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Fishing News
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Written by Rod Houck
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Wednesday, 31 January 2007 10:44 |
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The Axel Carlson Reef, located 4.4 nautical miles southeast of Manasquan Inlet in Momouth County, will receive 800 tons of concrete pier pedestals on February 7, 2007, as part of the Division's Artificial Reef Program. The pier pedestals (pictured below) were obtained from a dilapidated pier in New York Harbor that was recently demolished. The intent of deploying the pedestals is to enhance the drift fishing area at the south end of the reef site.
The pedestals, amounting to 497 cubic yards, will soon provide an attachment surface for mussels, barnacles, hydroids, anemones, stony coral and other invertebrates, which will quickly cover the structure with a living carpet, providing the base of a productive marine food chain (picture below). By summer, sea bass, tautog, scup, triggerfish and summer flounder will colonize the new reef. It will then become a favorite target of anglers coming out of Manasquan and Shark River Inlets.
Fully Colonized Concrete (photo courtesy Herb Segars)
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The target date for deployment of February 7 is subject to weather and sea conditions. For further information regarding the deployment of the vessel contact Hugh Carberry at 609-748-2022.
For information on past and planned deployments see the Artificial Reef Deployments page.
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Fishing News
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Written by Rod Houck
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Wednesday, 31 January 2007 08:49 |
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Subject: ASMFC Tautog Board Approves Addendum IV -
Establishes Stock
Rebuilding Program
The Commission's Tautog Management Board approved Addendum IV to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan for Tautog. The Addendum initiates a stock rebuilding program for tautog through the establishment of coastwide target and threshold levels for spawning stock biomass (SSB), and a new fishing mortality target. Under the new program, states will be required to reduce fishing mortality by 28%. The recreational sector, which accounts for 90% of tautog harvest, can expect the implementation of more restrictive management measures by January 1, 2008. These measures may include decreased bag limits and seasonal closures.
This action was taken in response to the findings of the 2005 peer-reviewed stock assessment, as well as those of the recently updated virtual population analysis (VPA). The assessment indicates that the tautog resource remains at low biomass levels. Since the mid-1980s, tautog has undergone a substantial decrease in total and spawning stock biomass.
Both indicators are currently at levels about one-third their early time series average. Based on the current fishing mortality target (F = 0.30) and the recent fishing mortality estimates for the last two years, overfishing is not occurring.
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