Research to identify mercury levels in scup

Scup fishing outstanding.  Scup is a small, l mild tasting fish that is a culinary delight. Our scup fishery has been rebuilt for four years.  Anglers of all ages are caching large scup for fun and food. 

Mid-Bay hot with striped bass action like these two 16 pound striped bass caught by Kevin Pellegrino off Poppasquash Point, Bristol.

Research to identify mercury levels in scup

The Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Foundation has awarded a $12,166 grant to Roger Williams University to drive new research that will measure mercury levels in scup, a native fish frequently fished and consumed by Rhode Island recreational fishermen. The research will assist the Rhode Island Department of Health in establishing new guidelines for safely eating scup, which account for 23 percent of the total recreational catch in Rhode Island.

Over the next year, Roger Williams University Associate Professor of Biology David Taylor and marine biology student Sean Maiorano ’ 14 (from Briarcliff Manor, N.Y.) will analyze mercury levels of scup to enable the Department of Health to update fish consumption advisories, should a change in mercury risk be identified. The effort is aimed at encouraging safe, healthy consumption of scup, a fish that Taylor anticipates will measure low in mercury levels. 

Dr. Taylor has conducted a lot of research in this area. To determine how much fish and what species area residents are consuming, Taylor surveyed eating habits of 280 local fisherman and their families and found that they eat 80 percent more fish relative to the national average.  Further, approximately 29 percent of those surveyed reported eating scup on a regular basis. Taylor has performed comprehensive research on mercury contamination in striped bass, bluefish, tautog, black sea bass, summer flounder and winter flounder from Narragansett Bay. When the analysis on mercury in scup and other species concludes, consumption advisories will be updated.

Steve Medeiros, president of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Foundation said, “We are very pleased to offer this grant in support of Taylor’s  important research into mercury levels in our local scup. This is an important fish caught by local anglers and consumed by thousands of people.  Our Foundation believes that this research will aid everyone to determine if consumption of scup could lead to exposure to mercury. We are sure that this work will help improve the overall recreational fishing experience and we are pleased that such fine research will be conducted at a local University.”

For additional information about research and news from the University’s marine and natural sciences programs, visit http://departments.rwu.edu/mns/.

The scoop on scup

Scup (or porgy) are plentiful in local waters as the stock was officially declared rebuilt in 2009 as it increased 30-fold from 1997 to 2008 largely due to conservation measures. 

Scup are a small, mild tasting fish. Locally, they are fished for by anglers for food and not just sport.  Scup has been cited as an underutilized fish species. NOAA says on their website in taste tests participants discovered the lesser known scup has a subtle, delicious flavor and is an excellent alternative to more popular white fish.

Scup facts

·         Scup can grow as large as 18” and three pounds and can live for over twenty years 

·         Scup migrate north and inshore to spawn in the spring, then migrate south and offshore in autumn as the water cools/

·         The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council jointly develop management measures for the scup, however, individual states may set different regulations for the scup

·         In Rhode Island the scup shore and private angler minimum size is 10”, 30 fish/person/day from May 1 to August 31 and from November 1 to December 31; and 45 fish/person/day from September 1 to October 31.  However, Rhode Island has a special area provision… while fishing from shore at India Point Park, Providence; Conimicut Park, Warwick; or at Stone Bridge, Tiverton, RI anglers may poses up to 30 scup nine inches or greater in length from May 1 through  December 31. Party and charter boat regulations are slightly different.

Operation dry water

Safe boating patrols will be stepped up June 28 to June 30 in a joint operation conducted by the Department of Environmental Management’s Division of Law Enforcement and US Coast Guard Units from Castle Hill and Point Judith.  The effort is part of Operation Dry Water, a coordinated national weekend of Boating Under the Influence (BUI) detection and enforcement. It is aimed at reducing the number of alcohol-related and drug-related accidents and fatalities, and making recreational boaters aware of the dangers of alcohol and drug use on the water. 

Recreational fishing guide

The Department of Environmental Management announces the publication of the first annual Rhode Island Recreational Saltwater Fishing Guide, which is now available at bait and tackle shops, marine supply stores, town halls, chambers of commerce, and other locations throughout the state. The guide is also available online at www.eregulations.com. The guide features boat ramp locations RI saltwater fishing regulations (minimum sizes, fishing season, catch limits) features written by area experts on how and where to catch certain species and a host of other information. The guide is funded entirely through excise taxes that fishermen pay on tackle, fishing equipment and fuel through the federal Sportfish Restoration Program, and licensing fees through the RI Recreational Saltwater License Program.

Where’s the bite

Fluke (summer flounder) fishing is good in the lower Bay around both the Newport and Jamestown Bridges with anglers fishing these areas talking their limit (eight fish/angler, 18” or larger). Larry Norin launched at Wilson Park, North Kingstown this Friday at 4:30 p.m. and was done by 8:30 p.m.  He fished south of the Jamestown Bridge.  Norin said, “We were drifting north at over 2 knots.  I needed 12 ounces to hold bottom…we started to catch fish.  As we made shorter drifts we found the fish concentrated in one area so we just kept making shorts drifts over and over again… all fish kept were in the 20” to 22” range.”  John Owens reports on the RISAA blog that he limited out in just four hours fishing north of Dutch Island to just north of the Jamestown Bridge this past Friday with fluke to 24”.  He also landed two nice keeper sized black sea bass. Fluke fishing is still good off Warwick Neck said John Wunner of John’s Bait & Tackle, North Kingstown.  Wunner said, “We have guys catching their limit frequently.  So it has been a good year for fluke so far.”

Striped bass fishing is still good in the upper Bay in the Providence River.  Capt. Fred’s Charters reported “I had James Elkins charter, his father and son on leave from his Sub based in Pearl Harbor out Friday morning for stripers.”  They landed two keeper striped bass 29” and 37” using orange Hogy tubes with worms when trolling the Providence River.  John Wunner of John’s Bait & Tackle, North Kingstown said, “Fishing hasn’t been this good in ten years.  The bass have sea lice which would indicate they have just arrived in the Bay from the ocean. It seems like the middle of the Bay is getting a lot of actions now with anglers catching bass all around Prudence Island and Hope Island.”  John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait & Tackle , East Providence said the bass bite has been very good between Nayatt Point, Barrington Beach and Rumstick Point.  I weighted in a 29 pound bass this week caught off Rumstick Point.  They seem to be going for chucked Menhaden.”  Action out at Block Island has been consistently good with smaller fish, larger fish are now becoming more prevalent.

Squeteague (weak fish) continue to make their presence know with fish landings in the 23” range both at Warwick Neck and off the Southern tip of Prudence Island.

Scup fishing continues to explode with large fish being caught at Colt State Park and at the Mt. Hope, Jamestown and Newport Bridges.  “I weighed in several scup in the one pound twelve once range.” said John Wunner of John’s Bait & Tackle.

Bottom fishing fun for all

Bottom fishing fun for all:  Bottom fish like this fluke (summer flounder), caught on a party boat out of Point Judith, RI this summer, are great fun to catch for anglers of all ages.

Tautog rig reduces bottom fishing tie-ups:  This tautog was caught using a homemade rig designed by Capt. Monti.  An egg sinker on a 3 to 4 inch piece of monofilament with swivels on either end and a single hook below.  The bait hangs freely between bottom structure (rocks), reduced hardware and the egg sinker allowed to slide has cut bottom tie-ups in half.

Kevin (left) and his father Albert Bettencourt (both of East Providence) have been catching striped bass this fall in the Barrington Beach area and in the Warren River drifting eels.

Bottom fishing fun for all

Bottom fishing for fluke (summer flounder), black sea bass, scup and tautog at this time of year can be fun for the entire family.  This type of fishing is not stressful in anyway.  Learning how to set the hook can be learned in minutes and it does not take a lot of skill to catch a fish.  Bottom fishing is great for beginners, particularly children.  And the best part is that the down time between bites serves as a great opportunity for family members and friends to socialize and actually converse.  Conversation is becoming something of a novelty in within our regular day.

I once took my friend Tom and his son fishing.  Days later, Tom said, “The best part of the day was that I actually got a chance to talk with my son about his future plans.”  So quite often fishing isn’t all about the fish.  It is the time we spend together with family and friends that really counts.  That is why I love to take families fishing… daughters, sons, son and daughters-in-law, grandfathers, fathers and mothers all get to spend quality time with each other. The bonding and communication that takes place is remarkable.

You can learn how to bottom fish by consulting bait shop owners or you can go out on a charter or party boat.  Most all of the charter boats that belong to the Rhode Island Party & Charter Boat Association (www.rifishing.com ) are more than willing to take families fishing and teach them how to fish the bottom.

Bottom fishing seminar October 29

Next week you can take advantage of a bottom fishing seminar being offered by the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA).  The seminar will include panel- like presentations from three top local anglers… Larry Norin, Rick Sustello and Tom Wood.  The seminar will be held Monday, October 29, 7:00 p.m. at the West Valley Inn, 4 Blossom Street, West Warwick, RI.  Non-members are requested to make a $10 donation to the RISAA Marine Fisheries College Scholarship Fund.  The West Valley Inn offers two different dinner entre options from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. for $6.95.

BOEM holds stakeholder workshops on windmills for recreational and commercial fishers

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will hold a workshop on windmills and their impact on fishing and will seek input for recreational and commercial fishermen on Friday November 16, from 4:00 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. at the URI Bay Campus, 215 South Ferry Road, Narragansett, RI in the Coastal Hazard Room in the Coastal Institute Building.

This input meeting and others being held on the east coast will address future potential conflicts between fishing and wind projects within the Ocean Continental Shelf (OCS). BOEM is seeking input from commercial and recreational fishing industries, as well as fisheries management agencies and scientists, relative to proposed offshore wind energy development.

Invitations have been been sent to stakeholders, for information contact Elizabeth Castle at ecastle@ene.com .

DEM stocks ponds and rivers with rainbow trout for fall fishing

The Department of Environmental Management's (DEM) Division of Fish and Wildlife has stocked approximately 6,000 rainbow trout in several locations throughout the state this month for the fall freshwater fishing season.

DEM Fish & Wildlife staff finished stocking the hatchery-raised rainbow trout this week in Silver Spring Pond in North Kingstown, Beaver River in Richmond, Wyoming Pond in Richmond and Hopkinton, Wood River in Exeter, Hopkinton and Richmond, Upper Pawtuxet River in Coventry, Blackstone River in Cumberland and Lincoln, Round Top Ponds in Burrillville, and Stafford Pond in Tiverton.  Earlier this month, trout were stocked in Meadowbrook Pond in Richmond, Carbuncle Pond in Coventry, Spring Grove Pond in Gloucester, and Olney Pond in Lincoln Woods.

A 2012 freshwater fishing license and trout conservation stamp is required for anglers 15 years of age and older.  Visit your town/city hall, authorized agents such as bait/tackle shops and Benny's to get a license and stamp.  You can also visit DEM in Providence or purchase on line via www.ri.gov  by clicking on “Hunting, Fishing, Boating Licenses” on the left side of the homepage on the DEM website at www.dem.ri.gov .

Tautog regulation change

As of October 20 (and until December 31) the tautog bag limit has been enhanced for recreational anglers from 3 fish/day to 6 fish/day.  Minimum size is still 16 inches.  In addition, there is a 10 fish boat maximum per day.  The 10 fish per boat maximum does not apply to charter or party boats.

Where’s the bite

Tautog. Craig Castro of Erickson’s Bait & Tackle said, “Customers have been doing good at Washington’s Ledge off shore in the Newport-Jamestown areas weather permitting.”  John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait in East Providence said that customers are catching tautog at Conimicut Light with a lot of shorts (15 to 1 ratio).” Tautog to 23” have been landed at India Point Park said Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle, Providence.  Last week I caught a 23” fish at General Rock and two other keepers with a ratio of 8 shorts for every one keeper with about 10 small black sea bass.  Tautog are also being caught at Point Judith Light in 25 to 45 feet of water said Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown.

Striped bass.  Matt Conti from Snug Harbor said, “It is either lock and load or no bite at all in the Southwest Ledge area of Block Island.”  John Littlefield from Archie’s Bait said “Customers are taking school bass with plugs in the upper Bay at the mouth of the Rivers.” Kevin and Albert Bettencourt caught eleven bass in the 15 to 20 lbs. ranged drifting eels in the Warren River down to the Blount Seafood area said John Littlefield.  Dave Henault of Ocean State Tackle said, “Striped bass and bluefish are being caught on pogies and eels in the Providence and Seekonk Rivers and the Cape Cod Canal has been offering up bass as large as 50 lbs.  Customers Francesco DiGiovanni and Cecine Curi have taken bass on…eels… plugs… top water poppers, divers and Sebile Swim baits.”

Fresh water fishing this fall has been slow.  With improved weather and recent pond and river stocking with rainbow trout by DEM things are expected to pick up.

Offshore fishing has been slow due to bad weather last week.

Good news for scup and fluke fishery

Chris Jalbert, shown with the False Albacore he caught off Block Island, said, “Hooked one on my favorite yo-zuri jig and my son reeled it in… the kids were impressed with its speed.” False Albacore runs are fast, up to 40 miles per hour.

Jim Malachowski of Cranston, RI with a monster bluefish (11 pounds) he caught off Block Island last weekend. Bluefish make for tasty table fare, see Captain Dave Novick’s smoked bluefish recipe in this week’s No Fluke column.

Good news for scup and fluke fishery
Last month there was good news for the scup and fluke (summer flounder) fishery. Regional fishery management council committees voted to recommend an increase in both fluke and scup quotas which may translate to an enhanced recreational and commercial catch limits here in Rhode Island for the 2012 fishing season.
In a joint meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC) and the Black Sea Bass,Scup and Summer Flounder Management Board of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) approval was given to recommend increases for the summer flounder quota (by 1.55 million pounds) and for the scup quota (by 21.43 million pounds) for the 2012 fishing season. Healthy stock assessments for both species led to the enhanced quota recommendations. In regard to summer flounder, the recreational fishery generally gets 40% of the total quota and the commercial fishery 60%.
When will we know for sure that quotas will increase? It is hoped that the MAFMC and the ASMFC will meet in December, 2011 to approve recommendations, if they do; it is likely that some form of quota enhancement will be sent to state fishery managers for regulatory consideration… minimum size, bag limit and season length enhancements.
Smoked bluefish recipe
Readers continue to request bluefish recipes. This one is from Captain Dave Novick of Sanctuary Ocean Adventures off the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA) fishing blog.
· Make sure the fillets are boneless, leave the skin on - you can scale them if you wish - it prevents scales from getting on the flesh during brining
· With the fillet skin side down cut out the center dark strip by making a "v" shaped cut on either side of the lateral line down to but not thru the skin and pullout the dark meat and the few bones that hide there
· Rinse and try to get all the scales off the meat side if you didn't scale
· Lay out filets on a tray or drop in a bag and coat with a mix of brown sugar and kosher salt 2:1
· Let sit refrigerated for 2- 24 hours (longer is saltier)
· Smoke to desired dryness , 2-10 hours depending on outside heat and smoker
You can experiment with additions: hot pepper, Old bay, curry, herbs, etc.
Where’s the bite
Striped bass fishing this week continued to be outstanding at Block Island. Erick Appolonia of North Kingstown, RI said, “I fished the southwest side of Block Island on Saturday with my son Alex and the striped bass bite was great. We caught bass up to the lower forty pound range and we were back at the dock in Point Judith by noon.” Al Conti of Sung Harbor Marina, South Kingstown, RI reported on his web site that the “South side and SW Ledge (of Block Island) is loaded with stripers. One boat landed 88 fish last night on live eels. Trolling wire is great during the day. North end has too many bluefish to get to the bass.” Striper fishing was slow on Narragansett Bay, Ken Ferrara of Ray’s Bait & Tackle, Warwick, RI said, “Customers are catching black sea bass and tautog but striper fishing in the Bay is slow.” Saturday I fished in the lower Bay trying to find the fish for a Sunday fishing trip. I fished Newport and Middletown around Codington Cove with eels along the jetty as well as with tube and worm. Caught a 40 inch striped bass, two school bass and with three blue fish. Sunday, I fished the same way, in the same places, at the same time with Bob Matano of Warwick, RI and did not manage to land any striped bass. We saw Captain Jim White of White Ghost Charters, East Greenwich, RI Sunday morning on the water, he said, “This is the first time I have been our looking for bass in the Bay since the storm and there doesn’t seem to be much around.”
Bluefish bite in the Bay is spotty but with some nice fish being caught off Newport, Beavertail and the Narragansett areas. The bluefish bite around Block Island was good with striped bass anglers often finding it difficult to stay away from the blues.
Black sea bass fishing is strong off southern coastal shores, Narragansett, Jamestown and around Block Island with some nice fluke mixed in which is not always the case this time of year after a big storm. Francis Fleet party boats out of Galilee, RI reported a strong black sea bass bite this weekend, “Black Sea Bass were the stars of the day (Sunday); good-sized fish came aboard in droves, throughout the day. Some anglers nearly managed their limit of sea bass. A nine pound fluke took the pool, with quite a few other nice fluke to keep it company.”
Tuna fishing is starting to pick up with some of the first blue fin school tuna being jigged up this weekend at the Mud Hole with a lot of False Albacore being caught too reports Al Conti from Snug Harbor Marina. Chris Jalbert reports on the RISAA blog, “Went to New Harbor (Block Island) for lunch and saw a small school of albies (False Albacore) up and down. Hooked one on my favorite yo-zuri jig and my son reeled it in… the kids were impressed with its speed.” False Albacore is sought after as a sport fish due to its line stripping 40 miles per hour runs and hard fighting ability relates Wikipedia.
Tautog. Anglers just starting to turn their attention to tautog. Goods reports of keeper fish being caught off Wickford with a slow bite reported from anglers fishing off the Coddington Cove jetty in Middletown, RI.