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Latest Reports

**Ecological Depletion Of Atlantic Menhaden
& Bay Anchovy
Effects On Atlantic Coast Striped Bass**
2010
First Year-Round Ecological Study of
Large Chesapeake Bay Striped Bass

Ecological depletion of ages 0&1 menhaden and bay anchovy in the upper Chesapeake Bay has lowered the carrying capacity for striped bass less than 24". Ecological depletion of adult menhaden and adult bay anchovy in mid-Atlantic waters has disrupted the coastal biotic community and lowered the carrying capacity for striped bass greater than 28".
A menhaden minimum size of 10" would benefit predators nutritionally dependent on menhaden by augmenting the severely depleted prey base in Chesapeake Bay and mid-Atlantic coastal waters.

... read more


PowerPoint Presentation.
Presented at the N.O.A.A. Chesapeake Bay Office
2009 Fisheries Science Symposium
Held at Patuxent National Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center, Laurel, MD
(presentation updated April 2009)

Featured Reports

Effects of Menhaden Depletion on Atlantic Coast Striped Bass
First year-round diet study of large Chesapeake Bay striped bass

... read more

Ecological Depletion Of Atlantic Menhaden
Effects On Atlantic Coast Striped Bass.

Information provided to the sub-committee on Fisheries, Wildlife & Oceans (Congressional hearing in Washington, D.C.) May 8, 2008. Legislative hearing on H.R.3840 - The Atlantic Menhaden Conservation Act; and H.R.3841 - To prohibit the commercial harvesting of Atlantic menhaden for reduction purposes in the coastal waters and the exclusive economic zone.

... read more


Atlantic Menhaden Decline Caused by Recruitment Overfishing.

Presented August 16, 2006 to the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board, ASMFC.

... read more

Chesapeake Bay Forage Base Collapse & Interactions of Striped Bass & Atlantic Menhaden.

Report prepared by the Chesapeake Bay Ecological Foundation, Inc. at the request of the Secretary of the Maryland Department Of Natural Resources submitted to the Maryland Department Of Natural Resources

... read more

A bioenergetics approach for determining the effects of increased Striped bass population on it's prey and health in the Chesapeake Bay.

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of the increased striped bass population on its prey, develop a historical profile of the feeding habits and predatory demand of striped bass, and identify the influence of mycobateria on the over all health of the striped bass population in the Chesapeake Bay.

... read more


Related Research


Prey Depletion Caused by Overfishing and the Decline of Marine Megafauna in the Eastern Ionian Sea Coastal Waters (Central Mediterranean)

"Fishery management aimed to reduce the heavy exploitation of epipelagic fish stocks would be more likely to produce benefits. In particular, the stocks of European anchovy and European pilchard, representing important prey for common dolphins, tuna and swordfish, are being heavily exploited by purse seiners, and catches are known to have declined dramatically in the study area in recent years."

... read more

Press Release

Depletion of Food Supply Disrupts Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem.

"...Now, large numbers of these migratory female striped bass over winter in the upper Bay and compete for food with resident male striped bass. This unprecedented competition for menhaden, blue crab, and white perch further disrupts the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. State and regional management agencies, including ASMFC, should give first priority to the revision of existing fishery management plans to include ecosystem-based approaches adopted by the Chesapeake Bay Program."

... read more


*New Research*

Influence of nutritional state on the progression and severity of mycobacteriosis in striped bass(Morone saxatilis)
First study to demonstrate the interaction of diet and mycobacteriosis in fish.

"Challenge studies with Mycobacterium marinum clearly demonstrate that a poor diet affects the progression and severity of mycobacteriosis in striped bass Morone saxatilis. Effective multi- species management of predator and prey offers one of the few potential intervention strategies for addressing this disease in a relatively short time frame."

... read more

Interactions between adult migratory striped bass (Morone saxatilis) and their prey during winter off the Virginia and North Carolina Atlantic coast from 1994 through 2007
First published study on the diet of large striped bass, during their ocean residency in winter. (Recreational catches represented approx. 75% of striped bass in the study)

"This study outlines the importance of clupeoid fishes to striped bass winter production and also shows that predation may be exerting pressure on one of their dominant prey, the Atlantic menhaden. In the recreational catches,...biomass of Atlantic menhaden remained consistent (>70%) from 2005 through 2007 and was highest in 2007 (94.5%)."

... read more

Finfish-Waterbird Trophic Interactions In Tidal Freshwater Tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay

"Declining abundance of Atlantic Menhaden in higher salinity regions (e.g., Bay mainstem) may be negatively affecting Osprey population stability in high salinity areas of the Chesapeake Bay at the same time that comparatively abundant fish prey resources in oligohaline and tidal freshwater river habitats may be supporting expansion and local population growth in Ospreys."

... read more

Colonial-nesting Seabirds in the Chesapeake Bay Region:
Where Have We Been and Where Are We Going?

During 2003, over 72,000 pairs of seabirds of 13 species bred within the Chesapeake Bay and the Maryland-Virginia coastal region. Significant population declines have occurred in Black Skimmers, Gull- billed Terns, Royal Terns and Common Terns. "Since 1993, populations of ten of thirteen seabird species have declined, many significantly."

... read more


Atlantic menhaden



Atlantic menhaden are the most important and one of the most abundant fish species in the Chesapeake Bay.The Bay is the largest nursery area for juvenile menhaden along the Atlantic coast; menhaden utilize almost the entire Bay and it's tributaries.

... read more

To view current data on Atlantic menhaden click on link below.

Compiled Data


Exploitation Of Atlantic Menhaden Threatens Restoration Of Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay Program has spent millions to help clean-up the Chesapeake Bay, and is the largest estuary restoration project ever undertaken by the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency plays a major role in directing this effort, which includes restoring the Bay's living resources. Ironically, another federal agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is providing financial assistance through a loan program totaling $20.6 million to Omega Protein Corp., who operates a fish processing plant located in Reedville VA, that annually harvests approximately 250 million pounds of Atlantic menhaden from the Chesapeake Bay. Omega Protein is the largest commercial fishing operation on the Chesapeake Bay and along the Atlantic coast. Atlantic menhaden are a vital link in the food chain, and have the ability to filter a volume of water equal to the entire Chesapeake Bay in less than one day, with the potential to annually consume up to 25% of the Bay's nitrogen. However, since there is no quota to limit or control the harvest, this intensive fishery for Atlantic menhaden seasonally depletes the Bay's most valuable living resource. - written by James Price

... read more


All information and contents are © 2010 Chesapeake Bay Ecological Foundation, Inc. unless otherwise specified