On August 3, ECOs Kochanowski and Smith conducted a fishing compliance check on a vessel they observed during boat patrol on the Long Island Sound. The anglers on board claimed they only caught a few porgies and pointed to three large coolers. The Officers counted and measured the fish in the coolers and discovered the men had caught more than 400 fish with 275 of them under the minimum size of 11 inches for porgies caught from a vessel. ECOs also discovered an undersized fluke in one of the coolers. In addition to possessing the undersized and over-the-limit porgies (30 per person), Officers determined no one on board possessed a Marine Registry as required by law. The group of seven claimed ignorance about New York’s fishing regulations, stating that it was their “first time” fishing. Officers issued a total of 28 tickets for possession of undersized fish, possession of over-the-limit fish, and failing to possess a recreational marine registry. The undersized fish were donated to a local wildlife rehabilitator and Nassau County’s Tackapausha Preserve to feed eagles and other rehabilitating birds of prey.
Since the beginning of August, ECOs Kochanowski and Smith have seized more than 600 small porgies during multiple checks.
