After striped bass poachers busted, New York alters fishing rules

After a series of busts of poachers fishing for out-of-season striped bass in New York, the state's Department of Environmental Conservation has changed fishing regulations for the species.

Environmental Conservation police officers and investigators are part of the agency's Division of Law Enforcement. Striped bass are considered an "ecologically, recreationally, and economically important species," according to the department's website .

Between April 6 and 10, multiple officers from the department witnessed people on Long Island catching and keeping the fish, according to a news release , even though the season for striped bass did not begin until April 15. In one find, a K-9 officer helped police find over a dozen fish buried in the sand and hidden behind logs and brush piles. In another bust, three men were found to be hiding striped bass inside traffic cones on the Bayville Bridge on Long Island.

Seventeen people were ticketed for taking striped bass out-of-season. Six people were also ticketed for failing to carry marine licenses.

Under new regulations established after the April busts, fish caught in the Hudson River and its tributaries north of the George Washington Bridge can only be kept if they are between 23 and 28 inches long. Those seeking to catch striped bass must be signed up for the Recreational Marine Fishing Registry, and only one such fish can be caught per day. In these waters, striped bass can only be fished between April 1 and Nov. 30.

The regulations that affect Long Island have not changed. Striped bass found in marine waters can only be kept if they are between 28 and 31 inches long. Those looking to fish must again be signed up for the registry, and they can only catch one striped bass per day. The fish can only be caught between April 15 and Dec. 15.

The size limits exist to protect female fish and ensure that the species can maintain a population, the department says online.

The state also maintains monitoring programs for the species. One program focuses on catching the fish, recording information about them, and tagging them before returning the fish to the river. Another asks fishers catching striped bass to share their fishing habits so that researchers can analyze the data.

The striped bass —also known as rockfish—is the official fish of the State of Maryland.