Coastal bays fishing regulation brochures are here and available free to businesses, individuals or groups.

The Coastal Bays Program, with financial support from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, has printed 20,000 brochures with the legal size and take limits of common coastal bay fish. Over the past week staff and Maryland Natural Resources Police have been disseminating the brochures to marinas and tackle shops

Any marina or tackle shop owners who have not received the brochures should call Dave Wilson at the Coastal Bays Program office at 410-213-2297 to get their free copies. Individuals are also welcome to stop by the Coastal Bays office at 9609 Stephen Decatur Highway across from the Greene Turtle to pick them up.

Notable changes this year include a Jan. 1-Sept. 1 and Sept. 16-Nov. 30 season for black sea bass with an increased size limit of 12 inches, a slot limit for red drum of 18-27 inches, no closed season for summer flounder, a Jan. 1 to Nov. 30 season for tautog, and a decrease in weakfish size from 14 down to 13 inches with an 8-fish creel.

Remaining the same are black drum at 16 inches and one per day, bluefish at 8 inches and 10 per day, croaker at 9 inches and 25 per day, stripers at 28 inches and two per day, scup at 8 inches and 50 per day and spotted seatrout at 14 inches and 10 per person. The brochures are printed every year as soon as regulations are finalized.