NEWS
The latest updates on the Chesapeake Bay menhaden
On Menhaden: Time To Do The Science
Virginia’s long-running debate over Atlantic menhaden centers on whether heavy industrial fishing in the Chesapeake Bay is harming the ecosystem. […]
Read MoreVirginia and Maryland have a small fish problem
Maryland and Virginia are clashing over the Atlantic Menhaden, a small forage fish vital to the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. Virginia’s […]
Read MorePress Briefing – Save Menhaden
The Chesapeake Bay Foundation and partners hosted a call with reporters on Feb. 6 as Virginia legislators prepared to consider bills to address concerns around Virginia’s industrial menhaden fishery in...
Read MoreAs Menhaden Stress Mounts, Virginia Legislators Face Key Decision
Coalition Pushes for Pausing Industrial Menhaden Extraction in the Chesapeake Bay While Scientific Study is Completed As lawmakers prepare to […]
Read MoreVirginians Overwhelmingly Back Reforming Industrial Menhaden Fishery Amid Troubling Signs (September 3, 2025)
A poll of 600 Virginia voters shows 92% support leaving more menhaden in Chesapeake Bay. Omega Protein’s industrial reduction fishery […]
Read MoreMenhaden Management Meeting Results in Lackluster Coastwide Catch Reductions (October 29, 2025)
Atlantic fisheries regulators adopted a modest 20% menhaden quota reduction for 2026, despite new assessments showing populations are 37% lower […]
Read MoreIt’s the most important fish in the sea. And it’s disappearing (November 20, 2025)
Menhaden — also known as pogies or bunker — are small oily fish that feed nearly everything in the Atlantic. […]
Read MoreThis little fish is the center of a big debate in the Chesapeake Bay (November 3, 2025)
Across the Chesapeake Bay, fishermen are reeling in fewer striped bass. Many osprey have stopped laying eggs, and chicks that […]
Read MoreTensions flare over ‘most important fish’ in the ocean (December 3, 2025)
Sportfishing and environmental groups demand stronger protections for menhaden, a small forage fish crucial to Atlantic and Gulf Coast ecosystems. […]
Read MoreLegislation aims to stop menhaden reduction fishing, study population concerns (January 26, 2026)
Three bills in Virginia’s General Assembly target menhaden fishing in Chesapeake Bay, responding to conservationists’ concerns about declining populations affecting […]
Read MoreMcGuire Woods Menhaden Study Letter (2-18-25)
February 18, 2025 Dear Delegate Carr: Per our conversation yesterday, please find language we propose for consideration by you and […]
Read More