Are rockfish getting bigger?
Other fishermen agree with Tippett that there are more big rockfish these days. Pearl King, who has worked at Tyler’s Tackle Shop in Chesapeake Beach for 30 years, said the rockfish “do seem to be getting bigger over the past years,” but year to year they vary. A 51-pound, 48- to 49-inch rockfish mount of one caught in 2007 hangs on the wall at the shop. At this spring’s Maryland Saltwater Sportfishermen’s Association tournament during the first weekend of May, a 47-pound rockfish won first prize, with the next two weighing in the 45-pound range. The tournament only records the weight of the fish, not the length. Last fall, JJ’s Tackle at Bunky’s Charter Boats in Solomons recorded a 60-pound, 54-inch and a 57-pound, 53-inch rockfish. Last fall the Tackle Box in Lexington Park recorded a 53-incher and a 57-incher caught at Point Lookout. But this past trophy season, which ended on May 15, they saw just a few fish longer than 40 inches, with most in the 25- to 35-pound range, with no rea
