ASMFC finds northern Atlantic croaker stock depleted; board weighs next steps
The 2026 benchmark assessment finds low spawning biomass from New Jersey through Cape Lookout, NC, but fishing mortality below its overfishing thresholds. The southern stock is above its biomass threshold. No new fishing rule was announced.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission says its 2026 benchmark assessment found the northern Atlantic croaker stock, from New Jersey through Cape Lookout, North Carolina, depleted but not experiencing overfishing. The southern stock, south of Cape Lookout through Florida, is not overfished and is not experiencing overfishing. The Sciaenids Management Board accepted the assessment and peer review for management use.
The assessment compared three-year averages for 2021–2023 with spawning stock biomass and fishing mortality thresholds. Northern spawning biomass was below its threshold, while fishing mortality was below both thresholds used in the assessment. ASMFC uses “depleted” because the cause of the initial population decline in the 2000s is unclear; it says overfishing may have limited recovery after that decline. The release also reports reduced individual growth and a shorter length and age structure than in the past.
The assessment modeled the two stocks separately and, for the first time, incorporated shrimp trawl bycatch into its stock-status determination. One fishing mortality measure covers all ages, including age-0 croaker caught as shrimp-trawl bycatch. The other covers fish older than age 0 and reflects recreational and commercial fisheries targeting croaker.
The southern stock tells a different story: ASMFC reports spawning biomass at a time-series high, above its threshold, and fishing mortality at time-series lows, below its thresholds. These are assessment findings through 2023, not a forecast of the next fishing season.
What happens next: the board asked its Technical Committee for further analysis of possible management paths for the northern stock. The release announces no new bag limit, season, closure or other fishing rule. Anglers from the Mid-Atlantic through the Carolinas should watch for a subsequent board action and check their state agency for current rules before a trip.
On the water: Rules and conditions can change quickly. Confirm current regulations and official marine forecasts for your exact trip.