Long question : In the USA North East Coast area...?

Question

....who removes and eats the bulk of undersized fish n shellfish : Rec's or commercial fishermen???

Answer 1

Seagulls.   Ever see a flock of them following fishing boats?   The fish/lobster or whatever are usually not in the best of shape after being trapped/netted for long periods of time and end up as bird food when they don't react fast enough after being thrown back in the water.

Answer 2

commercial fisherman have a limit size that they throw back the undersized.

Answer 3

I remember doing a paper on local fish stocks when I was attending school in Boston. Recreational fishers remove the bulk of undersized fish. Even though there are strict laws on this, it is far harder for officials to track individual abusers than commercial abusers.