DMF enforcement & a catching report

Most folks are aware that as of January first of this year a coastal recreational fishing license is needed to fish on NC’s coast. There are a few exceptions. The public piers have a blanket license and so do most charter boats but check with the captain before going out. He isn’t required to have the blanket license so you may need your own anyway.

One of the items the money from the license is supposed to fund is enforcement of our fishery rules. Most of that enforcement is done by the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF). Not that enforcement is new to them. Quite the contrary, they have been enforcing the laws all along. It’s just that now they should be able to beef up the force and perform more enforcement activities.

If my experience is any indication, it’s working. I have been stopped four times in the three months since the year began. Last year I was stopped once in the entire 12 month period. Two of the four times there was an “officer in training” with the veteran officer. They were very pleasant but did seem to be in a bit of a hurry.

I’m all for it. Let them check as often as they can. The more often they check the more likely folks will comply with the size and bag limits. I think most fishermen adhere to those regulations but I know some that don’t.

A few weeks ago I was fishing about 35 miles off shore for grouper. Another boat pulled up and anchored almost on top of us. We could easily hear them talking and see their catch. Both boats were catching plenty of grouper but only 1 in 3 was legal keeper size. They kept them all. We never saw them put a single fish back. And to top it off, we saw them catch at least 25 fish. The legal limit is 5 red grouper per person, there were only 3 of them on board. I’m sure they kept on fishing after we left too.

Growing up here on the coast, we felt like anything we caught was ours to keep. But the fisheries can’t keep up with the kind of fishing pressure it is receiving without quotas and limits. Unlimited harvests just aren’t sustainable.

Another thing the license money is supposed to pay for is additional research in preserving and maintaining sustainable harvests of our resources. Again, I’m all for that!

Catching report

The piers are reporting good catches of sea mullet, some blowfish and a few croaker. There have even been a few black drum and speckled trout caught recently. The blues have been showing up early and late in the day.

A few bonito have been caught around the north end of the island and out toward AR355. The large schools haven’t shown up as of this writing but should be here any day now. Black sea bass are still being caught in the 3- 10 mile range with some nice gray trout being caught too.

Off shore reds, gag and scamp grouper are being caught in the 30 – 40 mile range. Some nice pinkies and grunts are being caught too. Wahoo and some nice size yellowfin tuna are being caught near the Gulf Stream.

Tight lines to all!