MA Changes How To Measure Striped Bass

A beautiful striped bass. Photo/Tom Richardson

If you think you know how to measure striped bass, think again.

Anglers fishing Massachusetts waters may need to change how they measure their stripers.

Image courtesy the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries.

Beginning in 2025, the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries has modified how fishermen are required to measure for compliance with recreational and commercial striped bass size limits.

Anglers must now pinch the tail together when measuring a striped bass to confirm it is of legal harvestable size.

All size limits for striped bass are in total length. Total length is to be measured as the greatest straight-line length (not over the curve of the body) in inches from the anterior most tip of the jaw or snout, with the fish’s mouth closed, to the farthest extremity of the tail, with the tail squeezed together.

Previously, anglers could either pinch the tail or leave it fanned out when measuring the length of a striped bass.

Requiring the tail to be pinched establishes a clear and consistent technique for measuring striped bass for compliance with both minimum and maximum size limits.

Data collected by the division indicates that manipulating the tail can alter the measured length of a striped bass by over an inch.

This revision upholds the intended conservation benefits of the management measures and supports the enforceability of striped bass regulations.

Currently, the spring striped bass migration is in high gear and the scene is heating up for those fishing Cape Cod, Boston Harbor, and other hot spots.

Striped bass are one of the most popular species for those fishing New England, and stripers are on the move all around Cape Cod during the spring.

Anglers fishing Chatham and Monomoy Island will find those waters are a constant hot spot, thanks to strong currents, prominent bottom structure, and lots of baitfish.

Those fishing Provincetown from The Race around to the so-called “Golf Balls” should have success as that area is legendary for striped bass fishing.