5 Trout Proposal For Upper Coast Accepted

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January 24, 2019
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January 25, 2019

5 Trout Limit

The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) Commission has accepted a proposal to lower the speckled trout limit from FM 457 to the Louisiana border on the Upper Coast (Galveston, Sabine areas) from 10 fish daily to five.

This would create a coast-wide five fish limit by matching the stricter trout regulations that began a decade ago in Lower Laguna Madre and made it up through the Matagorda system a few years later.

This proposal along with others we will address in another post regarding shark hook requirements, oystering and ling limits will be published in the Texas Register next week. After that public comment begins.

The TPWD Commission will take final action in their meeting at TPWD Headquarters in Austin March 19-20. Once public comment links are available we will post them at fishgame.com and through our social media presence.

In addition there will be public hearings in the Port Arthur/Beaumont and Galveston areas according to Lance Robinson, TPWD Deputy Coastal Fisheries Division Director.

In the past speckled trout regulation changes have drawn great interest from the angling public and if history repeats the aforementioned public hearings will be packed with anglers on both sides of the proposal.

Trout numbers on the Texas Coast have taken a roller coaster ride over the last 36 years with major freezes in 1983 and 1989 pummeling the population. A combination of length and bag limit regulation changes, habitat enhancement and stocking have brought populations back to strong levels along the coast. Numbers however fluctuate in various bay systems due to a variety of factors.

We will have a much more detailed story on this topic next week as I am literally typing this as I got word sitting at the McCarran Airport in Las Vegas returning from the SHOT Show.

Chester Moore, Jr.

 

 

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37 Comments

  1. Al says:

    Louisiana has more relaxed limits and a flourishing population of fish. What’s the difference – Louisiana takes care of its water. This will harm the population in my opinion as fishermen will cull more fish; instead requiring an angler to keep first 10 trout regardless of size is far more likely to have an effect as catching and releasing is often fatal for the fish.

  2. Eddie says:

    5 fish limit!!!! Are you crazy!!! Boat 70,000, reel 250, rod 150, gas 100, bait 50, tackle 2000= 5 fish $14,510.00. With all of the hatcheries I would think the fish limits should be loosened not tightened and I think we should say 1 oversized redfish a day not one per season.

  3. Brad says:

    Write the rule some such way that the surf is excluded. When its right, you are catching 10 trout that are mostly between 15-20″ and a lot of males, not hurting the population much.

  4. Brad says:

    Write the rule some such way that the surf is excluded. When its right, you are catching 10 trout that are mostly between 15-20″ and a lot of males, not hurting the population much.

  5. Robert Gouty says:

    Shrimp boat by catch kills millions of all species of marine life every day during the shrimping season.
    Shrimpers should be forced to cull shrimp and return by catch to the gulf before they expire.
    Many times Shrimpers dump nets on the deck all day long and cull the catch at night. Then they dump the dead mountains of fish and crabs and oysters and other creatures back into the gulf and feed the Sharks.

  6. Robert Nieman says:

    I am in favor of pretty much anything to help protect our natural resources!! The 5 fish limit makes sense so the entire texas coast has to play by the same rules. Also would be in favor of some kind of regulation to require the angler to keep all fish (speckled trout) and they would count towards the daily bag limit rather then throw a wounded fish back in the water and the majority of the time the fish dies especially if the hook is swallowed in fishes gullet.

  7. Robert Nieman says:

    I am in favor of pretty much anything to help protect our natural resources!! The 5 fish limit makes sense so the entire texas coast has to play by the same rules. Also would be in favor of some kind of regulation to require the angler to keep all fish (speckled trout) and they would count towards the daily bag limit rather then throw a wounded fish back in the water and the majority of the time the fish dies especially if the hook is swallowed in fishes gullet.

  8. Gary moreno says:

    If limits are lowered in the upper coast will the TPWD stop running gill nets and putting further strain on the spotted sea trout population? At least for the first 5 years so the recovery process can have the best chance possible. I mean the have 25 plus years of data that they can revert back to.

  9. Gary moreno says:

    If limits are lowered in the upper coast will the TPWD stop running gill nets and putting further strain on the spotted sea trout population? At least for the first 5 years so the recovery process can have the best chance possible. I mean the have 25 plus years of data that they can revert back to.

  10. Bruce Crabtree says:

    I wholeheartly support the new limit proposal. It has made a tremendous improvement in sustaining the trout fishery in the lower coast and I believe it is past due for the upper. There’s just too many people and too many good anglers today to be able to sustain the resource on our current path. Time for change and better management.

  11. Bruce Crabtree says:

    I wholeheartly support the new limit proposal. It has made a tremendous improvement in sustaining the trout fishery in the lower coast and I believe it is past due for the upper. There’s just too many people and too many good anglers today to be able to sustain the resource on our current path. Time for change and better management.

  12. Stephen Baker says:

    I believe a limit of 5 trout a day would be a good thing to help conserve our recreational fishing resources. Over the last 30 years I’ve fished the Galveston bay area, occasionally Matagorda and Rockport bay areas as well. Over this time period I’ve noticed that the population growth of these areas especially in the Houston/ Galveston area has greatly increased the number of fisherman using the bays.Because of that I don’t fish weekends to avoid the crowds. I used to fish Trinity Bay but no longer do because of the San Jacinto paper mill waste dump spill that poisoned the fish in that area to make them unsafe to eat. I only use artificial lures and rarely keep any more than 2 fish on any given trip not only for conservation purposes but also because I want fresh fish to eat, never frozen. If we don’t regulate the polluters and conserve the fish populations with the growing pressure of more fishermen then I don’t see how we can keep fish populations in our beautiful bays for future generations to enjoy like we have.

  13. Stephen Baker says:

    I believe a limit of 5 trout a day would be a good thing to help conserve our recreational fishing resources. Over the last 30 years I’ve fished the Galveston bay area, occasionally Matagorda and Rockport bay areas as well. Over this time period I’ve noticed that the population growth of these areas especially in the Houston/ Galveston area has greatly increased the number of fisherman using the bays.Because of that I don’t fish weekends to avoid the crowds. I used to fish Trinity Bay but no longer do because of the San Jacinto paper mill waste dump spill that poisoned the fish in that area to make them unsafe to eat. I only use artificial lures and rarely keep any more than 2 fish on any given trip not only for conservation purposes but also because I want fresh fish to eat, never frozen. If we don’t regulate the polluters and conserve the fish populations with the growing pressure of more fishermen then I don’t see how we can keep fish populations in our beautiful bays for future generations to enjoy like we have.

  14. Greg Carroll says:

    Ridiculous! Keep Rollover Pass OPEN you fools in Austin! I’ve seen more Specks there and along the beachfront than ever before.

  15. Greg Carroll says:

    Ridiculous! Keep Rollover Pass OPEN you fools in Austin! I’ve seen more Specks there and along the beachfront than ever before.

  16. NIck Garza says:

    I’d like to know why they are doing this when latest gill net surveys show trout populations are just fine.

  17. NIck Garza says:

    I’d like to know why they are doing this when latest gill net surveys show trout populations are just fine.

  18. NIck Garza says:

    I’d like to know why they are doing this when latest gill net surveys show trout populations are just fine.

  19. Claude Heuring says:

    I have lived in Houston all my life, and cant remember the size and numbers of trout than it has been the past couple of years.

  20. Mike Purcell says:

    It’s about time. Let’s ban treble hooks when bait fishing as well.

  21. Claude Heuring says:

    the trout fishing the last couple of year has had bigger trout and more fish than I have seen in the long time. I have lived in Houston all my life. I have been through the freezes and hurricanes. I am for protecting all wild life, but some of the people that make the decisions, don’t even fish.

  22. Claude Heuring says:

    1

  23. Don Balius says:

    We are currently seeing a decline in the trout population on the MS Gulf Coast as well. We have a 15 fish creel with 15” length limit. I’ve been to several of the MCMR meeting only to listen to them argue among themselves pitting commercial trout fisherman against the rev guys. They were presented several options but the head guy seems hell bent on imposing a TAC on the rev guys since the commercial sector has a 50,000 lb TAC. The DMR biologist has stated many times that out SPR has gone up substantially since we adopted the 15” length and the biomass has increased as well since 2016. In order to further future increases I would favor a 10 fish limit, 16”, with only 1 fish over 20”. I would even support the 5 fish creel. The recreational sector needs to really get on board with conserving this resource for our kids and grandkids. Catch and Release needs to be practiced by all, “Catch what you can eat and release the rest”.

  24. Don Balius says:

    We are currently seeing a decline in the trout population on the MS Gulf Coast as well. We have a 15 fish creel with 15” length limit. I’ve been to several of the MCMR meeting only to listen to them argue among themselves pitting commercial trout fisherman against the rev guys. They were presented several options but the head guy seems hell bent on imposing a TAC on the rev guys since the commercial sector has a 50,000 lb TAC. The DMR biologist has stated many times that out SPR has gone up substantially since we adopted the 15” length and the biomass has increased as well since 2016. In order to further future increases I would favor a 10 fish limit, 16”, with only 1 fish over 20”. I would even support the 5 fish creel. The recreational sector needs to really get on board with conserving this resource for our kids and grandkids. Catch and Release needs to be practiced by all, “Catch what you can eat and release the rest”.

  25. Aldo Vazquez says:

    I fish the Galveston complex all year round, especially the west end. I like the five man limit, ten fish is way to much for one person, especially when you talking about fishing guides with four people limiting out on regular basis….five fish limi will secure the future of trout for the next generations….

  26. Rod Rials says:

    If we had lowered the limit several years ago, and if that had increased the population tenfold, then the amount of trout that were killed by the freezes or forced into the gulf seeking salinity by the flooded Sabine and Neches Rivers, due to the mismanagement of Raburn and Toledo Dams, would have increased the same tenfold. We would have no more than we do now. Why does Texas not do what Louisiana does, it works for them? Texas has stopped the flow in and out of the marshes into the ICW and even installed a saltwater barrier in Keith Lake, which has drastically affected the trout fishing there and on other bayous and rivers. Sabine area tidal waters should be allowed to be naturally flowing. We have stopped the marsh bait from reaching the saltwater lakes and bays. At least leave Sabine Lake area alone.

    Rod Rials

  27. Chris says:

    Only if Louisiana changes regulations on sabine lake does this make any sense.

  28. John Greif says:

    I think bag limit of 5 is great.
    Lower length to 14.
    Have tag for 25 and over. Can only purchase replacement tag once.
    Male trout mature at 14 don’t get much bigger.
    Female’s fertility is high at 25 and over

  29. John Greif says:

    I think bag limit of 5 is great.
    Lower length to 14.
    Have tag for 25 and over. Can only purchase replacement tag once.
    Male trout mature at 14 don’t get much bigger.
    Female’s fertility is high at 25 and over

  30. Chris says:

    Only if Louisiana changes regulations on sabine lake does this make any sense.

  31. John Greif says:

    I think bag limit of 5 is great.
    Lower length to 14.
    Have tag for 25 and over. Can only purchase replacement tag once.
    Male trout mature at 14 don’t get much bigger.
    Female’s fertility is high at 25 and over

  32. Cory Willis says:

    Awesome, 5 fish I love it!!! Now if we could just get people to release the big girls.

  33. Will Ratcliff says:

    I will stop buying Texas fishing license. The flounder have been reduced.
    Now specs. It’s bs. They have reduced gar fishing and now they won’t to stop night fishing of gator gar.
    Texas is OVER regulated. I will fish in Louisiana. If anything should be regulated more or I think should be stopped is commercial fishing. Of all kinds.

  34. W R says:

    I will stop buying Texas fishing license. The flounder have been reduced.
    Now specs. It’s bs. They have reduced gar fishing and now they won’t to stop night fishing of gator gar.
    Texas is OVER regulated. I will fish in Louisiana. If anything should be regulated more or I think should be stopped is commercial fishing. Of all kinds.

  35. W R says:

    I will stop buying Texas fishing license. The flounder have been reduced.
    Now specs. It’s bs. They have reduced gar fishing and now they won’t to stop night fishing of gator gar.
    Texas is OVER regulated. I will fish in Louisiana. If anything should be regulated more or I think should be stopped is commercial fishing. Of all kinds.