A Chance to Strengthen Chesapeake Bay Menhaden Protections

August 28, 2026

As the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission considers several measures to strengthen Bay menhaden management, we offer specific guidance for submitting comments

As we explained in our Aug. 7 blog, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) has an opportunity this November to strengthen protections for Atlantic menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay through Draft Addendum II, which is now officially open for public comment until Oct. 9.

TRCP is recommending the following options that we believe will best achieve that goal:

Make the amount of Bay harvest responsive to coastwide management on the Atlantic.
Make the timing of harvest more precautionary to protect menhaden predators.
Make those timing limits actually mean something, by not allowing overharvest in certain periods.
Make the entire system adaptable, with regular intervals to review how management is working.

If you agree, simply click the link below to sign a petition to the ASMFC telling managers that you support precautionary management for menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay. (Note that this petition is separate from one you may have already signed asking for coastal menhaden reallocation; for better menhaden management, it is important to sign both.) More details on each option are provided below, listed by relevant sections in the addendum.

Addendum II includes options for fishery managers to reduce the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap, spread harvest pressure across the fishing season via quota periods, and create a process for revisiting the cap at required regular intervals – but not all of the proposed options provide the same level of protection. So the ASMFC can elect to do more than simply cut the Bay Cap. It can build a smarter, more precautionary management system that protects menhaden when and where they are most important, keeps Bay harvest limits tied to the coastwide quota, and adapts as science improves. The ASMFC is considering a range of possible options for various potential actions, including the option to make no new management changes.

Section 3.1 – Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap Amount

TRCP’s preferred option: C1e – Link the Bay Cap to the TAC, with C2a limits

Don’t just lower the Bay Cap – fix the problem. The Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap is currently set at 51,000 metric tons. But the coastwide total allowable catch (TAC) can change over time as managers respond to the best available science – just as it did last year, when the ASMFC reduced the TAC by 20%, with no corresponding reduction to the Bay Cap.

Because the Bay Cap remained the same, the Chesapeake Bay now accounts for a larger share of the total coastwide harvest than it did previously. If managers are reducing the amount of menhaden that can be harvested coastwide, it doesn’t make sense for the Bay Cap to remain disconnected from those decisions. And this decision could be especially important this November when further TAC cuts are possible.

Total allowable catch (TAC): The maximum amount of Atlantic menhaden that can be removed coastwide, from all East Coast states, each year

Option C1e in the addendum would link the Bay Cap to approximately 13.6% of the annual coastwide TAC, with Option C2a establishing an upper annual harvest limit of 51,000 metric tons. At the current TAC, that would mean a Bay Cap of approximately 25,500 metric tons – a 50% reduction from the current cap.

And Option C1e does more than provide an immediate catch reduction. It fixes the disconnect between Bay and coastwide management. If the TAC decreases in the future, the Bay Cap would automatically decrease as well, preventing the Bay from accounting for an increasingly large share of the remaining harvest.

Section 3.2.1 – Chesapeake Bay Cap Distribution – Quota Periods

TRCP’s preferred option: B2 – 25% / 25% / 50% quota periods

How many menhaden are harvested matters. But when those fish are harvested also matters. Option B2 in this section would divide the Bay Cap into three equal-length periods, with 25% of total harvest allowed during the first period, 25% during the second, and 50% during the third. This would reduce the amount of industrial harvest that can occur early in the season (May to early July), when menhaden are particularly important as forage for predators, especially breeding ospreys — which have seen historically low chick survival rates in recent years due to a lack of menhaden.

The goal here isn’t to eliminate the reduction fishery from operating early in the season. It is to reduce the risk of concentrated harvest during periods when predators may have high forage needs. This is the essence of precautionary management: while scientists are still working to understand exactly how menhaden harvest affects forage availability and predators in the Bay, and waiting on the necessary research results, managers should reduce the risk of concentrated harvest during potentially sensitive periods rather than wait for all of the answers.

Section 3.2.2 – Chesapeake Bay Cap Distribution – Quota Period Overages & Underages

TRCP’s preferred option: B – Quota period overage payback

If there are quota periods, they need to mean something. Dividing the Bay Cap into quota periods only works if those periods actually limit when menhaden can be harvested.

Imagine if the ASMFC establishes a 25% limit for the first harvest period, but allows the fishery to exceed that amount without consequence as long as it stays below the overall annual cap. The quota period would effectively become a voluntary pacing target – not a meaningful management measure.

Under Option B, if the fishery exceeds its allocation during the first or second quota period, that overage would be deducted from the same quota period in the following year. At the same time, unused quota from the first two periods could roll into the third period. This provides flexibility while preventing the fishery from simply concentrating more harvest during an early period.

The question is simple: Should quota periods be enforceable management measures or merely voluntary pacing targets? TRCP believes they need to be meaningful management controls.

Section 3.3 – Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap Revisit Provision

TRCP’s preferred option: B – Three-year revisit provision

There is another important piece of this draft addendum: making sure the ASMFC will be required to regularly examine adjusting management as scientists learn more. There is still uncertainty about menhaden’s ecological role within the Chesapeake Bay and the appropriate level and timing of harvest. That’s a reason to take precautionary action now, but also to ensure management can change as scientists learn more.

Option B would require the ASMFC to revisit the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap every three years. A scheduled review would give managers a predictable opportunity to evaluate whether the cap is working and to incorporate new data. This is particularly important if the ASMFC adopts Option C1e to link the Bay Cap to the coastwide catch limit. Linking the Bay Cap to the coastwide TAC would create a new management approach, and the Board should have a formal opportunity to evaluate that approach and adjust as new science becomes available. That is adaptive, ecosystem-based fisheries management in practice.

Coastwide TAC and Chesapeake Bay Protections Should Work Together

In addition to Draft Addendum II, the ASMFC will vote in November to set the 2027–2028 coastwide menhaden catch limit. TRCP supports setting this limit (the TAC) at a level with a 50% or less probability of exceeding the fishing mortality target based on the needs of striped bass and other predators. This approach would reduce the risk of fishing mortality reaching levels that could undermine menhaden’s important role as forage for other species.

The coastwide TAC and Chesapeake Bay management should work together. If the best available science supports reducing coastwide harvest to protect the ecosystem, the Bay harvest should respond accordingly, rather than remain disconnected from the coastwide TAC. That is why TRCP supports the options above, which would link the Bay Cap to the coastwide TAC while maintaining an upper limit on Bay harvest.

Together, these measures would create a more consistent approach to menhaden management – one that uses the best available science to limit fishing mortality coastwide while ensuring Chesapeake Bay harvest reflects those same conservation goals.

If you provide personalized comments to the ASMFC, be sure you are specific in stating your preferred option for each section of the addendum.

Make Your Voice Heard

The public comment period that runs until Oct. 9 is your chance to tell the ASMFC what you want commissioners to do before they make their final decision. If you care about healthy Chesapeake Bay fisheries, abundant forage for predators like striped bass, and a strong future for recreational fishing, tell the ASMFC to choose the strongest available protections for menhaden.

If you’d prefer to submit personalized comments to the Commission in a different way, there are multiple options to get involved. Here are five ways to submit comments:

In-person: Attend a hearing in-person or online (schedule)
Online: Survey
Online: Comment box on the Addendum II webpage (Please be specific on your preferred options for each section if you choose this option.)
Email: comments@asmfc.org (Use the email subject line: Atlantic Menhaden Draft Addendum II)
Mail: James Boyle, ASMFC, 1050 N. Highland Street, Suite 200-N, Arlington, VA 22201

Be sure that however you provide comment, you are specific in stating your preferred option for each section of the addendum.

Thank you for your support for menhaden conservation in the Chesapeake Bay and along the Atlantic coast. Your voice matters.

Banner image courtesy Joanna Steidle

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by: Ryan Lockwood

posted in: Menhaden

August 19, 2026

New Video Series Highlights Importance of Atlantic Menhaden

TRCP’s 10-part ‘The Most Important Fish in the Sea’ series features breathtaking wildlife footage and interviews with a diverse range of local experts, anglers, scientists, small businesses, and artists to explain what these critical baitfish are and why they matter

Over the last eight months, the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership released an educational video series centered on Atlantic menhaden to raise public awareness about this critical baitfish and its management, particularly in the Chesapeake Bay.

The 10 short videos feature local experts, anglers, scientists, and conservationists from Virginia Beach to Montauk, N.Y., to capture the significance of this small, yet mighty, fish – presented with award-winning footage of the species being pursued by predators in its natural environment.

Menhaden (also called pogies or bunker) are a small, oil-dense forage fish – similar to herring or sardines – that serve as food, or “forage,” for sportfish, marine mammals, and seabirds. This keystone species is often referred to as “the most important fish in the sea” because it provides a necessary foundation for healthy ecosystems, transferring energy from plankton to much larger fish and wildlife higher in the food chain. Menhaden also support charter businesses, bait and tackle industries, and commercial lobster and crab fisheries as one of the most important sources of bait on the Atlantic.

“Menhaden fuel entire ecosystems and economies,” said Jaclyn Lunaas, forage fish program manager for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “But rather than simply take our word for it, we wanted these videos to feature our respected partners and other well-known figures to explain in their own words why these small fish matter so much to so many.”

TRCP partners including the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, Audubon, and the Virginia Saltwater Sportfishing Association are featured in the videos, as well as footage from professional drone photographers Joanna Steidle – winner of the top prize at the inaugural International Aerial Photographer of the Year Awards in 2025 – along with Sutton Lake Lynch and Chris Paparo, who also have garnered international attention with their eye-catching footage of menhaden. Legendary saltwater flats fishing guide Captain Paul Dixon, who served as a producer and technical advisor for the 2025 fly fishing film “Looking Through Water,” starring Michael Douglas and Walker Scobell, is also featured.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, which is responsible for coastwide menhaden management, is currently exploring possible management changes that include options to reduce the Chesapeake Bay’s industrial menhaden harvest and more evenly distribute commercial fishing pressure across the fishing season. The Bay is considered the most important and largest nursery for Atlantic menhaden.

TRCP and partner conservation groups are also urging the ASMFC to reduce the coastwide Atlantic menhaden catch limit to align with the most recent stock assessment results and to initiate a process this fall to reallocate state quotas, in part to reduce fishing pressure in the Bay.

Watch the full video playlist HERE.

Learn more about TRCP’s efforts toward better menhaden conservation HERE.

Banner image courtesy Joanna Steidle

by: Jaclyn Lunaas

posted in: Menhaden

August 7, 2026

Atlantic Fisheries Managers Advance Proposal for Potential Menhaden Protections in Chesapeake Bay

The TRCP will be encouraging anglers and conservationists to support stronger protections for menhaden in the Bay during the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s public comment period, starting later this month

Regional fisheries managers will soon be giving the public an opportunity to provide input to help shape the future of the Chesapeake Bay’s critically important menhaden fishery.

At their Aug. 5 meeting, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC)’s Menhaden Management Board voted 16-2 to publish a document exploring possible menhaden management changes into an official public comment period, which will be open late-August through October. The proposal will include options to reduce the Bay’s industrial menhaden harvest by up to 50% and additional options to more evenly distribute reduction fishing pressure across the fishing season. By advancing Draft Addendum II to Amendment 3, the Board has taken another step toward strengthening protections for Atlantic menhaden in the Bay.

Atlantic menhaden provide the foundation for a healthy Atlantic coast food web. They serve as essential fuel for striped bass, bluefish, tuna, whales, ospreys, and countless other predators, while also supporting commercial and recreational bait fisheries along the East Coast. Chesapeake Bay is the primary nursery area for Atlantic menhaden, making responsible management of this migratory species within the Bay essential to sustaining healthy fisheries and ecosystems along the entire Atlantic coast.

Initial Document Enhanced Through Collaboration

Since the Board first reviewed Draft Addendum II in May, the Chesapeake Bay Work Group and ASMFC’s Plan Development Team met several times to refine the document before bringing it back for consideration. Their work resulted in a stronger draft by clarifying management options, improving the organization of the document, and expanding the problem statement to better explain why additional management measures are being considered.

The revised problem statement recognizes that the availability of menhaden in Chesapeake Bay may be changing because of a combination of commercial fishing pressure, environmental conditions, habitat changes, and predator-prey dynamics. It also acknowledges growing concerns stemming from below-average fisheries landings and troubling population trends for several predator species that depend on menhaden as forage. While the document notes that sufficient Bay-specific science is not yet available to fully understand these changes, it concludes that precautionary management remains appropriate while additional research is undertaken over the next few years.

Importantly, the revised document identifies three management challenges the Board is seeking to address:

The Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap is currently not linked to coastwide total allowable catch (TAC) changes, meaning the proportion of coastwide harvest occurring in the Bay can increase even as the TAC decreases. And it was indeed decreased by 20% last fall, with no corresponding change to the Bay fishing cap.
The Bay Cap is currently set only as an annual tonnage, rather than one segmented by season, which allows harvest to become concentrated over relatively short periods of the season. This potentially negatively affects forage fish availability for predators like osprey that rely on menhaden during their spring breeding season and other small-scale commercial fisheries in the Bay who harvest menhaden throughout the year.
There is currently no regular timeframe for revisiting the Bay Cap, which may become even more important as new Bay-focused science becomes available in the near future, after state and federal funding sources will finally be dedicated to examining the Bay’s menhaden population and related fishery.

Lack of Science Warrants Precautionary Management

Here at the TRCP, we believe the board’s choices for final action this November should more fully reflect both the ASMFC’s ecosystem-based management framework and the original purpose of the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap.

The Bay Cap was originally established 20 years ago as a precautionary management measure to mitigate reduction fishing impacts in Chesapeake Bay while scientists worked toward developing a more scientifically based approach for Bay management. Today, the ASMFC and Commonwealth of Virginia are investing in research to better understand menhaden abundance, distribution, and ecosystem dynamics within Chesapeake Bay. But that research won’t be completed for years. Until those studies are completed, reducing the Bay Cap represents a prudent, precautionary action that remains consistent with the Bay Cap’s original conservation purpose.

TRCP will be urging the board to adopt a 50 percent reduction in the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap. This approach would provide meaningful precautionary protections for the Bay while ensuring the proportion of coastwide harvest occurring within the Bay does not increase if the board adopts additional coastwide catch reductions in November.

Make Your Voice Heard

The upcoming Addendum II public comment period will offer a critical opportunity for anglers, conservationists, and stakeholders who depend on healthy fisheries to help shape which management measures are chosen by the Menhaden Management Board at their November meeting.

Later this month, we will be providing additional guidance on how best to provide comments on addendum options to the ASMFC so that your voice can be heard. Stay tuned for more information.

Public participation has always helped advance ecosystem-based fisheries management for Atlantic menhaden, and it will be just as important during this comment period. Together, we can encourage the Menhaden Management Board to take precautionary action today while Bay-specific science starts to unfold.

Banner image of shark and menhaden courtesy Joanna Steidle

by: Ryan Lockwood

posted in: Menhaden

July 22, 2026

In the Arena: Keith Lusher

TRCP’s “In the Arena” series highlights the individual voices of hunters and anglers who, as Theodore Roosevelt so famously said, strive valiantly in the worthy cause of conservation.

Keith Lusher

Hometown: Covington, Louisiana
Occupation: Outdoor writer, photographer, and website designer
Conservation credentials: Lusher has earned a multimedia hat trick as an award-winning outdoor writer, photographer, and website designer, with material centered on Louisiana and the Gulf Coast but that spans national issues. He serves on the Louisiana Outdoor Writers Association board and his work frequently centers on conservation efforts and the need for hunter and angler engagement, including on issues TRCP helps champion like Gulf menhaden conservation and the importance of the Mississippi River to anglers. Lusher uses his voice to keep sportsmen and women updated on legislative and regulatory policy and ways in which they can influence it.

A native of South Louisiana, Lusher learned to throw a cast net and run crawfish nets not many years after he could walk. He created his first website, NorthShoreFishingReport.com, in 2012, which he still owns and operates. That launched a career leading to a weekly column in the Slidell Independent Newspaper called the Northshore Fishing Report, for which he has been writing about freshwater and saltwater angling for 13 years. Lusher also previously hosted the Northshore Fishing Report Radio Show from 2015 to 2020. He has written for many of the nation’s leading outdoor publications – among them, OutdoorHub, Wired2Fish, Mossy Oak, and Coastal Angler Magazine – producing tactical articles that help, in his own words, “anglers and hunters catch more and kill more.” He is an avid fisherman and dedicated photographer who throws caution to the wind to get the right shot.

Here is his story.

My dad introduced me to the outdoors. We had a camp in Laffite, La., and spent many weekends there. The only way to get there was by an hour-long boat ride, so it was definitely a clean separation from society, which was a good thing. I learned a lot out there, including how to read the water as far as tides and current.

Being a Gen Xer, I was left on my own to figure everything out, and I did. I remember getting on a redfish bite near the camp with my dad. They were only hitting live cocahoe minnows. We ran out of bait on the second day of our week there and I was contemplating making a trip back to the marina to buy more. But I thought back to when I had made a walk behind the camp on a prior visit, to where there were numerous duck ponds in the back in the marsh. I remembered seeing BIG cocahoe minnows in those ponds, so I rigged up a very tiny bream hook and broke off a piece of saltwater cork to use as a lightweight, small bobber. So basically I was fishing with a panfish setup. I had a piece of shrimp that I broke into small pieces and fed it onto the hook. It’s no exaggeration to say that on EVERY CAST I caught a cocahoe that was over five inches long.

Within a half-hour I walked up to my dad with a bucket with so many minnows in it they were starting to float up because of lack of air. My dad was floored. He couldn’t believe the quality of “bait” that I caught using a rod and reel. That technique led to part of our future stays at the camp. We no longer need to buy cocahoes. It became part of the routine. When we arrived, I would immediately rig up my pole and head to the back of camp in the marsh to catch cocahoes for bait for the weekend.

“I heard Danny call out, ‘You got a gator coming your way, about 50 yards around that point.’”

I have so many fishing memories, but the really exciting memories have been during photo-shoots with anglers that I write about. One memory that sticks in my head is a trip I made with Danny Hunter of New Orleans Best Charters. I was writing an article about fishing for speckled trout in the marsh and after catching a limit of specks, I wanted to get a few “over-under” photos – those that capture the fish under the water as well as the angler in the boat fishing. We stopped in a duck pond just off the Intracoastal Waterway and I jumped in and swam to the marsh where I could stand and operate the camera to get a photo of the fish underwater and Danny in the background. After about 10 minutes of getting photos, I heard Danny call out, “You got a gator coming your way, about 50 yards around that point.” He pointed to the right and I shrugged it off.

I continued to take photos from different perspectives and then heard him say, “About 30 yards now.” I continued to work. Then I saw him put down his pole and walk over to his center console and open the door. He took out a pistol and loaded it, then set it down near the steering wheel. He then picked up the pole and we continued to work. I took a few more shots but knew the gator must have been close so I told him I was done and would swim over to him. He hollered back, “No, I’ll come get you,” as he cranked up the motor and idled over. Danny was relieved after I was in the boat. He then yelled out in relief, “Hardest working photographer in the industry!” Which was better than the usual, “Man, you’re crazy.”

When I got home to look through the photos, I was so happy that I took the time to get out in the marsh as I got some spectacular shots that were published along with my article. Danny liked the shots as well, as he’s used several of them for his charter business, including as the backboard for his cleaning table and serves as a great advertisement.

I normally fish the waters of Southeast Louisiana and that’s probably the best fishing that one could experience, but I really wish I could wade-fish the streams up north, like the Madison River in Montana, with a fly rod. I don’t ever get to fish cold, clean streams or rivers and I’d like to start doing that more.

Down here in Southeast Louisiana, there’s never a dull moment. Right now, the pogy boat ordeal is in the spotlight. Over the past few years, I’ve watched this battle over menhaden and am discouraged to watch how much power the commercial fishing industry has battling an extended buffer zone that was enacted to keep industrial fishing vessels after menhaden (referred to locally as pogy boats) away from the coastline. The commercial fishing industry clearly has more power than the recreational fishermen and that is evident in how you’ll see tighter limits being thrust onto the recreational anglers but not on the commercial fishermen.

Conservation is important for everyone because it protects the hunting and fishing traditions that we enjoy today and have enjoyed for decades. I’ve always said the best conservationists are the people who hunt and fish. While we do harvest fish and game, we also know how important every species is and that the future of fishing and hunting depends on using some sort of conservation strategy to make sure a species continues to have a strong population. Conservation is important for me personally because I have a large audience. I try to use my voice to keep all sportsmen and women updated on all the relevant new bills in Congress and all of the conservation efforts that could use their support.

We set an example for the next generation. It’s not complicated. Protect the fish and game that you enjoy fishing and hunting and the next generation will have it to enjoy as well.

Banner image courtesy Keith Lusher

by: Ryan Lockwood

posted in: Menhaden

June 24, 2026

$1.5 Billion in Annual Economic Output Generated From Recreational Angling That Involves Atlantic Menhaden as Bait

As the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission prepares to set a new menhaden catch limit and considers whether to initiate a reallocation process among states, a new study shows that recreational anglers rely on this keystone species as one of the most important baitfish

Atlantic menhaden are often called the “most important fish in the sea” because of the vital role they play in supporting striped bass, bluefish, tuna, ospreys, and countless other predators. But menhaden are more than a critical forage fish – they are also one of the most important bait sources for recreational and commercial fisheries along the Atlantic.

A new study conducted by Southwick Associates provides the most comprehensive assessment to date of how recreational anglers use Atlantic menhaden and the value they place on access to this critical resource.

The study estimates that recreational Atlantic fishing trips involving menhaden generated approximately $804 million in angler spending and supported more than 7,200 jobs nationwide in 2025. But the economic effects of angler spending extended well beyond direct purchases.

“Atlantic fishing trips involving menhaden generate more than $1.5 billion in annual economic output,” said Ben Scuderi, lead economist at Southwick Associates. “That figure represents the full spectrum of spending that occurs for fishing trips where menhaden are used as bait, from direct purchases of equipment, food, fuel, and the many other items needed for a day of fishing, to the downstream effects that spending has on retailers, manufacturers, and countless other businesses.”

Photo Credit: Chris Crippen/Virginia Institute of Marine Science

The report also estimates that recreational anglers used menhaden on 13.9 million fishing days in 2025, demonstrating the species’ widespread importance as a bait source throughout the Atlantic Coast. Those fishing days occurred across the region:

6.3 million fishing days in the Mid-Atlantic
5.1 million fishing days in the South Atlantic
2.5 million fishing days in New England

The study showed that menhaden bait supports fisheries targeting some of the Atlantic Coast’s most popular recreational species, including striped bass, bluefish, tuna, weakfish, flounder, red drum, and cobia. Researchers also found that anglers depend heavily on access to menhaden products beyond live or dead fish as bait, such as menhaden chum or menhaden-based scent products.

“Together, these findings paint a clear picture. Atlantic menhaden are clearly not a niche bait source used by a small segment of anglers,” said Jaclyn Lunaas, forage fish program manager for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “They are a foundational component of recreational fishing across much of the East Coast.”

The report findings suggest that anglers view menhaden as more than just a single option for bait. The data indicate that for many fishermen, menhaden are a preferred and highly valued tool for pursuing the species they care most about.

The findings come at a pivotal moment for Atlantic menhaden management, as the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission prepares to make major decisions about the future of the fishery this fall. In November, the ASMFC’s Atlantic Menhaden Management Board is expected to establish a new coastwide total allowable catch (TAC) for Atlantic menhaden for 2027-2028. The Board may also decide whether to formally initiate a process to reallocate state menhaden quotas. Current state allocations are largely based on historical harvest and have remained mostly unchanged, despite major changes in fish availability, bait supply, and public demand for the resource.

“As the ASMFC considers updating the menhaden state allocation system, properly weighing the importance of menhaden as bait in recreational and commercial fisheries is essential,” said Mike Waine, Atlantic fisheries policy director for the American Sportfishing Association. “Atlantic tackle retailers, charter businesses, and recreational anglers generate hundreds of millions of dollars through the use of menhaden as bait, but those investments have not resulted in meaningful consideration of the recreational sector’s needs.”

Virginia currently receives approximately 75% of the coastwide allocation, with most of that harvest supporting a single foreign-owned reduction fishery. In contrast to the economic benefits provided by menhaden as bait for recreational angling, according to the reduction industry, “Omega Protein and Ocean Harvesters together generate over $100 million in economic activity” from their Virginia-based operation.

Historically, Atlantic menhaden management discussions have focused on stock assessments, harvest levels, commercial landings, and ecological reference points, all critically important and central to management decisions.

“What has often been missing, however, is a coastwide understanding of how recreational anglers use menhaden and the role the species plays in supporting recreational fisheries,” said Lunaas. “This study helps fill that gap.”

Allocation decisions are ultimately about determining how access to a public resource is shared among competing user groups. To make those decisions effectively, managers require a clear understanding of the benefits the resource provides across all sectors. This new research could provide important information about recreational use that has historically been absent from allocation discussions at the ASMFC.

While the study does not prescribe a specific allocation outcome, it demonstrates that recreational anglers are a major stakeholder group whose reliance on Atlantic menhaden in different regions deserves consideration as ASMFC evaluates whether the current allocation system still reflects use of the resource.

“This study reinforces the enormous economic value that recreational fishing brings to our coastal communities, but it also highlights something that is often overlooked: the importance of menhaden as the foundation of both healthy fisheries and healthy recreational and commercial fishing businesses,” said David Sikorski, executive director of CCA Maryland and CCA Virginia. “This key information should now help shape decisions that support the broader ecosystem, the anglers and watermen who depend on it, and the coastal economies that benefit from bait to fuel fishing opportunity.”

Banner image courtesy Sergio Diaz

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