Juvenile Striped Bass Hold Steady at Average Abundance in Virginia Waters

Young-of-year striped bass in Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay tributaries are showing an average 2026 year class, according to preliminary findings from the Juvenile Striped Bass Seine Survey by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science at William & Mary. The survey recorded a mean of 9.52 juvenile striped bass per seine haul, up from 5.12 in 2025 and near the regional historical average of 7.77. Scientists note the fish hatched this spring won’t be harvestable for three to four years, but today’s abundance shapes the late-2020s fishery trajectory. The study, run annually since 1967, sampled 18 index sites across the Rappahannock, York, and James River systems, measuring 2,648 juveniles in 2026 with standardized methods.