lab, students dissected fish and learned about fish anatomy, toured the Aquarium, learned what fisheries observers do, tried on survival suits, and learned about at-sea safety.

The event was sponsored by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Sea Grant, and the Science Center.

Fish science rallying for cod

Fish science in this Nation is the best there is. In the case of cod, NOAA Fisheries and its science-based approach to fisheries is rallying to rebuild cod which has been overfished for many years.

To make it clear, humans have overfished cod to near extinction, so science alone cannot bring back cod.  It will take a lot of regulation discipline too.

In 2021 scientists from around the world came together to study cod and documented five distinct fish populations.  An offshore Georges Bank and four inshore populations from New Jersy to the Canada.

Fish biologist and fishers documented the differences.  The five cod stocks look different in that their shape, size and color differ.  And, their genetic composition, spawning behavior and migration patterns are distinct.

Once the stocks were identified, it was now a matter of drilling down and garnering more data to give fish managers the data needed to put in rebuilding plans.

NOAA Fisheries teamed up with members of New England’s recreational for-hire (charter boat) fleet, the New England Aquarium, Pelagic Strategies, and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission to fill data gaps. The pilot study is called the Recreational Biological Sampling Program, or RecBio.

From November 2023–2024, twelve for-hire captains collected data from 3,000 fish recording length with a photo to verify measurement, kept or released, date/time caught and the precise location.

With support from The Nature Conservancy, Harbor Light Software tailored the existing AnglerCatch fishing app as a portal for captains to enter data using a smartphone or tablet.

NOAA Fisheries, said, “When a fisherman harvests a cod, the participating captain gives it a unique barcode to match the data submitted to the app. The captain freezes the fish’s head at the end of the trip. The science team then extracts the otoliths (ear bones that contain growth rings). Scientists count the rings of the otolith to estimate the age of the fish. This allows them to understand the demographics of cod caught recreationally.”

Congratulations to NOAA and hats off to two local charter captains for taking leadership roles on this research project: Mike Pierdinock, New England Council member, President of the Stellwagen Bank Charter Boat Association and RecBio participant; and Rick Bellavance, chair of the New England Fisheries Management Council, President of the RI Party & Charter Boat Association, RecBio co-founder and participant.

Still time to register for the Block Island Tournament

The expanded Block Island Inshore Fishing Tournament is Saturday, July 26 and Sunday, July 27. You need not attend the awards ceremony to enter and win.  Fish photos are taken up against a tournament ruler and entries are submitted electronically via the GotOne fishing smartphone app.

The Tournament now includes nine species with an expanded fishing area south of the Newport and Jamestown Bridges including the Rhode Island southern coastal beaches to about fifteen miles south of Block Island itself.

Register at BI Inshore Tourney | bi-fishworks (sandypointco.com).

Where’s the bite?

Striped bass, bluefish and bonito. Chad Katch of Sam’s Bait, Middletown, said, “The bass have moved out of our Bays and are now out in front from the mouth of the Sakonnet and off Newport.  Anglers are hooking up with top water lures in low light conditions and during the day eels, trolling tube & worm and umbrella rigs are working.  We also have a good bonito bite at Lands End, Middletown and at the mouth of the Sakonnet River using epoxy jigs.”  East End Eddie Doherty, Cape Cod Canal fishing expert and author, said, “Long distance caster Bob “Bull” MacKinnon hopes for more productive days on the Big Ditch with the realization that there have been schools of silversides at Mass Maritime, bunker near the Sagamore Bridge and mackerel in the east end.  Last week started with Canal Sportsman’s Club member “Adirondack Jim” Cromme successfully chunking into an after-dinner slack tide on a beautiful night. A 40-inch striped bass bit down on his cut mackerel and a nice size bluefish attacked the same bait.”  “The salt ponds are producing good numbers of school bass in South County, mostly feeding on sand eels. You can catch these fish on topwater lures, soft plastics, and Alabama rigs that mimic the bait schools. Bigger fish are taking eels at night,” said Declan O’Donnell of Breachway Bait & Tackle, Charlestown.  Jeff Sullivan of Lucky Bait & Tackle, Warren said, “The striped bass bite at Block Island is lights out at night. Last weekend we caught fish in the 40-pound class using eels.  And, out in front of Newport 30-pound fish were typical with a lot of large blue fish there too.”

Summer flounder (fluke). “The fluke bite is in both shallow and deep water.  Anglers who put their time in are catching keepers,” said Jeff Sullivan of Lucky Bait & Tackle. “The fluke bite has been good but it has moved out in font in 70 to 90 feet water,” said Chad Katch of Sam’s Bait.  Declan O’Donnell of Breachway Bait & Tackle, said, “Most of the fluke are coming from 37-47 feet locally, some larger ones have been caught in 15-20 feet of water. The Block Island bite continues to be good.”

Freshwater.  Ed Lombardo, expert fly tyer, fisher, and instructor, said, ”Fished the Wood River for the Hex Hatch Monday night and the hatch was very good. We got several nice Bown trout, which were very aggressive. We started fishing from 6:30 p.m. to 10:15 p.m. Now that these fish have been seeing these great large mayflies one can still fish for them during daylight. But the Hatch will start at dark.”

Bluefin tuna regulations change for the better

Capt. Dave Monti with bluefin tuna.  As of July 1, 2025 private vessels with an HMS Angling permit will be allowed to take one fish between 27” to < 73”.

Big catch: Greg Vespe of Tiverton with a striped bass he caught Saturday night fishing with
live eels off Newport in the Bay.

Good eating:  Marc Carvalho with a squeteague he caught off Warwick Light, he and Sherri Kanelos planned to bake and eat their catch whole.

Bluefin tuna regulations change for the better         

Bluefin tuna regulations changed for the better this week when NOAA announced Thursday new angling and charter/headboat Highly Migratory Species (HMS) limits.  Effect July 1, 2025 private vessels with an HMS Angling permit can retain one bluefin tuna measuring 27” to < 73” and charter/headboat permit holders are allowed two bluefin tuna measuring 27” to < 73”. 

This is good news as most bluefin caught in this area are over 47”, and the present regulation is for fish measuring 27” to < 47”.

In general, quotas close to being met necessitated more conservative regulations this year.  In January tuna fishing in North Carolina was not allowed to close due to an Administration rule making executive order.  The freeze allowed overfishing which in part has meant reduced quotas for New York and New England fishermen as the fish migrate north.

It is important to note that for the past three years, anglers have caught an abundance of bluefin tuna close to shore in Southern New England.  Many believe robust bait/forage profiles are here close to shore in great abundance due to warming water.  And the fish are here because the forage fish they eat are here. 

This climate change impact points to the need for enhanced stock assessments and climate research to keep tabs on fish stocks like tuna and other species particularly sensitive to overfishing due to stock shifts and enhanced fishing pressure.

Capt. Mike Pierdinock, avid bluefin tuna fisher, member of the New England Fishery Management Council and President of the Stellwagen Bank Charter Boat Association, said, “We have a unique situation this year.  Due to the closure delay in North Carolina the general category overfished their 37.7 mt quota.  By the time they closed the fishery on February 28 they had harvested 115 mt of bluefin tuna.  That’s a lot when you consider the entire fishery is 1,300 mt.  This combined with overfishing bluefin tuna in general in 2024, including the recreational fishing community for the first time since 2010, we are experiencing these reductions out of caution to prevent overfishing this year.”

Hats off to Rick Bellavance, President of the RI Party & Charter Boat Association and Chair of the New England Fishery Management Council as well as Mike Pierdinock for advocating for a larger bluefin size.

For information and updates visit the NMFS Permit Shop.

 

Catch and release best practices for striped bass

Striped bass fishing is good, so good for this time of year that we have to make sure we use catch and release best practices to help ensure the survival of the fish we release.  More striped bass die after capture and release than those legal-size fish we take home to eat.

Fishing at the Cape Cod Canal has been very good too with anglers catching fish to 41”. East End Eddie Doherty, Cape Cod Canal fishing expert and author, said, “On Wednesday “Bill on the Grill” Prodouz landed a 40-inch linesider that fell for a herring Mystic glider and then a 41-inch powerhouse with a Yo-Zuri bone hydro twitch bait.”

On my charter boat Tuesday the fish were on the bottom. Jason Mills of Cranston caught a 39” striped bass on a tube & worm on the channel pad at Poppasquash Point, Bristol when fishing with Richard Hellwig of Providence.  And, Steve Brustein of Warwick caught a 34” fish in the same place earlier in the week.  There were no signs of fish on the surface but they were there in the lower water column and on the bottom.   

The striped bass stock is overfished, with overfishing occurring, so we all need to be ready to safely catch and release these fish giving them the best chance of survival.

Striped bass regulations are one fish/person/day in a slot size of 28” to less than 31”.

Catch and release tips

Gaffs are not allowed and inline circle hooks must be used when fishing with bait for striped bass, tube and worm fishing is an exception.

Bring the fish to the boat quickly, extended fights deplete oxygen and reduce survival.

Avoid putting fish on deck and letting it flop around, keep it in the water as much as possible.

Wet your hands or gloves before handling the fish, dry hands remove the fish’s protective slime layer and leave it open to infection.

Handle fish carefully.  Do not put fingers into gill cavities or eye sockets.

Gently remove the hook to minimize damage.

Use lures with single hook, barbless hooks (I snap them off), or circle hooks.

Return fish to water quickly. Place gently in water in upright horizontal position.  Move it back and forth in the water to force water across its gills.  Once revived it will flip its tail when ready to be released.

 

Where’s the bite?

Striped bass/bluefish.  Tom Olson of Ponaug Marina, Warwick, said, “The striped bass and bluefish bite has been good for anglers they are catching fish trolling with tube & worm, umbrellas rigs or using live bait.”  Ed Lombardo fly fishing expert and guide, said, “Fishing slowed on Narrow River, Narragansett Tuesday. I fished and moved many times to the more productive spots up, down, and across the river until 12 noon.  Fished again at 1:00 p.m., now an incoming tide, and caught two small bass and one hickory shad.” Striper fishing in the East Passage of Narragansett Bay has been good.  Last week anglers on my charter boat hooked up with bass to 40” with reports of a 52” fish being caught by RISAA member Dave Sweet’s son at Anawan Cliffs, Narragansett. Lay off the big fish if you have other options as more striped bass are killed after being release than those we take home to eat (see above article on bass catch and release practices).   Sherri Kanelos of Warwick boated her largest fish ever Sunday, a 24” bluefish off Bear Point Prudence Island.

Black sea bass, summer flounder (fluke), squeteague and scup.  Summer flounder fishing has been good in the lower Narragansett Bay with anglers catching keepers.  Tom Olson of Ponaug Bait & Tackle said, “We had two commercial rod & reel customers catch monster fluke in the East Passage around the Jamestown bridge, one fish they boated was over 30 inches.”  This weekend we caught multiple scup, fluke and squeteague in the Warwick Neck area.  Marc Carvalho of Warwick caught a 20” squeteague.  Most of the fluke were under 19 inches.

                                                                                                                                       

Freshwater.  The fresh water bite for largemouth, pike and trout remains very strong.  For ponds restocked with trout visit Freshwater Fishing | Mass.gov and in Rhode Island Fish & Wildlife | Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.