ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) – Here is a round-up of the latest outdoor news from across southwest and central Virginia.
Striped Bass Regulation Extension
A harvest size limit imposed by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has been extended for another year. The regulation, which prohibited the harvest of striped bass 31 inches and longer from the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean was supposed to expire in October. Fisheries managers determined that the extension is necessary to protect prime breeding stocks in an effort to restore striped bass numbers and to head off a possible striped bass stock collapse.
The Virginia portion of the Chesapeake Bay is the site of a world-class trophy striped bass fishery, especially in the winter months.
Black Bear Comments
You are invited to weigh in on the management of black bears in Virginia. The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources is now accepting public comments on its latest black bear management plan. The plan can be reviewed and comments can be made here.
Ginseng Permits
Foraging for ginseng is popular in the fall in the Appalachian region. The Monongahela National Forest is one place ginseng can be harvested legally. People foraging for ginseng need a National Forest permit. Those can be purchased at ranger stations in the Monongahela National Forest starting August 28. They cost $20. All state and local laws must also be followed while foraging on federal land.
No ginseng can be legally harvested from public lands in Virginia.
New State Record!
A new Virginia state record saugeye has been certified by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. The 25 1/4-inch-long, six-pound-eight ounce fish was caught from Lake Gaston by Brittany Watkins of North Carolina.
She was fishing a crankbait in late May when the fish hit.
Saugeye are being stocked into a number of Virginia lakes to expand fishing opportunities. They are a hybrid cross between a sauger and a walleye. Saugeye tend to thrive in warmer, more turbid water where walleye do not fare as well.
