Stringers of specks in the surf were once the rule, but are now the exception
Catch Cormier, GCC Conservation Director
Last week, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries dropped a bombshell. They reported that a “preliminary, but incomplete” draft indicated that the state’s speckled trout stock was overfished and that landings had decreased to their lowest levels in recent years.
The report went on to say that the preliminary findings are “… going through a re-evaluation and finalization process that will take several months.”. The press release then finished with the following:
“LDWF will bring the finalized stock assessment that will include potential management options to improve the status of the stock at a future commission meeting. The analysis will include several possible recommendations, including, but not limited to, bag and size limit modifications. The public will also have ample opportunity to comment during commission meetings and public hearings prior to any management changes being finalized by the Commission.”
Public reaction has been swift and hard. But it shouldn’t be. As Joe Macaluso put it so aptly in the title of his article in yesterday’s Advocate newspaper Outdoors Section, “Trout report surprising, not stunning”.
Since 2012, there have been reports that speckled trout were in trouble. In each case, LDWF reassured anglers that the stock was not being overfished. But then again, we’ve been walking a tightrope for a long time.
To understand the problem means understanding (1) spawning potential ratio (SPR) and (2) sustainable yield.
Spawning potential ratio is the basis for almost all fisheries management plans. SPR is the number of eggs produced by mature fish (recruits) over their lifetime, under fishing pressure, divided by the number of eggs that could be produced if there was no fishing.
Another way to look at SPR is this: you need a certain percentage of those eggs to reach maturity and become spawners and produce enough eggs themselves to sustain a population indefinitely. In determining that ratio, biologists factor in mortality from predation, environmental stress, and other conditions.
The minimum spawning potential ratio for speckled trout in Louisiana is around 18 percent.
Sustainable Yield. Managing a fisheries requires determining at what scale do you allow fishing mortality. Maximum sustainable yield (MSY) sets the size and creel limits such that the annual harvest up to the level of the SPR. Louisiana manages their fisheries -fresh and salt – on MSY.
Optimum sustainable yield (OSY) sets the annual harvest at a more conservative limit so that it remains well above the SPR. The side benefits are more quality fish and more genetic diversity of the offspring. Most states manage their fisheries on OSY.
What does this mean?
I’ll use the example of two working men who each make $3,000 a month. Mr. A manages his finances on MSY, he spends up to $3,000 a month. Mr. B manages his finances on OSY, he only spends $2,000 a month.
As you can imagine, if unexpected expenses come up, Mr. A is in trouble. Mr. B is better able to weather through any financial storms.
Like Mr. A, LDWF has been living on the edge, managing speckled trout on the basis of maximum sustainable yield (18 percent). While no number has been given for the current recruitment, it was mentioned in one online forum as being in single digits.
So who is to blame? We are! We’ve committed two great sins.
After the gill net ban, we the anglers of Louisiana were living it good. Thousands of square miles of lush beautiful, fish-filled marsh. Speckled trout were everywhere and easy to catch.
Just 15 years ago, every time I went down to Grand Isle and fished Lake Laurier, I caught a half-limit or more of nice speckled trout on fly rod. The surrounding marshes went on for miles and were filled with small ponds, trenaisses and loads of redfish, drum and sheepshead. It was nothing to catch a dozen or more reds on the fly.
All that beautiful marsh is gone. The lake’s endless oyster beds all silted in. Laurier is just one of many, many longtime fishing locations that has been totally decimated by coastal erosion. Storms, subsidence, saltwater intrusion and levees have taken their toll.
Yes, we were aware of coastal erosion. We talked about it a lot. But when it came to solutions, we remain divided. We procrastinated. It was important, but sadly, not THAT important. Here’s the kicker – it has hardly hurt the redfish population. That’s because it’s the only fisheries we manage close to Optimum Sustainable Yield. The safety net has worked for reds.
And that, my friends, is the second sin. We’ve been silent on speckled trout management, allowing the resource to be managed on the margins. It was more important for us to stock our freezers with loads of filets from 12-1/2 inch trout than it was to insure the longevity of the fishery.
In the Advocate article, LDWF marine biologist Harry Blanchet says the Department plans to finalize their data, do an internal analysis, then send it to peer agencies from Texas, Alabama, Mississippi for review. Once reviewed, the Department could propose changes to speckled trout regulations. Those proposals would go before public comment before being presented to the Commission for implementation.
Hopefully the proposals will provide a long-term solution – and a safety net. We will have a chance to speak up and make our voices heard in favor of conservation of this great fishery. Unless of course, we become our own worst enemy – again.
