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New Jersey Fish and Wildlife implements new freshwater fishing regulations, including fixed trout season date and annual creel changes
Summary
Kristen Maestrell, assistant director for New Jersey Fish and Wildlife, said the agency’s new freshwater fishing regulations took effect in February and include a permanent opening day for trout season (second Saturday in April), a reduced creel limit for the remainder of the year, expanded stocking and new lake trout provisions.
Kristen Maestrell, assistant director at New Jersey Fish and Wildlife, opened the forum with an overview of changes to the state’s freshwater fishing regulations, which she said took effect in February.
Maestrell said the department has set the opening day of trout season as the second Saturday of April going forward, removed the preseason closure for trout‑stocked lakes and ponds so those waters can be fished year‑round, and adjusted daily creel limits so anglers may keep six trout per day between opening day and May 31 and two trout per day for the remainder of the year. "Many of you have likely heard about these new regulations over the past year," Maestrell told attendees.
She also announced expanded stocking activities: staff have been stocking rainbow trout statewide this season and, for the first time in more than a decade, brown trout were stocked courtesy of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. The department added 23 ponds to its statewide stocking program and said lake trout management at Round Valley Reservoir and Merrill Creek Reservoir has been adjusted to allow more harvest under the Lunker Bass Regulation Set.
The changes and additional adjustments were listed in the department’s freshwater fishing digest, Maestrell said, and the digest is available online and from licensed agents. She closed by encouraging anglers to review the digest before fishing and wishing them luck for the season.
The announcement frames state regulation changes intended to balance recreational opportunity and fisheries conservation; the department said full details and other changes are highlighted in the digest posted on its website.
