Red Drum - Redfish

Red drum or redfish can be caught in a myriad of ways. Probably the most widely utilized technique for catching red drum in Virginia is to anchor along a channel edge or shoal and bottom fish with cut peeler crab bait or other baits including, squid, cut spot, live spot and even chicken breast soaked in peeler crab oil.

In areas like Pocomoke and Tangier Sounds, anglers usually look for a somewhat sharp drop and anchor so that the boat lies on the slope of the channel. This depth is only a starting point and can vary greatly.

Many anglers prefer to fish a window of opportunity that includes the last 2 hours of the incoming current and the first 2 hours of the outgoing. If this coincides with dusk, the fishing is more likely to be good.

Other techniques for catching Virginia and Chesapeake Bay red drum include trolling large spoons in the lower bay areas.

Surf fishing is a popular way to catch Virginia red drum. Along the Atlantic beaches and around Virginia barrier islands, anglers use a fish finder or other rig and fish with baits such as whole spot, spot fillets or heads, mullet, bluefish fillets, crabs, shrimp or other baits.

These are entities that tag red drum:

Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament, Virginia Gamefish Tagging Program
Lewis Gillingham
968 S. Oriole Drive
Virginia Beach, VA 23451
(757) 491 - 5160
(757) 491-5172 (fax)
vswft@mrc.virginia.gov

North Carolina Adult or Juvenile Red Drum Tagging Program
Lee Paramore
P.O. Box 769
Morehead City, NC 28557
1-800-682-2632

South Carolina DNR Adult Red Drum
Tagging Program
Bryan Frazier
PO Box 12559
Charleston, SC 29422-2559
1-888-TAGS-4-SC

Georgia Cooperative Angler Tagging
Program
Donna McDowell
One Conservation Way, Suite 300
Brunswick, Georgia 31520
912-264-7218

Most programs offer rewards for re-captured tags.
In Virginia the reward varies, either a t-shirt, hat, fish pin, or plastic utility box.
North Carolina offers $5 or a hat.
South Carolina offers a hat.
In Georgia the reward varies, but usually consists of a t-shirt or hat.

Broiled Red Drum Parmesan

2 pounds redfish fillets
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
3 green onions, chopped
thinly sliced lemon and parsley for garnish, optional

Place fillets in a single layer on a greased baking dish or broiler
pan; brush with lemon juice.

Combine Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, salt, butter, and green onions in
a small bowl; set aside.

Broil fillets 4 to 6 minutes, or until fish flakes easily
with a fork. Remove from oven; spread with cheese
mixture.

Broil about 30 seconds longer, or until cheese is lightly browned and bubbly.

Garnish with sliced lemon and parsley if desired.

Serves 6 to 8.

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The 2009 peer reviewed stock assessment for red drum indicates that abundance of young fish for both the northern (NJ to NC) and southern (SC to FL) stock complexes have remained relatively stable since 2000. The stock assessment concluded that sufficient numbers of young fish are surviving to move offshore and join the adult spawning population, indicating that overfishing is likely not occurring.

Data limitations resulting from red drum's life history characteristics and management regime present unique challenges to scientists as they try to assess the status of the stock. Relatively little is known about the adult (spawning) population of red drum (ages 4 and older) as these fish are primarily found in offshore waters where fishing for red drum is prohibited under federal law. As such, there is little fishery-dependent information on the larger, reproductive fish and limited fishery-independent data. Existing data are largely for the juvenile component of the resource (ages 1 - 3) found in inshore waters. Fishery-dependent data are constrained by the fisheries slot limit, which ranges anywhere from 15 to 27 inches (again limiting the amount of information about larger fish) and fishery-independent data are supplied by multiple state inshore surveys.

The end result of these limitations is a stock assessment that adequately describes abundance and exploitation rates for the pre-adult component of the population (ages 1 - 3), particularly for the northern region, but provides no reliable information on the adult component. Additionally, the stock assessment model was considered to be informative only about the relative, not absolute, trends in age 1 - 3 abundance and exploitation for the southern region. Therefore, only general conclusions about trends in stock status could be provided for the southern region.

In the northern region, abundance of age 1 - 3 red drum increased during 1990 to 2000 after which it widely fluctuated. The initial increase in abundance of these age groups can be explained by the reduction in exploitation rates in the early part of the time series with relative stability since then. Fishing pressure appears to be stable, and there is a high probability that the stock is not subject to overfishing. It is likely that the fishing mortality rate is at or above its target (Figure 1).

In the southern region, the relative trend in abundance of age 1 - 3 red drum increased during 1989 - 1992, declined during 1992 - 1998 and has fluctuated thereafter. As with the northern stock, the initial increase in abundance of these age groups can be explained by the reduction in exploitation rates in the early part of the time series. There appears to have been a slight increase in exploitation rates since 1990 (Figure 2).

Given these findings, the Commission's South Atlantic State-Federal Fisheries Management Board did not initiate any changes to the management program at this time. A more detailed description of the stock assessment results will be available by mid-December and can be obtained via the Commission website at www.asmfc.org under Breaking News. For more information, please contact Nichola Meserve, Fishery Management Plan Coordinator, at (202) 289-6400.

source: ASMFC press release