Menhaden’s role as food could be factor in catch limits
Some fishermen worry they’re overfished in Chesapeake Bay
Ahead of a meeting Tuesday to reexamine fishing limits of menhaden under new guidance, some recreational fishermen believe too many of the small fish — often caught for its omega oil, and to make fertilizer, feed and bait — are being harvested in the Chesapeake Bay, limiting the population of rockfish that eat them.
Earlier this year, the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board, a subset of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, approved the use of a new ecological reference point model to inform management that considers menhaden’s role as food for other species such as rockfish and bluefish. Instead of focusing on menhaden independently, the model examines the interactions between the tiny silver fish and other key species in the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean.
Southern Maryland Recreational Fishing Organization President Phil Zalesak said he is concerned that too many menhaden are being harvested in the Chesapeake, having negative impacts on the bigger fish he and his members target. Menhaden don’t migrate as much as previously thought, Zalesak argued, so managers must adjust by lowering the number of menhaden that can be harvested from the bay.
The current allowable catch is 216,000 metric tons from the Atlantic and Chesapeake, but of that, a maximum of 51,000 metric tons can be fished fromthe bay. Prior to a 2017 amendment to an interstate fishery plan, the cap on menhaden fishing in the bay was 87,216 metric tons.
Zalesak would like to see fishing for menhaden in the Chesapeake eliminated.
Not all anglers share Zalesak’s concern that menhaden are being over-fished to the detriment of striped bass and other species.
Waterman Russell Dize, Gov. Larry Hogan’s appointee to the commission, said he thinks the body had done a good job controlling the menhaden population. A 2017 stock assessment found that over-fishingw as not occurring.
Maryland Department of Natural Resources spokesman Gregg Bortz said officials are looking forward to working with other states to make a determination about the size of the allowable catch using the new reference points.
“These reference points will help ensure there is a balanced approach to managing menhaden as both an important commercial fishery and an important forage fish for many species including striped bass, whales, and ospreys,” he said.
Each state is allowed to harvest a fraction of that 216,000 metric tons. Maryland has the third largest allotment at 1.89%, New Jersey comes in second with 10.87%, and Virginia is allocated 78.66%.
Under Virginia Marine Resources Commission regulations, about90% of Virginia’s allotment is set aside for fishers using big nets that can be cinched like a drawstring bag, purse seines, to catch menhaden to be reduced into fish oil and high-protein fertilizer. Omega Protein Corp., which recently moved its headquarters to Reedville, Virginia, uses reduced men haden tomake food and health products. Omega is the only reduction fishing operation on the east coast, according to Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Omega Protein Corp. exceeded the Chesapeake’s 51,000-metric-ton limit in 2019, landing 67,000 metric tons.
In a news release, thecompany said itwas in compliance with Virginia law, which had not been updated to reflect a 2017 amendment to the interstate fishery plan that lowered the cap on catches in the Chesapeake from87,216 to 51,000 metric tons.
Last December, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said Virginia had six months to come into compliance with the interstate agreement or its menhaden fishery would be shut down.
The Virginia Marine Resources Commission passed new regulations earlier this year, and capped the harvest fromthe bay at 36,000 metric tons for 2020. The Department of Commerce said Virginia was in compliance, and the closure was subsequently canceled.