ECOs on Long Island conducted fishing compliance checks in recent weeks that resulted in tickets for undersized and over-the-limit fish. Here are some of the cases:
On Aug. 23, ECO Day responded to reports of a group of people keeping undersized blue crabs at Mascot Dock in the village of Patchogue, Suffolk County. Officer Day arrived, observed four individuals moving crabs to the trunk of a nearby van, and approached the group to check their catches. The foursome first claimed to only be in possession of legal-sized crabs, but the driver of the vehicle eventually admitted to having more crabs in a cooler in the trunk after further questioning. ECO Day discovered the group in possession of 86 blue crabs, 51 of which were less than the legal minimum of 4.5 inches. Each member of the group received tickets for possession of undersized blue crabs.
Two additional individuals crabbing on the dock also received tickets for undersized crabs discovered hidden in a separate vehicle. In total, ECO Day confiscated 81 undersized crabs and returned them to the water. The tickets are returnable to Suffolk First District Court.
On Sept. 1, ECO Day patrolled the Flax Pond Tidal Wetland Area in Setauket, Suffolk County, in response to numerous complaints about people parking without required permits and in prohibited areas. Officer Day arrived at approximately 9 p.m. and observed five vehicles at the access site and multiple groups returning to their vehicles from the beach. Officer Day conducted fishing compliance checks on the anglers and discovered several groups in possession of undersized sea bass and tautog. ECO Day issued eight tickets to four individuals for violations including possession of undersized fish, failure to carry a marine registry, and parking without a permit. All tickets are returnable to Suffolk First District Court.
On Sept. 10, ECO Vandenbos conducted fishing compliance checks on anglers catching striped bass near the Ponquogue Bridge in the town of Southampton, Suffolk County. Officer Vandenbos responded to the location and contacted ECO DeRose and his newly graduated K9 partner, Finn, for assistance. K9 Finn is certified in striped bass detection. Officer DeRose arrived quickly, deployed K9 Finn, and the police dog alerted to multiple vehicles parked in the area. One vehicle contained a striped bass more than the legal-size limit of 28 to 31 inches in New York’s marine waters, and over the daily catch limit of one fish. The angler received one ticket for each offense, returnable to Southampton Town Justice Court.
In the early morning hours of Sept. 11, ECO Franz ticketed two individuals fishing from a vessel anchored under the Meadowbrook Drawbridge in the village of Freeport, Nassau County, following a fishing compliance check. Officer Franz first observed the vessel with no lights on at approximately 2:45 a.m. and conducted the check once the boat made its way back to the Albany Avenue boat ramp in Freeport a few hours later. The two subjects on board the vessel possessed 25 bluefish and one striped bass measuring in at 24.5 inches. Anglers possessing a New York Recreational Marine Fishing Registry are allowed three bluefish per person per day and striped bass must be between 28 and 31 inches to keep. ECO Franz ticketed the anglers for being over their limit of bluefish, possessing an undersized striped bass, and failing to possess a marine registry, returnable to Nassau First District Court.
On Sept. 18, ECO Day conducted compliance checks on several vessels returning to a boat ramp in the town of Port Jefferson, Suffolk County, while on patrol. Officer Day identified that DEC previously issued one of the boat owners a ticket for undersized porgy at the same boat ramp back in June. The four people on board this time were in possession of 65 undersized porgy, six undersized black sea bass, and one undersized fluke. All anglers were issued multiple tickets for the undersized fish, returnable to Suffolk County First District Court. ECO Day confiscated the fish and donated them to Sweetbriar Nature Center to feed eagles and osprey being cared for at the facility.
Great work