squeteague - what's your opinion on this fishery?

[SeaWolf]

well, a recent thread noted about a couple squeteague caught in rhody waters recently. i have read about a few caught here and there over the last month or so as well. this is a far cry from what this fishery was only a few years ago and what it once was years ago. i have watched my catch of this beautiful fish fall right off to zero the last 2 years, even though i rarely target them, i do have an occasional week or 2 of them being around. i kept my first squet a few years back to try out for table fare. after i made my first cut, i knew i made a mistake as the flesh was very similar to bluefish. after cooking it up, i confirmed my regret of killing that fish. i would not kill any more for that reason, but mainly due to the lack of these fish being around and the severe overfishing/by-catch of this fishery.

capt. jim white of white ghost charters out of narragansett had a very interesting write up in this month's risaa's monthly newsetter. jim seems to be one that is constantly fighting for this fishery. he is one that specifically targets these fish and has watched theh numbers fall right off the chart to dangerous levels. we have read over and over how mid-atlantic shrimp boats are allowed juvenile squets as by-catch. should these rules be changed?

i for one think this is a beautiful fish and it is as hard or harder at times to catch than striped bass. everyone that i catch from now on goes back into the drink.

now, my question, what do you do if you catch a squeteague? release it? keep it? do you think the fishery should be closed before it ends up like striped bass once were?

[ProfessorM]

I have been fishing for 25 plus years and have never caught one or even seen one in person. I would release it I'd rather eat dirt than bluefish. Paul

[CANAL RAT]

i think it been so over fished we need to ban any harvest for weakfish that go's for pogys too

[JohnR]

Have not seen any in the past couple years. Jim White fishes where they are too and if he isn't seeing them....

Defintely need to be better protected up here. But Mass and RI waters are their most nothern trravel, right?

[fishweewee]

They are beautiful fish, fun to fight, and are one of the better eating non-bottom critters you can catch.

They are more prevalent in areas south of New England (i.e., NY, NJ, etc).

I love dem snaggle-toothed bastages.

[Flaptail]

The Squeteague is one of the most beautiful fish that swim in New England waters. Back in the 70's, when I lived in Worcester MA. we would await the bloom of the Lilacs in my mother's backyard. When they would bloom we would start driving down Rt. 146 to Warwick and Greenwich to fish for them. We fished at Sandy Point at the entrance to Greenwich Bay. We would take 20 fish a night on good tides. It was an hour each way to and from Sandy Point. My Uncle owned a house on Prudence Island at Homestead just up the street form the Prudence Island Ferry dock. The house had a widows walk and I would launch my skiff at Bristol and go 'round Hog Island and across the ship channel and stay with him for a week in August every year. We could see the giant schools of Menhaden in the ship channel especially by the Hog Island and Mount Hope bridge. We would drift through the schools snagging pogies and letting them dive down through the tremendous schools. You could actually hear the pogies bumping the bottom of the skiff they were packed so tight. Most schools were an acre or so across and fish would be busting on the edges constantly. Big Bluefish and bass but especially big Squeteague, I mean big. twelve,thirteen and a couple 14 pounders we would catch. You knew when you missed one by the two parralel cuts down the side of the pogies body from those two big teeth they have up top. Anyway the pogie boats would show up. A puke color green and in three days they would be low in the water and the pogies were gone. See you next year. On Cape here when I moved there was still some good fishing over in Quissett and off of the Falmouth south shore at Menahaunt and Maravista and West Falmouth harbor. We even cuaght some drifting pogies in Pleasant Bay.Last one I caught was in 89' drifting eels one night on the west tide at the mud flats at the canal. Eel grass beds are essential for Squeteague habitat as is bait. They love peanut bunker and adult pogies. They are cyclical but that doesn't explain the radical drop you have now. Something must be done and anyone who has ever fished for them or loves fishing in 'Ganett Bay should be up in arms. Run-off from septic systems kills the eelgrass and the chain goes on from there. Too bad, it's a great fish that needs a chance to comeback. And your right they suck to eat so making them a gamefish would be a good thing for there future.

[fishweewee]

Originally Posted by Flaptail

Eel grass beds are essential for Squeteague habitat as is bait.

Most definitely true. That's the first thing I look for when looking for weakfish habitat. If you aren't cleaning eel grass off your lures every few casts ...

Flap, I disagree with you on one thing.

Weakfish are DELICIOUS. Better than striper.

[chris L]

they are tasty , a taste some hate but others love . they dont refrigerate well and become mushy after 2 days .

In my opinion they should be managed better . not too many commercials fish for them here in the north but the southern fish get hit the hardest . We have a 10 fish limit and in my eyes its too many . If they refrigerated better then that would be fine . since they spoil quicker than most take what you need for the night and leave the rest . I have caught 12# weaks here in Ct ( 3 years ago ) on a number of occations and 1 maybe 2 would feed a family no problem .

[Nebe]

heres my opinion-

I thought they were extinct???

[spence]

Only Squet I ever saw was in a fish box at Sakonnet Seafood

-spence

[Pete_G]

I've caught 5, all were incidental catches. 2 from the boat that I spotted on the depth finder were over 30ft deep in the middle of a school of stripers. The other 3 were all near or after blue fish blitzes from shore.

I've fished several of the "known" weakie spots around the area pretty hard but I've never actually caught one when I was trying to.

[striprman]

Back in the 70's and 80's we caught many nice ones up to 14 pounds in the........river. They may still come there and with the return of pogy schools, one can hope.

I really enjoyed catching them

They must be kept on ice as the meat turns soft, mushy real quick. The fish in the picture were pulled from an ice filled cooler, immediately filleted and the fillets bagged and put back on ice. The meat is very good, kind of like cod or black sea bass.
I think I would be more conservative if I catch any more, might keep one or 2. Those were the days of "100 pounds + one fish", no commercial fishing licence needed to sell fish.

[Finlander]

We had one 7-1/2 lbs while fluke fishing two years ago in 30 feet of water near the pink house. Greating looking fish, tasted good as well, the family keeps asking me to catch another one?

[MakoMike]

We used to be able to fill an igloo 168 in a night of fishing off the north bar at BI, sometimes in one tide! We are the the northern extreme of their range, so we only see the bigger "tiderunner" fish. They are heavily fished commercially from southern NJ to NC. The ASMFC is supposed to be doing something about it. They are definately cyclical in nature, on an approx 10year cycle. But the current poor showing is far below what it should be at this point in their cycle. Lots of small ones are bring snared in Gillnets in MD and DE,and, so far, teh ASMFC has done nothing to stop it. The abundance or lack of pogies has nothing to do with thier abundance, In fact one of their favorite foods is grass shrimp. Oh, and I agree, they are delicious, how anyone can compare them to bluefish is beyond me. Their meat is white!

[slow eddie]

there was a 4 day blitz 4 or 5 yrs ago in pt. jude pond and vicinity, from what i,ve learned since last nite. this happened just before the trap,s went up in the spring. they do taste delicious, not unlike tautog.

put them back alive slow eddie

[mooncusser]

Having fished in NJ many times, i have to say it isn't only the commercials making a dent in the weakfish population. Those guys keep every weekie they are allowed to keep,which is some rediculously high number like 10 per man. That bag limit should be cut at least in half.

I haven't caught one on Cape Cod in about 3 years but as youngster they were quite plentiful inside some of the big harbors on CC Bay.

[eelman]

What fishery?? There is none.............

[Homerun04]

Most elusive of the big three.....never had one, but would love it.

[Bill L]

What fishery?? There is none.............

My thought exactly. Never got one, but have heard the tales of filling the boat with them in the 70's. The current bag limits are insane

[Clammer]

Those were the days //

on the bottom with bait
Drift a float & bait
3/8 bucktail
tube & worm
Pogies
herring
accident

it was not uncommon when fishing a pod of fish under 5LBs to have a two man team /catch 100 a day // as they got larger they became more scarce/ finally catching the XL pretty much by mistake / the largest I ever caught ,was over 14#,s