In an attempt to rebuild seatrout stocks decimated by the deep freeze of February 2021, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officials have announced new bag limits effective March 16.
The daily bag limit for seatrout will be reduced from five to three, with a minimum size of 17 inches and a maximum size of 23 inches. No fish over 23 inches can be kept.
Currently, regulations are seatrout must have a minimum length of 15 inches and a maximum of 25 inches. Anglers can keep one oversized trout per day.
TPWD officials ordered the new restrictions for Matagorda Bay, San Antonio Bay, Aransas Bay, Corpus Christi Bay and the Upper and Lowe Laguna Madre bay systems. The area covered by the new regulations basically is south of FM 457.
The 2 million acres of bays and estuaries in Texas are vulnerable to fish kills, with major ones occurring in 1983, which left an estimated 14 million fish dead, one in 1989 that killed an estimated 11 million fish and one in January 2018 which caused minor mortality among inshore saltwater fish species.
Fish in the Laguna Madre, like spotted sea trout and red and black drum, are susceptible to cold temperatures because the bay is so shallow, and fish have few places to find safe harbor in deep water, which stays warmer.
Biologists with TPWD say the regulations should help seatrout recover by leaving more mature fish to spawn.
The TPWD commission approved the rules changes in January. They will remain in effect until Aug. 31, 2023.
