Delaware’s trout streams in New Castle County will be stocked with both rainbow and brown trout (as above) by DNREC’s Division of Fish and Wildlife over the next two weeks for the April 1 Youth-Only Opening Day of trout fishing season to be followed by the traditional trout opener the next day. /DNREC graphic: Duane Raver

Designated Trout Streams to be Closed to All Fishing From March 18 Until Youth-Only Opening Day Saturday, April 1

Delaware’s 2023 upstate stream trout season will open for youth anglers under age 16 at 7 a.m. on Saturday, April 1, followed by the opening of the regular trout season for all anglers a half-hour before sunrise the next day, Sunday, April 2, the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced today. Fishing will be allowed on youth opening day from 7 a.m. to a half-hour after sunset and from a half-hour before sunrise to one half-hour after sunset thereafter, unless otherwise restricted by area rules.

White Clay Creek, Red Clay Creek, Christina Creek, Pike Creek, Beaver Run, Wilson Run and Mill Creek all will be stocked prior to the season with thousands of rainbow and brown trout, including some trophy-sized fish weighing two pounds or more as an added attraction for anglers. Trout stocking is planned to continue weekly at White Clay Creek and periodically at the other upstate streams during April.

A new fly fishing-only section of trout stream has been established on Red Clay Creek from Yorklyn Road approximately 0.4 miles downstream to the Auburn Valley State Park boundary. In addition, a digital map of Delaware’s trout streams is now available.

To improve the atmosphere around Delaware’s trout fishing season openers, stocked trout streams are closed to all fishing from Saturday, March 18 through Friday, March 31 to accommodate trout stocking, eliminate incidental hooking of stocked trout, and to allow the fish time to adjust to their new waters.

Trout anglers planning to fish the upstate trout streams should note the following rules and regulations:

• A Delaware fishing license is required for anglers age 16 and older, unless an angler is exempt.
• A Delaware trout stamp is required for those age 16 and older, unless an angler is exempt.
• A Delaware young angler trout stamp is required for youth ages 12 through 15.
• A trout stamp is required to fish for trout until June 30, unless an angler is exempt.
• The daily possession limit is six trout, except inside the designated fly-fishing-only sections of Red Clay and White Clay Creeks, where the daily possession limit is four trout.

Proceeds from the purchase of Delaware trout stamps are used to help purchase trout for stocking the next year. This popular fishery is also supported by federal Sport Fish Restoration funds administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that are generated from anglers purchasing fishing equipment.

Delaware fishing licenses and trout stamps are sold online and by license agents statewide. To find a participating agent, or to purchase a license online, visit de.gov/licensing. For more information on trout fishing in Delaware, visit de.gov/trout.

For more information on fishing in Delaware, including in-season trout stocking dates, see the 2023 Delaware Fishing Guide.

About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife conserves and manages Delaware’s fish and wildlife and their habitats, and provides fishing, hunting, wildlife viewing and boating access on nearly 68,000 acres of public land owned or managed by the Division of Fish and Wildlife. For more information, visit the website and connect with @DelawareDNREC on Facebook, Instagram,  Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media contact: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov

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DNREC’s Mosquito Control Section is soon to begin its spring spraying campaign of woodland pools to limit numbers of emerging mosquitoes. /DNREC photo

Spring Spray Campaign Will Reduce Numbers of Year’s First Biting Mosquitoes

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control will begin annual spraying of spring woodland pools to control aquatic immature (larval) mosquitoes as early as Wednesday, March 15, weather permitting. Spraying by DNREC’s Mosquito Control section will begin in southern Sussex County, then expand into Kent and New Castle counties over the next several weeks. Controlling early-season woodland pool larval mosquitoes limits the emergence of biting adult mosquitoes later in the spring.

Up to 10,000 acres of wet woodlands near select populated areas will be treated with a helicopter applying the bacteria-derived insecticide Bti. As with all insecticides used by the Mosquito Control section within the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife, Bti has been determined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to pose no unreasonable risks to human health, wildlife or the environment when applied in accordance with product label instructions as required by federal law.

The spring woodland mosquito larvae spraying campaign marks the beginning of Delaware’s mosquito control season – which in most years continues until late October or early November. Starting in April, Mosquito Control Section activities will expand to larval and adult saltmarsh mosquitoes, other freshwater mosquitoes, and urban and suburban container-breeding mosquitoes to manage mosquito populations for improving the state’s quality of life and to protect public health.

Locations and times for scheduled mosquito spraying activity in the state can be obtained by calling toll-free 800-338-8181. Mosquito spraying announcements can also be received by email, text or voicemail by subscribing to Mosquito Control’s Spray Zone Notification System at de.gov/mosquitospray.

To request local mosquito control service, please call the following Mosquito Control field offices:

• Glasgow Office, 302-836-2555, serving New Castle County and the northern half of Kent County, including Dover.
• Milford Office, 302-422-1512, serving the southern half of Kent County south of Dover and all of Sussex County.

For more information on mosquito control in Delaware, visit de.gov/mosquito.

About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife conserves and manages Delaware’s fish and wildlife and their habitats, and provides fishing, hunting, wildlife viewing and boating access on nearly 68,000 acres of public land owned or managed by the Division of Fish and Wildlife. For more information, visit the website and connect with @DelawareDNREC on Facebook, Instagram,  Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media contact: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov

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The new Delaware Reef guide is available on the DNREC website at de.gov/artificialreefs and also can be obtained in hard copy through the DNREC Fisheries Section by going to the link above and filling out a request form. /DNREC photo

The new 2023-2024 Delaware Reef Guide covering Delaware’s artificial fishing reefs in the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean is now available. Published by the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, the updated guide includes artificial reef program history and the value of the reef program to the coastal economy, along with individual reef site descriptions, reef material deployments, reef coordinates and maps, and a quick reference guide to fishing hot spots. The guide’s maps were created with the assistance of the Delaware Department of Technology and Information.

Delaware’s increasingly popular Artificial Reef Program was initiated by the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife in 1995 to sustain important marine fisheries, increase recreational fishing opportunities and expand tourism. Delaware has 14 federally-permitted artificial reef sites in the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean, with 12 sites having had artificial reef materials deployed consisting of clean, durable and stable natural rock; construction materials; boats and subway cars to create new habitat for a variety of marine organisms to include recreationally important structure-oriented fish species.

Materials added to the artificial reefs over the last five years since the previous reef guide was published have included approximately 2 million tons of rock removed from the Delaware River navigational channel, more than 13,000 tons of concrete and several large retired marine fishing vessels, transport ferries and military ships. Video of recent sinkings are available on the DNREC YouTube channel.

The Delaware Artificial Reef Program and Delaware Reef Guide are funded by federal Sport Fish Restoration funds generated from anglers purchasing fishing equipment and administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, supported by Delaware fishing license revenues.

Additional Reef Guide information is available at de.gov/artificialreefs, where the reef guide can be downloaded as a pdf. Printed copies of the Delaware Reef Guide limited to one per household can be requested while supplies last through the Artificial Reef Guide Request Form link located at the webpage above or can be obtained at the DNREC Fisheries Section Little Creek office at 3002 Bayside Drive, Dover, Del. Future updates and new information on artificial reef material deployments can be obtained by emailing a request to DNRECFfisheries@delaware.gov.

About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife conserves and manages Delaware’s fish and wildlife and their habitats, and provides fishing, hunting, wildlife viewing and boating access on nearly 68,000 acres of public land owned or managed by the Division of Fish and Wildlife. For more information, visit the website and connect with @DelawareDNREC on Facebook, Instagram,  Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media Contact: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov; Nikki Lavoie, nikki.lavoie@delaware.gov

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The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control will host two public meetings to discuss the Brandywine Trail improvement project, which began construction on Feb. 27, on Wednesday, March 15, at 4:00 and 6:30 p.m. at the Blue Ball Barn in Alapocas Run State Park, Wilmington.

Those who are unable to attend and have questions on the improvement project or trail plan can visit destateparks.com/contact and select “Brandywine Creek State Park Trail Plan” from the Delaware State Parks location drop-down menu.

The improvement project is part of the Brandywine Creek State Park Trail Plan, which was created to guide trail investments and improvement for the next 10 years and approved after a multiyear planning process in June 2022. Public participation was a core component in developing this plan. Discussions were held with representatives of trail and park user groups regarding the trail plan. The plan was also presented at multiple public meetings, including open houses in 2015 and 2019 and a Council on Greenways and Trails meeting in May 2022.

About DNREC

About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The DNREC Division of Parks and Recreation oversees more than 26,000 acres in 17 state parks and the Brandywine Zoo. For more information, visit the website and connect with @DelawareDNREC on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media Contacts: Shauna McVey, shauna.mcvey@delaware.gov or Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov.

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Brent Wiest of Milton, captain of the Katydid, landed a state-record 21-pound 7.7-ounce, 32-inch tautog at Artificial Reef Site 11 (also known as the Redbird Reef) in the Atlantic Ocean last May 5 as one of six sportfish species for which new Delaware records were established in 2022. Submitted photo.

New state records for six fish species as caught from fresh and saltwater were established during the 2022 Delaware Sport Fishing Tournament, the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced today. Anglers landed their record catches from a freshwater pond, the Nanticoke River and the Atlantic Ocean, where there were three saltwater state records set, including a tautog weighing almost 21½ pounds caught from a Delaware artificial reef site established by the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife.

The six record catches as certified by the Division of Fish and Wildlife were:

• A 7-pound 10-ounce, 30-inch chain pickerel caught March 5 at McGinnis Pond near Frederica by William Mack of Frederica while fishing from his kayak;
• A 21-pound 7.7-ounce, 32-inch tautog landed May 5 at Artificial Reef Site 11 in the Atlantic Ocean by Brent Wiest of Milton fishing from and as captain of the Katydid;
• A 26-pound 11.2-ounce, 35.5-inch false albacore reeled in July 8 from the Atlantic Ocean by Mike Spayd of Wyomissing, Pa., while fishing on the No Limit captained by Jon Azato;
• An 89-pound 3.2-ounce, 63-inch cobia caught July 15 in the Atlantic Ocean by Scott Brooks of Hockessin while fishing on the Coughin’ captained by Jesse Coulbourn;
• A 25-pound 8-ounce, 38-inch blueline tilefish landed Aug. 27 from the Atlantic Ocean by Dain Hursh of York, Pa., while fishing on the Outnumbered captained by Chris Graham; and
• A 48-pound 3.2 ounce, 40.5-inch blue catfish reeled in Oct. 8 from the Nanticoke River by James Lord of Bridgeville.

For more information about Delaware Sport Fishing Tournament state records, visit de.gov/recfishing. Information about the tournament and state record fish also can be found in the 2023 Delaware Fishing Guide, which is available in printed form from license agents throughout the state.

About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife conserves and manages Delaware’s fish and wildlife and their habitats, and provides fishing, hunting, wildlife viewing and boating access on nearly 68,000 acres of public land owned or managed by the Division of Fish and Wildlife. For more information, visit the website and connect with @DelawareDNREC on Facebook, Instagram,  Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media Contact: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov; Nikki Lavoie, nikki.lavoie@delaware.gov

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