As a reminder, New Jersey anglers will be allowed one tautog as of August 1 (15-inch minimum size). The late summer allowance of a single blackfish offers an opportunity for jetty jocks to add another option for the table until the limits go up to five fish on November 16, though one of the primary reasons for allowing this single tautog limit is for spearfishermen.
According to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), while tautog are targeted by both commercial and recreational fisheries, over 90% of the total harvest comes from the recreational fishery, with a majority of landings occurring in state waters. ASMFC says most tautog are landed in the spring and fall, although some Mid-Atlantic anglers pursue tautog year-round.
“Historically, tautog were considered a ‘trash fish’ until the late 1970s when demand increased and a directed commercial fishery developed,” ASMFC notes in the management section of their website, explaining how landings quickly rose until peaking in 1987 at nearly 1.2 million pounds, “then rapidly began to decline as states implemented commercial regulations starting in the early 1990s.”
Recreational harvest occurs primarily in the fall from September– December, with green and Jonah crabs the bait of choice for many anglers. Over the past 40 years, coastwide recreational harvest has ranged from a high of over 20 million pounds in 1986 to a low of 3.4 million pounds in 2018. Harvest in 2022 was estimated at 8.8 million pounds.
At the state level, Massachusetts through New Jersey account for the vast majority of recreational harvest, with New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts anglers harvested the most tautog in 2022, although the highest harvesting states does vary year-to-year.
A discard mortality rate of 2.5% is assumed for the recreational fishery, resulting in an estimated 608,882 recreational dead discards or 23% of recreational removals.
Since the 2015 Benchmark Stock Assessment, stock status has been evaluated regionally due to differences in biology, fishery characteristics, and limited coastwide movement. Those regions include: Massachusetts–Rhode Island (MARI), Long Island Sound (LIS), New Jersey–New York Bight (NJ-NYB), and Delaware– Maryland–Virginia (DelMarVa).
In 2021, a Regional Stock Assessment Update was completed, using the same assessment methodology that was approved for management use as part of the 2016 Regional Benchmark Stock Assessment and subsequently used in the 2017 update. The 2021 Stock Assessment Update found improvements in most regions. Stocks within the Long Island Sound (LIS) and Delaware/ Maryland/Virginia (DelMarVa) regions are not overfished, with improved stock status for both regions from the last assessment in 2017. For LIS, New Jersey/New York Bight (NJ-NYB), and DelMarVa, fishing mortality also decreased with the stock not experiencing overfishing in any regions; also an improvement from the previous assessment.
For Delaware anglers, after a short 1-1/2-month pause from May 15 through the end of June, the tautog season is now open through December 31 with a 16-inch minimum size and four-fish bag limit. New York is presently closed, but will reopen from October 15 through December 22 in the NY Bight with a four-fish bag and 16-inch minimum size limit.
Find more Atlantic Coastal regulations from Maine to Maryland at TheFisherman.com.
