Collection Sites in Frederick and Washington Counties Open Until Oct. 26 Every year, about 6 million tree seedlings are grown at the John S. Ayton State Tree Nursery, located near Preston in Caroline County. About 47 different conifer, hardwood and shrub species, most native to Maryland, are grown each year, many of which are planted Read the Rest…
For those who work hard, a day off is a precious opportunity to spend time the way we want. Few activities afford us the peace to be had dangling a line in the water and being with our thoughts. Sometimes fate smiles on us and we actually have one of those days where everything works Read the Rest…
Program to Provide Quality Nutrition, Reduce Impact on Chesapeake Bay The Maryland Department of General Services (DGS)—in partnership with the departments of Agriculture and Natural Resources—has awarded contracts to Jessup-based Reliant Fish Co. and Congressional Seafood Co. for a program that will create sales of Maryland-harvested blue catfish to state institutions providing food services. The Read the Rest…
Living History Happens Sept. 29-30 The Friends of Point Lookout are hosting a U.S. Civil War weekend Sept. 29-30 at Point Lookout State Park in St. Mary’s County. Programs run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday. The program features artillery demonstrations and other programming. Tours of Fort #3 Read the Rest…
Living close to the water gives one an interesting perspective on impending storms. At ports all-around the bay and coastal areas, boat owners have been lining up at boat ramps and moving their vessels to safer areas. Low-lying areas can expect flooding and it sounds like we may in for some more rain, which is Read the Rest…
Dissolved oxygen conditions for Maryland’s portion of Chesapeake Bay returned to near average for the month of August, reports the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. The department tracks hypoxia throughout the summer during twice monthly monitoring cruises. Low dissolved oxygen volume was at a record low (0.26 cubic miles) in late July, due to sustained Read the Rest…
Labor Day weekend is a fleeting memory now and although we are under an intense heat wave cooler weather is anticipated as we move through September. There is still plenty daylight at the end of the day to spend some time in the outdoors with family and friends. Children love adventure and when Vincent Casagrande Read the Rest…
Board of Public Works Approves Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program Acquisition The Board of Public Works today approved a Maryland Department of Natural Resources item that will grant more than $468,000 to acquire a 77-acre Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program easement in Frederick County. Program Open Space funds will be used to purchase a permanent conservation easement Read the Rest…
Board of Public Works Approves Conservation Easement The Board of Public Works today approved a Maryland Department of Natural Resources item that authorizes a $1.7 million grant to the Cecil Land Trust to acquire a 535-acre conservation easement. Rural Legacy Program funds will be used to protect productive agricultural and forestland along Northeast Creek as Read the Rest…
Partnership Effort Restoring Patapsco River, Improving Public Safety Conservation leaders, federal and state officials, and other partners gathered today on the Patapsco River to celebrate the removal of Bloede Dam – an effort that has been a decade in the making, and will have major benefits for fisheries, public safety, recreation, and the health of Read the Rest…
Labor Day weekend approaches and many of us are wondering, “How did we get here so soon?” The kids will be going back to school and we will slowly start to see cooler temperatures in September. If you’re trying to fit in some family fishing time, remember who your audience is – kids just want Read the Rest…
This past weekend, I happened to pull up behind a pickup truck at a traffic light and I could not help but notice something about the license plate that impressed me. First off, there was a bumper sticker that said “Stress is caused by a lack of fishing” and there were several years’ worth of Read the Rest…
Harriet Tubman Rural Legacy Area Designated in Dorchester County; Five Other Areas Expanded The Board of Public Works today approved 16 Rural Legacy Program grants – totaling over $25 million – that will provide dedicated state funding to permanently protect working farms and forests in designated areas across the state. Working through local government and private Read the Rest…
Chesapeake Bay Trust Green Jobs Training Program Provides Young Adults with Employment Opportunities in Environmental Fields Today, the Chesapeake Bay Trust celebrated the newest class of its Chesapeake Conservation Corps, a green jobs program created by the Maryland Legislature to educate and train the next generation of environmental stewards. The program matches young people ages Read the Rest…
One of the fun and exciting things about fishing is you just never know what surprises await when you cast your fishing line into the water. Some have been surprised with a record-breaking catch, a novelty catch or just a fun encounter with a fish to help round out a peaceful day. Enjoying the outdoors Read the Rest…
Heavy Rainfall and Sustained Winds Helped Produce Best Recorded Results Ever Due to extreme summer weather, dissolved oxygen conditions in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay mainstem were the best ever observed in late July, reports the Maryland Department to Natural Resources. The department tracks hypoxia throughout the summer during twice monthly monitoring cruises. The Read the Rest…
It is often said that summertime is for kids, and truer words could not be spoken this month. August will be gone in a flash so don’t delay getting any youngsters you know out or near the water to enjoy some fun fishing. Two fish that are always ready to accommodate our young anglers are Read the Rest…
Recent heavy rains caused a lot of changes to our Chesapeake Bay waters. Large volumes of water coming down from Pennsylvania necessitated the opening of more than 20 gates at Conowingo Dam, causing high water levels in the lower Susquehanna River and floating debris entering the bay. Boating will be difficult in the upper and Read the Rest…
Marks 150th Clean Marina and Partner in Maryland An Anne Arundel County yacht club recently passed inspection by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to earn the Maryland Clean Marina Partner Award. Belvedere Yacht Club in Arnold has met the criteria, which brings the total number of clean marinas and partners to 150, or roughly Read the Rest…
Dissolved oxygen conditions in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay mainstem improved in early July, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. The department tracks hypoxia throughout the summer during twice monthly monitoring cruises. The hypoxic water volume (areas with less than 2 mg/l oxygen) was 1.05 cubic miles, nearly 0.6 cubic miles less Read the Rest…
Record Water Flow to Impact Chesapeake Bay Health and Marine Life The Maryland Department of Natural Resources is advising commercial and recreational anglers, boaters and watermen to avoid the Susquehanna River and Upper Chesapeake Bay over the next few days due to the heavy water flows and swells downstream of Conowingo Dam. Recent summer rain Read the Rest…
We all face daily challenges that tug at how we spend the dear time that is given to us. All anglers and outdoor enthusiasts know how hard it is to follow their favorite pursuits. Summer is fleeting, make time.
Dedicates $2 Million a Year for Oyster Fishery and Recovery Governor Larry Hogan announced today that the Maryland Department of Transportation and Maryland Department of Natural Resources have entered into a new agreement that will provide millions of dollars for ongoing oyster activities in Chesapeake Bay. “Our administration has invested more than $4 billion to Read the Rest…
Rockfish Face Added Stress in Summer Fishing for striped bass in Maryland is an annual rite of summer, but anglers are advised to follow a few basic measures to help protect the iconic species during the hottest part of the season. Seasonal high water temperatures and low oxygen can cause fish to become sensitive and Read the Rest…
We’ve all learned in our lives that nothing ever stays the same, and this certainly holds true for the Chesapeake Bay. She started out as a river valley and became flooded after the last ice age to become the largest estuary in the United States. The view from a drive across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Read the Rest…
Department Biologists Learning More about Voracious Invasive Reaching up to nearly a hundred pounds, blue catfish is the largest species of catfish in North America, and due to its size and strength has quickly become a favorite catch for anglers. A native of the Mississippi River basin, blue catfish were introduced to the mid-Atlantic in Read the Rest…
If you spend enough time hanging around seasoned commercial or sport fishermen, you’ll often hear that it’s impossible to figure out why finfish and blue crabs are in certain places at certain times. These thoughts came to mind this week as I spoke to some of the most respected captains on the Chesapeake about how Read the Rest…
Biologists Transplant Hundreds of Filter-Feeders Freshwater mussels have been absent from the Patapsco River for decades. Now thanks to the collaborative efforts of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, hundreds of mussels have returned to this scenic Maryland river. Over the span of a few days hundreds of individual Read the Rest…
As anticipated, dissolved oxygen conditions in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay mainstem worsened in late June. During its twice monthly monitoring cruises, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources found that hypoxic water volume (areas with less than 2 mg/L oxygen) was 1.63 cubic miles, which is 42 percent greater than the late June average Read the Rest…
The Fourth of July is upon us, and although it falls on a Wednesday — missing that three-day weekend luster – it’s still a little extra time off to enjoy family and friends. Here in Maryland a lot of activities will focus on a nearby body of water, from Deep Creek Lake to the Atlantic Read the Rest…
We’ve all heard it – 10 percent of anglers catch 90 percent of the fish. Good fishermen are often able to anticipate or adjust to changes in conditions or fish behavior. This trait lies deep in that hunter-gatherer instinct of those who can read the signs that Mother Nature provides them. This kind of savvy Read the Rest…
18 Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund Grants Announced The Hogan Administration has awarded funding to 18 recipients through the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund to improve the health of Maryland’s waterways. The “Trust Fund” allows Maryland to accelerate Chesapeake Bay restoration and improve water quality by focusing targeted financial investments and resources on the Read the Rest…
Maryland and Virginia scientists have begun regularly collecting oxygen data as they monitor the health of Chesapeake Bay waters, and track the states’ progress toward restoring the treasured Chesapeake. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources will track bay oxygen levels throughout the summer during twice-monthly monitoring cruises.
Interagency Partners Celebrate Navigation Improvement Project at Rhodes Point The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, in coordination with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources; Somerset County; Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Smith Island United, and other partners, marked the completion of two major milestones Read the Rest…
Fishing offers many things to many people, and they all have their own reasons why it’s so special. For some it’s an adventurous location or pursuit of a certain fish, usually preceded by a lot of study and anticipation before the big trip. For others it may be the unwinding process from a stressful day. Read the Rest…
2,592 candidate projects identified in Maryland U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore and Norfolk districts, in partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), released June 14 the draft Chesapeake Bay Comprehensive Water Resources and Restoration Plan and Restoration Roadmap that identifies 2,592 candidate aquatic ecosystem restoration, enhancement and conservation projects for implementation in Maryland. Candidate projects may Read the Rest…
Marine Mammals, Sea Turtles Protected by Law Maryland’s tidal waters are visited by a variety of aquatic wildlife. Unfortunately, some of these animals find themselves stranded along the state’s shoreline, particularly between May and October. Since 1990, Maryland’s Stranding Response Program has documented strandings of 25 species of marine mammals and four species of sea turtles. Read the Rest…
Many of us who have spent a lifetime fishing remember the first fish we ever caught. For some, that memory might include a tough and pugnacious little rascal called the bluegill sunfish. It has a habit of attacking most any bait with total abandon and have the fighting strength of a bull – making it Read the Rest…
Note: If you’re looking for the June 13 report, please click here. The northern snakehead has gotten a lot of press attention and has been called “Frankenfish.” It inspired a movie called “Snakehead Terror” about 8-foot long fish terrorizing a lakeside community, which helped create a common belief that snakeheads can walk on land. In Read the Rest…
Cheers On Students’ Efforts to Become Stewards of Maryland’s Environment Governor Larry Hogan today attended the 9th Annual Maryland Green Schools Youth Summit, held at Sandy Point State Park in Annapolis, where he greeted more than 2,750 students and educators from across the state. The governor congratulated the students and schools on achieving the Maryland Green Schools Award from Maryland Association for Environmental Read the Rest…
Memorial Day weekend is now behind us – an important pause to remember and reflect on those who gave their lives for the freedoms and rights that we all enjoy. It also means the “summer” season has begun. The fishing rodeo season is in full swing. For those not initiated, these are free youth fishing Read the Rest…
Living History Program Featured June 9 and 10 The Maryland Department of Natural Resources welcomes the public to Point Lookout State Park in St. Mary’s County as they look back on the War Between the States and the historic sites within the park that were impacted in the conflicted that divided North and South. The annual Read the Rest…
Most anglers know we had been going through a bit of a dry spell for several weeks, but, oh boy, did that come to an end. The heavy rains and stormy conditions moving through the state the past few days are expected to last through the weekend. But the sun will shine again and it Read the Rest…
Enhanced Conservation Rules on Use of Bait and Hooks; Minimum Size Reduced to 19 Inches The opening of regular striped bass season May 16 coincides with new conservation-minded regulations pertaining to the use of bait, gear and hooks. The Maryland General Assembly Joint Committee Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review Committee recently approved Maryland Department of Natural Resources regulations, which will Read the Rest…
Despite a Cold Winter, More Young Crabs are in the Bay The Maryland Department of Natural Resources today released the results of the 2018 Blue Crab Winter Dredge Survey, which shows that the population of blue crabs remains healthy and sustainable. While this year’s cold weather and ice cover took a toll on the adult Read the Rest…
Nearly 700 Trees Planted at Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary The Maryland Park Service recently completed an important environmental restoration project, planting hundreds of native trees at Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary in Prince George’s County. It is the only wildlife sanctuary managed by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Last week, members of the Maryland Conservation Corps and Read the Rest…
Innovative Partnership Enhances Communications and Customer Service The Maryland Department of Natural Resources announced today that it is expanding its communications channels and services to include Amazon Echo. Through an innovative partnership with NIC Maryland, the department will now offer the Maryland Fishing Report, which provides anglers with the latest fishing hotspots, catch of the Read the Rest…
Warmer and more seasonable weather has finally descended upon the Maryland landscape, offering a wonderful time to enjoy the outdoors. The warm air temperatures and sunny weather, along with relatively cool water temperatures make for perfect fishing conditions in many local waters. Community ponds, trout management waters and lakes offer fun shoreline fishing adventures that Read the Rest…
Patience is supposed to be the hallmark of an angler, but many had theirs strained this past opening weekend for trophy striped bass season. Most understand it has been a chilly spring, and low water temperatures have delayed striped bass spawning in the tidal rivers. In the past couple of days we have seen water Read the Rest…
Baywide Total Breaks 100,000 Acres The Maryland Department of Natural Resources reports 2017 was the third consecutive record-breaking year for underwater grass abundance in Maryland’s portion of Chesapeake Bay. An annual baywide survey showed 62,356 acres of underwater grasses were mapped in Maryland’s tidal waters, a 5 percent increase from 2016. This is the fifth Read the Rest…