On Saturday, the Alabama Conservation Advisory Board approved changes to size and creel limits on spotted seatrout (speckled trout) and flounder. Previously the daily bag limit for trout was 10 with a minimum size of 14 inches. Under the new regulations, the daily bag limit has been reduced to 6 fish with a slot limit of 15 to 22 inches, with an allowance of one fish over the maximum slot limit.
The commercial daily limit was also reduced to 30 fish.
The changes were recommended to mitigate a downturn in abundance. The Alabama Marine Resources Division held a series of public meetings to explain the problem, offer solutions, and get angler feedback. According to Alabama Marine Resources Division Director Scott Bannon, the number of people in support of a reduced bag limit was “surprising”.
While the decline of speckled trout was marginal, the decline of flounder has been of great concern. The estimated harvest has declined 60 percent over a 15 year span from 2002 to 2017.
Meanwhile, Louisiana faces it’s own speckled trout dilemna.
According to a preliminary survey earlier this year, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries acknowledged that speckled trout might be overfished. There was an unconfirmed report that the spawning potential ratio was now at 6 percent, well below the conservation standard of 18 percent.
This was not the first time that the SPR has been below the standard. In fact, it’s been below the standard on several occasions since established in 1997. But if true, this is more than twice as low as it’s ever been.
Some explanation about the spawning potential ratio and the conservation standard.
Spawning Potential Ratio (SPR) is the amount of lifetime eggs produced by the average mature fish, under fishing pressure, divided by the amount of lifetime eggs produced by an average mature fish when there is no fishing.
For example, supposed a million juvenile seatrout exist in an estuary, and 400,000 reach spawning maturity – with NO fishing pressure. The rest die of natural causes (predation, weather, etc). Those same 400,000 fish will continue to dwindle down over time, but the cumulative number of eggs they produce will assure another generation of a million juvenile fish (probably more).
Now let’s introduce fishing pressure. Of those million juvenile trout, only 100,000 may reach spawning maturity. Their numbers will dwindle down at a much higher rate over time because of fishing. However, the cumulative number of eggs they produce will still assure another generation of a million juvenile fish. In this case, the SPR is 25 percent, higher than the 18 percent conservation standard.
But if the fishing pressure reduces the number of fish reaching spawning maturity to 50,000, then we have an SPR less than the conservation standard. Only bad things happen from here on.
Overfishing is just one reason the conservation standard is not reached. If environmental conditions change, then the basis for the conservation standard also changes. In our example, if the number of mature trout in an unfished situation declines to 200,000, then the conservation standard needs to be raised to 36 percent in order to produce a million juvenile trout.
Louisiana is one of the very few states that manages it’s freshwater and saltwater fisheries on “maximum sustainable yield” (MSY). That means limits are set so that anglers can kill as many fish up to the spawning potential ratio. As long as the SPR is above or at the conservation standard, there are enough spawners to fill the carrying capacity of the lake or estuary.
Most states manage for “optimal sustainable yield” (OSY). This is usually 10 to 15 percent above the conservation standard. That gives a wide safety margin in case fishing pressure exceeds historical averages.
Another advantage of OSY is genetic diversity. Studies over the last decade have shown that recruitment of genetic diversity in fishes has a profound impact on the species health, reproduction, growth and other physiological factors. With OSY, we’re leaving enough fish to spawn that there is a greater chance of a favorable genetic trait getting passed on.
In a recent article on the Louisiana Sportsman website, LDWF marine biologist Harry Blanchet stated that the trout assessment needs more time. A major stock assessment is underway, and once data is finalized, Blanchet said an internal review will follow. After that, the report will be shared with other state agencies for a peer review. No timeline was given.
As Conservation Director for the FFI Gulf Coast Council, I’m anxiously awaiting for the report to be made public. If the resource is indeed overfished – and I believe it is – then I plan to meet with other conservation groups and discuss possible regulation changes. I will then address these regulation proposals to the GCC board.
I was recently asked what regulations might we see. The chart on the left pretty much tells the story. If we were to increase minimum size to 14 inches, with a maximum size of 22 inches, with one or two fish over the maximum size, we should have more than enough total spawns to exceed the conservation standard. While reducing the daily limit would have a marginal effect, I’d be strongly supportive of a reduction as well.
