The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) has reported that the striped bass population remains overfished, based on findings from its 2024 Striped Bass Stock Assessment update. Released yesterday, the data underscores the continued challenges faced by this iconic species and signals that additional actions will be necessary to support recovery efforts by the 2029 goal initially set by fisheries managers.
While conservation measures enacted since 2019 have curbed fishing-related mortality, the assessment shows that striped bass numbers are still below sustainable levels. Consequently, the ASMFC Board has scheduled a December meeting to explore further conservation measures for the 2025 fishing season, giving technical staff time to develop additional limits and other proposals that might improve survival rates across both commercial and recreational fisheries.
A primary concern highlighted in the report is the persistently low recruitment, or survival, of young striped bass needed to sustain future generations. In Maryland and Virginia, the 2024 juvenile index survey, which gauges survival rates of newly spawned fish, revealed that young striped bass survival remains far below long-term averages. This marks the sixth consecutive year of concerning results, signaling ongoing difficulties in rebuilding the population.
In January, ASMFC imposed stricter size and harvest limits for striped bass to counteract population declines, while several states introduced additional local restrictions to alleviate pressure on the species. For instance, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recently prohibited fishing for striped bass during a two-week window in July to protect the fish during high-temperature periods when they are most vulnerable. Maryland also suspended its trophy fishing season, which typically targets larger striped bass.
Despite these efforts, the ASMFC Board acknowledges that further reductions in fishing mortality are needed to reach sustainable levels. This week, the Board determined that an additional 15 percent cut in fishing-related deaths would provide a 50 percent chance of meeting the 2029 recovery target. However, no specific options were available during the recent meeting, prompting the decision to reconvene in December. By then, the Striped Bass Technical Committee will have developed various approaches to achieve this goal, which will inform any new limits or regulations for the 2025 fishing season.
Environmental organizations, including the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, have voiced support for ASMFC’s continued focus on striped bass recovery. Allison Colden, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s Maryland Executive Director, emphasized the urgency of safeguarding the remaining strong year classes spawned in 2015 and 2018. “The current trajectory of our striped bass population is alarming,” Colden said. “Protecting the remaining strong year classes…must be a top priority for any management actions considered by the Board in December. We cannot delay efforts to protect these important spawning fish.”
Meanwhile, Chris Moore, the Foundation’s Virginia Executive Director, pointed to broader environmental challenges complicating the recovery of the striped bass population. “It is obvious that conditions have changed and striped bass will not have the same recovery they had in the 1980s,” Moore noted, citing warmer water temperatures, habitat loss, and invasive species as contributing factors to the species’ struggle. He called on ASMFC to consider these dynamics as they review data from 2024 and beyond.
The December meeting is expected to provide a platform for the ASMFC Board to assess the findings of the Striped Bass Technical Committee, consider possible conservation measures, and set new management strategies in motion for the 2025 fishing season. Conservationists and fisheries experts alike are hopeful that decisive action can help stabilize striped bass numbers in the coming years, ensuring this Chesapeake Bay species continues to thrive for future generations.\
