I think they're going stupid with flounder. NC now has a two-week season (!) for recreational flounder in September, with a 15" size limit and four per day. They're trying to go to one per day next year.I say keep flounder the same and mandatory catch and release on reds....plenty of other (better) fish to eat.
I think they're going stupid with flounder. NC now has a two-week season (!) for recreational flounder in September, with a 15" size limit and four per day. They're trying to go to one per day next year.
You can still go out there with a ship and a big net and catch and sell them, though.
I don't think Georgia has much in the way of commercial fishing unlike NC
I see guys keeping multiple bull reds every year on the Jekyll pier. They’ll filet them right after catching and throw the meat in a cooler. What’s the point if regs if there’s no one to enforce them?
Reds are in decline in a bad way. Have been for several years. Small juveniles to say 16" fish are just not around like years past. Someone said keep red overslot? Why? They are not good to eat over that anyway.
Flounder need a larger lower limit. I would go 14". 12" is just to small and 15 is WAY to many. If they are filet size that is four filets off of one fish. Multiply that next time your cooler is full.
Trout is never mentioned but needs a slot also. 14 to 18 with one over slot. The bag limit however is WAY to liberal. 15 per person is way to many if three or four people are on board. I just saw this result last weekend. 72qt cooler filled with trout. There needs to be a boat limit. 30 fish is plenty even if 4 people are on board. Any trout over 18 is NOT a good eating fish. They are also the breeder females.
Do some better management for two years maybe three we would have the best fishery in a very long time. No one from DNR management will listen. Officers are spead thin to be on the water (on the coast) also. We see idiots and violations of the above numerous times a year.
Guys that fish for bull reds, tarpon, and other scale fish also need to be WAY more considerate of the fishery. Taking these fish out of the water or taking them out for a longer amount of time results in dead fish. Yet you cant get people to understand.
Guys that fish for sharks....... have at it. They are along with red snapper are killing our offshore reef fishery. You can hardly get anything past sharks. I dont mean one at the boat, most of the time its 10 or more. Fall in? Your screwed. Red Snapper, the idiots at NOAA gave us two days again. Reds can be caught with sight of shore. When it used to be black bass you caught now its reds.
Until they listen it will never change. When they do it will be too late.[/QUOTE
Jman
You nailed it!
However, I'm seeing more rat reds and slot reds this year than I've seen in the past 4 years. If people threw more back the red fishery would sustain.