Herring Management Meeting

[ThrowingTimber]

The issue was brought up quite a few times at the public hearing Monday night. My favorite takeaway quote from that was " The herring dont make it up to the bucky brooks, if they're on some skillet in Russia do they?"

[fish4me]

so glad something's actualy getting done

[JohnR]

I was going to go to the Buckeye Brook meeting Tuesday night but had a school commitee meeting instead (that my topic of interest did not even get addressed )

Anyone go to the Buckeye Brook meeting?

Thanks,

John

[flatts1]

Folks, please keep in mind that the meeting that Dave and I were referring to was regarding Sea Herring, not River Herring. Although there is also cause for concern that river herring are being caught in vast quantities by commercial fishermen targeting sea herring.

Mike

[ThrowingTimber]

I see both as being important to our fisheries.

Im quite sure that when they had the tuna tournaments off of scarborough beach, there werent any russian trawlers in the area, vaccuming up everything in sight that had fins n scales

[slapshot]

River herring are in the sea for 10 or 11 months out of the year. They are only in the river for a very short time. Juveniles don't return to spawn until they are 4 years old. So river herring are really sea herring when you think about it.

[Redliner]

Flatts, I would personally like to thank you for all of the hard work you have done on this important subject and others.

I would also like to add this small piece wriiten by Dr. Micheal Armstrong a biologist with Mass DMF

With all the uncertainty that can occur when the
herring are in the rivers, less is known about what
happens to them when they leave in July to spend the
winter in the ocean.
Some believe trawlers looking for sea herring and
mackerel are catching the river herring incidentally
as bycatch.
"We know that in the winter that, to some degree, the
runs stick together and mix it up with the sea
herring," Mr. Armstrong said. "They certainly don't
target them, but they can pick away at them. They are
landing 300,000 pounds at a whack. So say that the
Mattapoisett River run is 100,000 fish, which is about
50,000 pounds. In theory you could catch an entire run
of fish. It could wipe them out."
Source: http://www.southcoasttoday.com/daily...4/a01lo414.htm

I will do whatever I can to help our situation, let us know. Thanks Red