another fish kill

Recent fish kills at Kerr Reservoir and Briery Lake in Virginia have been linked to largemouth bass virus (LMBV) by Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries biologists. LMBV has not been implicated in fish kills nationally for nearly a decade. However, the Virginia incidents are a reminder that the organism may still pose some risk to largemouth bass populations. LMBV poses no risk to humans. read the full press release here...

DNR Fisheries Service biologists offer the following guidelines to reduce the spread of this and other more disruptive invasive or pathogenic organisms such as zebra mussels, which have recently been found in the lower Susquehanna River, and Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS), which is a fatal fish virus found in the Great Lakes and some upper Mid-Western states waters:

• Never transfer live fish from one body of water to another
• Never discard fish parts or unused bait in any body of water
• Drain water from live wells, bilges, engines, bait buckets, and hoses and pumps before leaving the launch area and clear mud, vegetation and debris from trailers.
• Disinfect live wells daily and particularly when moving between bodies of water.
• Spray or wipe all surfaces with a chlorine solution, let sit for 5 minutes, then rinse with clean water and flush through lines and pumps.
• Bleach is very toxic to aquatic organisms. Discharge the solution in a grassy area where it will not immediately drain into streams or ponds.
• An effective chlorine solution can be prepared by placing three tablespoons of household bleach in one gallon of water. Use the chlorine solution to clean trailers and other parts of the boat – just be sure to rinse well with clean water.

LMBV may reduce a fish’s tolerance to stress. Anglers can increase the chances of survival of fish intended for release by following these guidelines: 

• Handle the bass gently and return to the water as soon as possible, especially when the water is over 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Maintain good water quality your livewell by keeping the water aerated and recirculated at 3 to 5 degrees cooler than the ambient water. Add non-iodized salt to livewells at a rate of one tablespoon per 10 gallons of water, or use one of the commercially available products for maintaining fish.
• Do not overcrowd bass. One pound of fish per gallon of livewell water is a good maximum ratio.
• Stage tournaments during cool water months, particularly in areas where LMBV has been noted.
• Report dying or dead bass, or bass that are swimming poorly in circles near the surface of the water by calling the Maryland Department of the Environment at 800-285-8195 M-F from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. or 877-224-7229 after hours.
• Report a largemouth bass kill with DNR Tidal Bass Manager Dr. Joe Love at 410-260-8257.
MD DNR biologists will host an LMBV and general bass fishing discussion at the 2011 Fishing Expo and Boat Show at the Maryland State Fair Grounds in Timonium at 1 p.m. on Saturday, January 15. More information about LMBV in Virginia is available online at www.dgif.virginia.gov/news/release.asp?id=269.

young rock

the maryland department of natural resources just released their 2010 annual report on striped bass in the bay...and the news isnt bad!

it's red tide time!

i had been attributing my lack of catching keepers this season to the sun...and the rain...those two factors have combined with pollution to produce huge algal blooms (again)-some 200 feet long-which block light and oxygen to everything below, and can sicken fish, people and dogs. i really hadnt noticed any this year-last year red tide was in the creek- but had been reading on various fishing forums that these nasty growths were responsible for the lack of flounder, blue, mackeral, etc. in the chesapeake bay. then yesterday, i saw them in my water. helping the bay is easy and depends on individual citizens, not big government.

coastal atlas

apparently tuesday was world ocean day, which i missed cuz i couldnt see through my tears after watching a minute of the news about the oil spill in the gulf....but, hey: world ocean day should be everyday...really. in honor of it, maryland governor martin o'malley launched a new 'coastal atlas mapping tool' on the dnr website. after reading through it twice, i still have no idea what its for or how i can use it: hmmm....must schedule a third look at some point.

young of the year

for the past 50 years the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has sampled the same 22 locations in the chesapeake bay for the health of the "young of the year" striped bass survey. biologists identified and counted more than 35,000 fish of 49 species, including 1,039 young-of-year striped bass in this year's survey. DNR has monitored the reproductive success of striped bass and other species in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay annually since 1954. 22 locations in the four major spawning systems are visited monthly from July through September, collecting fish samples with two sweeps of a 100-foot beach seine. The index is calculated as the average catch of young-of-year fish per sample. the 2009 results were announced last week, and although the 7.9 catch per haul was lower than the long term average of 11.7, it is still within the 'normal' range. read the full report on chesapeake bay news.

text updates for blue crabbing regulations

Because there are so many changes in regulations for the commercial harvest of blue crabs throughout the season, Maryland Fisheries Service has set up a program that will send text message reminders to your cell phone. A day or two before a regulation change goes into effect you will receive a reminder about things like changes in the female bushel limits and closure periods as well as changes in male and peeler minimum sizes. There is no charge for this program from the Fisheries Service, but there may be charges from your cell phone service provider so check with them for details. To sign up, click this link and enter your name, cell phone number (numbers only, example 4431234567), select your service provider and then click the subscribe button - it's that easy and you can unsubsrcibe at any time.

chesapeake bay blue crabs

blue crabs in the chesapeake bay started molting the last week of may, and they told me at captain faunce's memorial day would be the last weekend for good hard crabs for three weeks or so: they were right, for sure. the crabs have not been really worth picking, apparently due to the recent full moon shed. they should be gaining weight soon, though. razor clams have been the most successful bait of late, followed by chicken necks, according to this week's dnr's fishing report.

red tide?

i saw these algal blooms at the end of my creek. i didnt realize how harmful they are to humans, dogs and especially shellfish til i saw articles on the dnr's website about them. there are also interactive maps monitoring water quality throughout the bay region.

spring striper tagging final

after reporting a couple of weeks ago about an abandoned gill net in the choptank river, i was surprised to see this video posted today by dnr about how they are using these gill nets to tag spring rock fish. they give a lot of info on the proper use of the controversial net-type, plus talk about their findings. interesting!