Mr. Wayne Grothe of the Nature Conservancy spoke to the Council on recent discussions among baymen’s groups from the East End about oyster toadfish, a type of fish that is an important predator on crabs in Long Island’s bays.  Toadfish are on the decline and clam populations on the East End and in the south shore bays are at very low levels.  With fewer toadfish to eat crabs, the crab population is burgeoning and this may interfere with current and future attempt to recover and restore clam stocks.  The baymen would like to see active management of toadfish catches to aid the clam restoration efforts.  They would recommend either a low possession limit on toadfish or perhaps a complete moratorium on fishing for and retaining this species.

Mr. John Mihale, a commercial fishermen, asked what evidence existed that linked the decline in toadfish abundance to either increased crab populations or depressed clam abundances.  The putative connection between lack of toadfish and lack of clams may be entirely specious.

Mr. Colvin commented that neither minimum size nor possession limits presently apply to oyster toadfish and the Department does not have regulatory authority over the species.   As a consequence the Department has the authority to adopt by regulation size limits, catch limits and open/close seasons.  Mr. Colvin expressed his support for the collaboration between different groups (baymen’s associations, The Nature Conservancy, and The Peconic Estuary Program) working together on this issue. 

Councilor Relyea noted that toadfish are still abundant in Oyster Bay, where they have never been fished commercially, and the bay also supports a very healthy population of hard clams (wild hard clams as well as hatchery-bred hard clams), along with oysters.   He suggested that this lent support to the theory that crab control through predation by toadfish might be a key to restoring shellfish abundances in other waters.  Mr. Relyea noted that spider crabs, however, another predator of small young shellfish, were presently a problem in Oyster Bay.

 

Page last modified Sunday, January 9, 2005 by George E. Carroll