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A Chronicle of Striped Bass Population Restoration and Conservation in the Northwest Atlantic, 1979 - 2016
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2018
[PDF-842.59 KB]
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Description:Striped Bass (Morone saxatilis) in the northeastern United States have long held a position of near reverence among both fishermen and culinary enthusiasts alike, beginning with the arrival of the pilgrims to the New World. The fish were abundant, and their anadromous behavior made them easily available to fishermen. In 1634 colonist William Wood (Wood [1634] 1994) described catching striped bass with hook and line with lobster for bait, then subduing the caught fish with a “knock on the head with a stick.” The value of striped bass became evident in the 1600s as laws were established to prevent the waste of the prized fish for use as fertilizer, and several years later a tax was imposed by the Plymouth Colony on the sale of striped bass, which created funds for the first public school. Populations of striped bass along the coast have experienced several periods of high and low abundances over the years since the colonists took their first management action. Comments at public meetings held by the US Fish Commission in 1871 (Baird 1873) suggested that striped bass numbers were “greatly diminished.” Fishermen observations as reported in scientific documents implied low abundance until a large year class appeared in the Chesapeake Bay in 1934. Subsequent recruitment events helped sustain the coastal fishery until the 1970s when a decline in abundance got the attention of the public, scientists, fishery managers, and ultimately state and federal legislators. Scientific papers and stories in the popular press regarding the striped bass stock recovery have been written, but details of the analytical basis for decisions have not been well documented. The compilation of papers in this Technical Memorandum describes the quantitative work by some of the scientists involved over the past 45 years with the restoration and conservation of striped bass.
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Rights Information:Public Domain
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Compliance:Submitted
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