Outer Banks Fishing Report

North Carolina will create a no gill net corridor along the ocean surf zone later this month to reduce bottlenose dolphin interactions. N. C. Division of Marine Fisheries Director Steve Murphey issued a proclamation today, effective April 22, expanding the current restriction on small mesh gill net use within 100 yards of the ocean surf [...] Fishing |  Full Article

The Marine Fisheries Commission announced that 41 readopted fisheries rules will become effective on Monday, April 1, but that very little will change. The rules, re-adopted under a state-mandated periodic review schedule, are a portion of existing fisheries rules in 15A NCAC 03I, 03J, 03K, 03L, 03M, 03O, and 03R. The primary changes include the [...] Fishing |  Full Article

New requirements for gear configurations for shrimp trawls will go into effect July 1 for areas of Pamlico Sound and portions of the Pamlico and Neuse rivers. The new gear configurations will be required in all shrimp trawls, except skimmer trawls, used in inside waters where up to 220 feet of combined headrope length is [...] Fishing |  Full Article

Federal officials say North Carolina will benefit from a new partnership that brings together local and regional fishing interests with federal regulators to collaborate on the science and process of offshore wind energy development. The National Marine Fisheries Service announced Tuesday that it had signed an agreement with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and [...] Fishing |  Full Article

On Wednesday, March 13, the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission (NC MFC) held an Emergency Meeting in Kinston, N.C. to discuss directing the Division of Marine Fisheries Director, Steve Murphey, to issue a proclamation restricting the use of gill nets in the Neuse and Pamlico Rivers. The meeting stemmed from a similar request made by [...] Fishing |  Full Article

35 years of fishing in the Gulf Stream didn’t leave me with much time or desire to go on beach walks or drives.  I have discovered, however, that it can be very therapeutic and rewarding.  I started driving out with Wendy on occasion… OK, she made me go.  I didn’t expect to enjoy it but [...] Fishing |  Full Article

The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission has adopted a no-possession limit for striped bass in internal waters in the central and southern coastal areas of the state. The management measure, once implemented, will apply to both commercial and recreational fishing in in the Central Southern Management Area, which encompasses all internal waters from just south of [...] Fishing |  Full Article

The Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan Advisory Committee will meet at 6 p.m. March 6 at the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s Washington regional office, 943 Washington Square Mall, Washington. The committee is assisting the Division of Marine Fisheries with development of Amendment 2 to the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan, which could result in [...] Fishing |  Full Article

The summit will focus on the next steps to making North Carolina the Napa Valley of oysters. The ongoing quest to make North Carolina the world’s Napa Valley of oysters will be on full display in March. Oyster growers, fishermen, government officials, lawmakers, academics and conservation interests will gather to learn more about and even [...] Fishing |  Full Article