Menhaden presentation rev

• 1. Reel Therapy Fly Fishing Light tackle Charters Capt. Paul Eidman [email_address] 732 922 4077

2. 3. 4. ATLANTIC MENHADEN The Most Important Fish in the Sea 5. 6. 7. OVERFISHING

• Definition:Overfishing is, simply put, when so many fish are caught that the population can't reproduce enough to replace them. Overfishing can lead to depletion of or extinction of fish populations. The Sustainable Fisheries Act of 1996 defines overfishing as "as a rate or level of fishing mortality that jeopardizes a fishery's capacity to produce maximum sustainable yield (MSY) on a continuing basis."

8. This past spring the ASMFCstatedthatoverfishing is occurring in theCommercial Menhaden fishery.The study team determined that overfishing has been occurring32 out of the last 52 years of this fishery! This is the first time in the History of the Menhaden fishery that there will be an attempt to end overfishing and puta hard cap on the amountof fish being taken out of our waters. The ASMFC is voting in November on this and as recreational anglers, we need to let them know how important thisissue is to us. 9. Older, larger fish are more valuable and more sought after by both sectors. These same fish are more important to the ecosystem because they produce more eggs as they age and mature. 10. Problem: the latest stock assessment shows that overfishing is occurring on a coastwide basis and has been for 32 of the last 54 years! The stock is at an all time low. This is no longer a localized problem, this is a coastwide crisis. 11. TWO COMMERCIAL SECTORS: BAIT FISHERY (20%) REDUCTION FISHERY (80%) 12. Lobster First 13. 14. Industrialization of our local fleets Purse vessel to left carries 45,000 fish Carrier Vessel to right carries 350,000 fish 15. With dramatic declines in the Atlantic herring fishery, the demand for fresh large adult menhaden is only going to get worse. The New England lobster industry is counting on menhaden for bait. Dozens of trucks leave New Jersey ports loaded with thousands of Bunkers destined for lobster traps each day. 16. Reduction Fishing

• 80% of the Menhaden taken out of Mid Atlantic waters are ground up and reduced into

• fish meal and fish oil

17. With the aid of a spotter plane, fishing is easy. Entire schools are decimated in just one set. 18. Omegas Fleet: 47 vessels and 34 aircraft 19. 20. Every Year more than 100,000 metric tons of fish are scooped up along the East Coast. This is more than 200 million pounds of Menhaden. In recent years, 20% of the landings come from "bait" boats. The vast majority of the rest of the fish are caught for reduction purposes by one company based out of Reedville Virginia 21. Any idea how GREAT our fishing would be if there was no Omega to grind the Bunker up? 22. It takes 26 pounds of Fish meal to grow 1 pound of Bluefin Tuna 23. 24. 25. In the Chesapeake Bay, 70% percent of the striped bass have mycobacteriosis, (aka MYCO) with less menhaden in the bay, thousands of sick bass arestruggling to survive 26. We all have concerns about the current health of the striped bass stocks. Juvenile recruitment has been low for a few years. With the current rate of decline of Menhaden stocks, the future does not look good at all for our favorite game fish. 27. Without plentiful adult and juvenile Menhaden to feed on, the future of Striped Bass is uncertain 28. Anybody remember Weakfish? 29. The future of our gamefish reduced toa bag of meal 30. 61% of Americas fish come from Asian Fish Farms 31. American Menhaden Fish meal is fed to the fish, and the fish are then sold back to us 32. From Tilapia to Tuna, many of the fish we eat are raised on Menhaden fish meal and oils 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. Pigs get to market faster on Menhaden based protien diets 40. Yes, even in the milk we give to our children and in the steaks that we eat 41. Take a good look at your pet food label, chances are it contains fish meal or fish oil from Menhaden 42. 43. Costcos KIRKLAND Signature brand Dog & Cat foodsare made by Diamond Pet Foods a major client ofOMEGA PROTIEN Just last year, Costco re evaluated all of its seafood productsso that they were all sourced from sustainable fisheries. Yet, every bag they sell contains Menhaden Fish meal! 44. The ASMFC has a chance to end over fishing of menhaden. Its up to US, the Recreational fishing community to let them know that we are united together anddeeply concerned about the current overfishing situation. We NEED them to change the way Menhaden are being commercially eliminatedfrom the ecosystem and put a LIMIT on the total annual catch. 45. 46. Menhaden Coalition Members

• American Sport fishing Association

• Bass Pro Shops

• Chesapeake Bay Foundation

• Coastal Conservation Association Maryland

• Coastal Conservation Association Virginia

• Falmouth Flats Fly Fishers

• Fly Fishers of Virginia

• Friends of the Rappahannock

• Great Bridge Fishermans Association

• Green Top Sporting Goods

• Greenpeace

• James River Association

• Jersey Coast Anglers Association

• Lateral Line Fishing Clothing

• Maryland Saltwater Sport fishermens Association

• Massachusetts Striped Bass Association

• National Coalition for Marine Conservation

• Peninsula Saltwater Sport Fishing Association

• Pennsylvania Striped Bass Association

• Plum Island Surfcasters (MA)

• Portsmouth Anglers Club

• Public Trust Project

• Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers' Association

• Save the Bunker

• Striped Bass Conservation Coalition

• Stripers Forever

• Tidewater Anglers Club

• Virginia Anglers Club

• Virginia Beach Anglers Club

• Virginia Coastal Fly Anglers

• Virginia Conservation Network

• Virginia Fly Fishing Festival

47. 48. Reel Therapy Fly Fishing Light tackle Charters Capt. Paul Eidman [email_address] 732 922 4077 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. Menhaden fish oil on your Pharmacy shelf 54.