Angler Perspectives on Striped Bass

Fishy Fridays

Weekly spotlight on fisheries science journal articles

 

Jeff Kopaska
AFS Executive Director
jkopaska@fisheries.org

Today’s paper is an assessment of angler attitudes regarding Striped Bass populations, angling tactics, and regulations.  It’s the culmination of a substantial online survey of anglers (N=1,651), and provides a wide variety of angler perspectives.  I found it interesting that some angler opinions aligned well with fisheries survey data (ebbs and flows of fish populations), while in other areas there is a substantial gap between scientific knowledge and angler understanding.  Striped bass discussions are very prevalent in the eastern US, as this is one of the most fished for and preferred fish in that area.  I’m very pleased that AFS is adding scientific perspective to this important topic, and I hope you enjoy the article.

Understanding beliefs, perceptions, and attitudes of anglers in the Striped Bass recreational fishery along the Atlantic coast of the United States