Tautog

Tautog is managed under Amendment 1 (2017) to the Fishery Management Plan, which delineated the stock into four regions due to differences in biology and fishery characteristics, and limited coastwide movement. Based on these delineations, the Amendment established new regional biological reference points, fishing mortality targets, and stock rebuilding schedules, and required each region to implement measures that have at least a 50% probability of achieving the regional fishing mortality target. If the current fishing mortality exceeds the regional threshold, the Board must initiate corrective action within one year.

The 2017 assessment update found that all regions except MARI were overfished, and overfishing was occurring in the LIS and NJ-NYB regions. As such, Amendment 1 required the LIS region to reduce harvest by at least 20.3%, and the NJ-NYB region to reduce harvest by at least 2%. The MARI and DelMarVa regions were not required to reduce harvest but adjusted their regulations to establish consistent measures across all the states within each region where possible.

In October 2025, in response to the finding of the 2025 stock assessment update, the Board initiated an addendum to address changes in stock status for NJ-NYB and DMV. The Draft Addendum will also consider allowing for the MARI and LIS regions to modify management for precautionary or alignment purposes.

Since the 2015 Benchmark Stock Assessment, stock status has been evaluated regionally due to differences in biology, fishery characteristics, and limited coastwide movement. Those regions include: Massachusetts–Rhode Island (MARI), Long Island Sound (LIS), New Jersey–New York Bight (NJ-NYB), and Delaware– Maryland–Virginia (DMV).

In 2025, a Regional Stock Assessment Update was completed, using the same assessment methodology that was approved for management use as part of the 2016 Regional Benchmark Stock Assessment and subsequently used in the 2017 update.

Stock status did not change for the MARI or LIS regions from the 2021 update but did change for the NJ-NYB and DMV regions. The NJ-NYB region went from being overfished but not experiencing overfishing in the 2021 update to not being overfished but experiencing overfishing in this update. The DMV region was previously not overfished or experiencing overfishing but was considered overfished and experiencing overfishing in the 2025 update.

All regions showed major retrospective patterns in fishing mortality (F) and spawning stock biomass (SSB), with MARI, LIS, and NJ-NYB assessments overestimating F and underestimating SSB, while the pattern was reversed in the DMV region. This pattern was also seen in the 2021 update but appeared to have worsened during the 2025 update. Based on the Commission’s policy on retrospective analyses, the Stock Assessment Subcommittee adjusted both F and SSB for all regions since F and SSB values were outside of the 90% confidence interval which changed stock status for some regions.

Since the 2021 update, recruitment has increased in the LIS and NJ-NYB regions, and MARI shows a slight increase in SSB. In the DMV, fishing mortality had been low since 2012 before reaching a peak in 2021 followed by a sharp decline thereafter. Total removals have increased in all regions, driven primarily by increases in recreational harvest.

A more detailed overview of the tautog regional stock assessment update is available here.

While tautog are targeted by both commercial and recreational fisheries, over 90% of the total harvest comes from the recreational fishery, with a majority of landings occurring in state waters. Most tautog are landed in the spring and fall, although some Mid-Atlantic anglers pursue tautog year-round, and there is an active fishery off the Virginia coast in the winter. Historically, tautog were considered a “trash fish” until the late 1970s when demand increased and a directed commercial fishery developed. Landings quickly rose, peaking in 1987 at nearly 1.2 million pounds, then rapidly began to decline as states implemented commercial regulations starting in the early 1990s. Landings have remained at approximately the same level for the past 30 years.

Commercial landings in 2024 were approximately 497,713 pounds, 4.4% of the total (commercial and recreational) coastwide harvest. The ex-vessel price (dollars per pound) for tautog has nearly steadily increased since the late 1970s with coastwide average price in 2024 at approximately $3. 47 per pound. A majority of 2024 commercial landings (69%) occurred in New York followed by Massachusetts (14%). The fish is sold in both fresh and live markets in Northeast cities, with steady demand increasing the price for live tautog in recent years. The higher price and interest in undersized fish has led to significant illegal harvest.

Recreational harvest occurs primarily in the fall from September– December, with green and Jonah crabs the bait of choice for many anglers. Over the past 40 years, coastwide recreational harvest has ranged from a high of over 20 million pounds in 1986 to a low of 3.4 million pounds in 2018. Harvest in 2024 was estimated at 10.7 million pounds. At the state level, Massachusetts through New Jersey account for the vast majority of recreational harvest, with New York and Massachusetts anglers harvested the most tautog in 2024, although the highest harvesting states does vary year-to-year. While harvesting at much lower levels, fisheries in the states of Delaware through Virginia are primarily recreational. Coastwide recreational discards have increased over time, with an estimated 26.1million fish discarded in 2024. A discard mortality rate of 2.5% is assumed for the recreational fishery, resulting in an estimated 652,871 recreational dead discards or 17.5% of recreational removals.