According to the
Maryland DNR, the 2016 young-of-the-year striped bass index, a measure of bass spawning success in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay is 2.2, well below the 63-year average of 11.7. The index represents the average number of less than one-year-old fish caught in 132 samples during the Juvenile Striped Bass Survey.
While this year’s striped bass index is disappointing, it is not a concern unless we observe poor spawning in multiple, consecutive years,” said Fishing and Boating Services Director David Blazer. “Very successful spawning years, as recently as 2011 and 2015, should more than compensate for this below-average year-class. Nonetheless, the department and our partners will continue to work to maintain a sustainable fishery for our commercial watermen and recreational anglers.”
Striped bass show great variability in spawning success from year-to-year. Occasional large year-classes are produced but are normally interspersed with average or below-average year-classes. One-year-old striped bass from last year’s very successful year-class were found in abundance. These fish will support local fisheries in the future and later join the coastal spawning population."
The results indicate that most fish that return to freshwater to spawn, including striped bass, "experienced similarly low reproduction in 2016, potentially indicating that environmental factors such as dry weather and low river flows during the spring season may have contributed to the poor results."
