I dunno, Habs
This year has been off the mark for me and I can't say I haven't been putting in my time or changing spots and tactics a lot to try to get a handle on it....
The scuttlebutt around here says it's off for bass - whether that means a decline or not is a little tough to say. Climatologically, it was a tough year, bait ran late, unfavorable winds, etc, etc, etc -
Lots of blooofish and fewer bass anyway - and if it really does run true that one succeeds while the other is in decline....it makes ya think. I can't remember seeing both species in great abundance at the same time, IMHO - beats the poop outta me, for now I guess I gotta say I don't think so. But there's other factors too - like a higher recreational catch that's gotta impact the biomass. Yeah, I know, I don't wanna troll anyone on the Recs vs. Comms issue - but it's something to consider.
Who knows - if striped bass are on the wane maybe you'll need a license to be allowed to carry a Hab's on your person
Seriously, I think there's a lot of factors that are keeping them out of their usual haunts SO FAR....but forage availability has to be first and foremost.
The real culprits may ultimately be the reduction boats targeting pogies - and NO, I don't mean little guys like Ark, I mean Omega Protein. Check it out on Google sometime.
Screw the whales - save the pogies!