bad_angler Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 Hi all, I read an interesting article tonight from the Outer Banks Sentinel. In the article the reporter states that as early as next week President Bush will designate Red Drum and Striped Bass gamefish status. Thereby removing the fish from the market place. There are a couple of quotes from NC representatives in the article. Anyone else hear of this. See the article here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bad_angler Posted October 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 My bad gentleman. It already happened today. Bush adds Red Drum,Striped Bass gamefish status. Note the award is for federal waters and they hope the states adopt the federal standard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogajiga Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 Curious, I researched and found that federal waters are beyond the 3 mile limit. Does this mean that the "law" has no effect on commercial harvest 3 miles or less from shore? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bad_angler Posted October 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 I think this IS what it means. But I'm not sure. I was wondering about the same question. I believe red drum is a gamefish all along the gulf coast, and in south carolina. I dunno about Georgia and I don't think so in North Carolina. But according to from the Outer Banks Sentinel, 43 percent of last years red drum catch was from commercial fishing (168,000 pounds). This is going to have an enormous impact on that fisherie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogajiga Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 Although I'm as far from the Atlantic Coast as is possible to be in the US, I thought both reds & stripers were coastal species? Meaning, are they even found and fished for outside of 3 miles? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bad_angler Posted October 23, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 hawnjigs you are right. These are mostly inshore targeted species. Stripers/striped bass/rockfish can live in freshwater and saltwater. I live in South Carolina 100 miles from the ocean and the rivers and lakes around me are TEAMING with stripers. Several of the best striper spots in the world are within 40 miles of me. They can live their entire lives in freshwater..many big striper fishing lakes are in landlocked places like Oklahoma. Ocean stripers will come into freshwater rivers to spawn. Stripers in saltwater are typically within a few miles of the coast. Stripers are also stocked in freshwater lakes all over the south (and I believe midwest). Red drum/redfish/spot tail bass/puppy drum/channel bass is a salt water fish that spends it's first three or four years inshore. After four years old I believe they are offshore except during the fall spawning season. They love shallow water. They also will come up freshwater rivers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ogajiga Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 I thought these were inshore species - my bud J-McK is at this moment throwing jigs on the Outer Banks shoreline for em. Is anyone else confused as to the actual value of this "law"? By the way, with the abundance of inland stripers, why aren't they a preferred target of yours? Although I've never caught any real stripers beyond hand sized in the Napa (CA) river, CO hybrids are tasty battlers and perhaps my fave inland "warm" water game fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bad_angler Posted October 24, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 24, 2007 I've only caught a few stripers in my life. My office is within 500 yards of the Congaree. The Broad & Saluda join to form the Congaree maybe one half mile upstream. Lake Murray is 11 miles away and Wateree about 25, Santee Cooper about 1 hours away. Dunno why I just never got into stripers like others. Partly I guess since I don't own a boat. When I do find the time to fish I often fish alone and don't like the riverfront without a fishing partner (Palmetto Balsa kindly has offered to change that). When i'm out on Lake Murray it seems like I'm mostly in a boat with kids catching panfish. At the office we have had all kinds of drunks / homeless people / panhandling problems in the past. People sleeping (sometimes defecating) outside on the sidewalk. It's gotten much much better in the last 3 years as the city develops the waterfront. Still .. walk under the bridge and you see a lot of pocketbooks, checkbooks on the ground. There's a large homeless population living in the woods on the riverfront too. It's safe down at the river if you aren't alone. Otherwise you gotta be careful. I always liked largemouth which are fat and abundant here too. And I love to fish for crappie. Now my brother catches his striper limit often in 30 minutes on the Broad. See http://www.myfish.com/modules/rmgs/view.php?q=cat&cat=9&id=9175&pag=1. bad_angler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
