I completely agree with the view Captain Contessa expresses in the Feb. 28 letter/commentary about stronger striper regulations needed. The only intermediate step (short of game fish status) will be capping and reducing both recreational and commercial take quotas. Sharp reductions in both are required pronto!

I’ve bass fished Martha’s Vineyard and Long Island for 45 years. It’s evident the pressure on the fishery is threatened again. My last 20 years have been catch and release.

Have you ever witnessed the summer slaughter of mostly cow bass during the commercial season in Menemsha? The boats come in at dawn after a night out. They often are stacked to the gunwales with bass. The only thing that slows the cull is the plummet in market prices which sometimes occurs. The relentless dumping of breeder bass onto the market sometimes brings relief to the fish.

It is time for game fish status in the commonwealth. Capping the recreational take at one 32-inch fish per day and significantly reducing the commercial take by 50 per cent would give the fish a breather and a shot at recovery

Richard L. Berkley
Edgartown