Ed Mitchell

Make Mine Menhaden

In the years since 1994, a good deal has been done to better protect menhaden from over-harvest, but frankly we need to do more. East of the Connecticut River, large schools of adult menhaden continue to be too rare and have been for over 14 years. Write a letter to the ASFMC asking them to cut back the commercial landings.

Out where the bar drops away to deeper water, the blues are on a roll. They have been ripping things up for a while now. Unfortunately at this stage of the tide, they are well out of fly range. We watch them and keep casting, hoping the school with move our way or a stray will pass by. No dice, the situation looks grim. I glance down the beach just in time to see Phil reach into his pocket and pull out a gun. I already knew if things got bad he'd use it. In fact we had discussed the idea many times before. He pulls the trigger twice.

More senseless violent? Hardly. There is no bang, no bullet, no smoke. Instead, out the silent barrel comes a short stream of liquid that lands on the water. Phil puts the squirt gun away and waves to me. By the time I reach him a widening slick already covers the water. We both cast into it. Moments later a couple of blues flash in the slick like fighter jets on a mission. We know they will not stay long after discovering the ruse. But with a bit of luck we will get a fish or two.

What powerful elixir called bluefish from nearly a hundred yards off ? The squirt gun contained fish oil. Not the oil from just any fish but the potent liquid from a baitfish with more enemies than a crooked politician. A baitfish so delectable, so yummy that big blues and stripers surely lick their chops at the faintest whiff of their cologne. A baitfish whose presence day or night practically ensures that heavy weights are lurking in the wings: Brevoortia tyrannus, the Atlantic menhaden.

The Atlantic menhaden is a member of the herring family that moves seasonally along nearly the entire Atlantic coast extending from Nova Scotia to southeastern Florida. Commonly called bunker or pogy, adult menhaden run close to a foot in length, although they can reach a maximum size of 18 or 20 inches and 10 years of age. Seen from the side they have a broad paddle shaped flank similar to their sportier cousin the shad. Expect a foot long bunker to be approximately 4 inches from belly to back. Not the easiest thing to match with a fly, as many a coastal veteran will attest.

Menhaden have bright silvery sides, although when found in murky water they take on a bronze like sheen. The back is dark, varying from a rich blue to green or even brown, again depending on location. Behind the gill plate and above the mid line is a single large dark spot characteristic of many members of the herring family. In addition, you're apt to see a group of smaller dots loosely arranged through the center of the fish below the dorsal fin. The menhaden can be separated from other herring by two characteristics. First they have a very large head, taking up nearly one third of the total body length. For comparison the head of an alewife or shad is only 1/4 to 1/5 of its length. Second, the position of the dorsal fin is unique. Unlike other herring, the dorsal fin starts directly over the ventral fin.

As the storms of late winter subside along the south Atlantic coast, menhaden regroup and begin moving rapidly northward from their winter grounds south of Cape Hatteras. Schools are made up of individuals of similar size, a pattern that holds true throughout the season. By April they have reached southern New England moving into the quiet bays and harbors of Long Island Sound. By mid May some menhaden have found their way up into Massachusetts Bay and by June others reach the Gulf of Maine.

The fall return migration begins in the Gulf of Maine in September. In many years they travel along the Rhode Island and Connecticut coast sometime between late October and mid November depending on prevailing weather. Naturally the exact schedule varies with weather but overall both the north and south migrations are remarkably similar to the annual movements of striped bass. Personally I had never seen menhaden after the water temperature drops below 50 degrees. As they travel southward they are constantly hounded, especially by striped bass and blues. Sometimes these processions travel literally at the water's edge creating unforgettable blitzes right at your feet.

While Atlantic menhaden are prolific, able to spawn some place along the coast nearly every month of the year, annual abundance varies from year to year. Stocks reached record size back in the late 1950s, but dropped suddenly thereafter and have never totally recovered. Still bunker can be found in good quantity. I remember parts of eastern Long Island Sound had fair schools in 1986, 1990 and 1991. However in 1987, 1988, 1992 and 1993 I saw few. When and where they are abundant, personally I find fishing to be excellent. And to a fair degree the reverse is also true.

So direct seems this connection that commercial and recreational anglers have occasionally come to loggerheads over the netting of menhaden. A couple of summers ago the Maine chapter of the New England Coast Conservation Association had to handle one situation. And a similar issue is ongoing in Narragansett Bay. The problem arises when commercial fisherman net bunker in areas heavily used by sport fisherman. Naturally once the bait is removed rod and reel angling can come to a screeching halt. Then tempers flare.

FINDING & FISHING OVER ADULT MENHADEN

On the coast, finding the bait is a essential to finding the fish. While adult menhaden are found in open water, along the New England coast anglers are more apt to come across them in bays, coves and especially the lower ends of estuaries. Here in these nutrient rich waters, menhaden form large tightly packed schools often swimming near the surface feeding on their sole food source-plankton. On calm days you can locate a school from a considerable distance by the splashy surface disturbance they create. During these warm months, menhaden may stay for weeks or even months in the same general area. Still the passage of a front or several days of high wind momentarily to sends them deep.

When menhaden are under attack the ruckus is hard to miss, swirls and crashes abound. Things can get so hot menhaden literally jump on the beach to avoid being eaten. Even when the action is deep away from shore, the surface of the water marks the slaughter. Oil released from the bunker as they are consumed rises to the top forming slicks. On a clear day these glassy patches of water are visible for quite a distance.

Most schools of menhaden you find appear to be totally unmolested. Quietly they'll feed as if without a care in the world. Don't be fooled. Greater than half the time there are predators close by. So no matter how tranquil things look, work the area intently. Casting into the middle of the bait is counterproductive as your fly is largely hidden from view. Instead always work along the edges of the school. If the water is ten feet or deeper, be sure to also get a fly underneath. Pay special attention to any school of menhaden that steadily moves. Frequently this indicates that the school is being pushed by one or more large predators. Big bass are usually the culprit. They will silently follow menhaden for a considerable distance waiting for the right opportunity.

Fish feeding on adult bunker are usually ten pounds or better, but rarely are they easy to fool. For one thing the common garden variety 3 or 4 inch streamer, so effective in most surf situations, goes largely ignored. This produces some frustrating moments, particularly when you are surrounded by feeding fish. Jumbo flies are in part the answer. I say in part because even the biggest fly does not guarantee instant success. Some tiers have developed menhaden flies over 10 inches in length in order to match more closely the natural. These 747s of the fly world work. Still personally I feel flies between 6 and 7 inches are nearly as effective and more practical. Besides length these large streamers must also mimic the bunker's wide profile. Bill Catherwood's Pogy and Tom Piccolo's Bunker are examples of flies that do just that.

Bait fisherman use an extremely effective technique that involves casting out a weighted treble and drawing it rapidly through a school of menhaden. When a bunker is snagged, it immediately starts to struggle, broadcasting its vulnerability. Any striped bass or bluefish in the vicinity quickly hones in on this one fish, disregarding the rest of the school. Likewise flies that disturb the water around them are often better producers. For that reason many experienced salt water fly rodders like to use large poppers or sliders when working near adult menhaden.

Conventional 4 inch long, 2/0 salt water poppers do work. However jumbo poppers, while the devil to cast, are often better at attracting attention. This is particularly the case with the final push of big blues we see each fall. With water temperatures low these guys are noticeably more sluggish and only a banquet passing by lights their fuse. In early November I have used 7 inches long poppers suitable for sailfish. You need a 12 weight to chuck them and even then you can't throw them far, but frequently you do not have to. Extra long sliders, sometimes called mega sliders, do the same thing. They push water and throw a wide wake. Seen from underneath they make a long thin silhouette that closely resembles a menhaden moving overhead. Believe me they work.

Fishing a Baby Bunker Blitz

While adult menhaden create some great fishing opportunities, in the fall young of the year menhaden are even a better bet. For one thing they attract just as many fish, yet are much easier to match with a fly. In the Northeast these juveniles are the result of an offshore spawn that takes place mainly in late spring and early summer. The larvae depend on onshore winds and currents to be pushed into the quiet estuaries critical for early growth. By late summer baby menhaden can be found feasting in the coastal rivers and salt ponds from Cape Cod southward. These young-of-year can be anywhere from 2 to 7 inches long depending on local conditions. In my experience you can expect baby bunker along the Connecticut and Rhode Island coast to be 3 inches or better by mid- September. A month later they grow another full inch. Therefore it makes sense to carry increasingly longer flies as the season progresses.

As summer wanes, young-of-year bunker begin dropping down to open water. In southern New England, this begins around the time of the first frost. Generally that happens in the opening weeks of October, as water temperatures fall through the middle sixties. Naturally the exact timing fluctuates from year to year. Upon entering the ocean, they travel in dense schools often close to the water's edge. Expect these bite size bunker to really ring the dinner bell. Everything from bass to bonito show up at the table, guaranteeing superb fall fly fishing. Look for these small menhaden near inlets, points of land, rips, along breakwaters and wherever plankton accumulates due to wind and tide.

Just about any 3 or 4 inch white or silver streamer works, but again a wide profile fly gets the most attention. For that reason the venerable HieTie is effective. More recent tall patterns such as Eric Petersen's Bunker fly and Tabory's Slab Fly are excellent too. While these schools are frequently near the top, they do not create the large surface distance of their adult kin. Instead they only dimple the water as they feed. Still finding these schools is usually easy. Why? Because large numbers of birds such as gulls, cormorants and loons follow these youngsters along the shore.

Eager to try the bunker oil trick? It doesn't always work and worse yet it melted the squirt gun causing it to leak. UGH! Still it did occasionally produce action when all else failed. If you would like to try it you can purchase menhaden oil in many shoreline tackle stores. But use it out of the original container. By the way, menhaden products have long been used in paints, plastics, pet foods and cosmetics. But now food industry is looking at the possibility of using menhaden oil in mayonnaise and shortening. Bunker butter anyone?

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