Hugh Bollinger / Monday, May 16, 2011

Fish tales

When I was young, I spent many a day fishing with my father and his friends in the mountains. Mostly we trolled about in lakes and reservoirs near California's High Sierra's catching hatchery raised rainbow and brown trout. It was a great thrill for a little guy. I still remember hearing fish stories about "the one that got away" or "it must have been at least twenty pounds" which amazed my ears. Since then, 'fish tales' seem to have become more embellished and have even drawn the attention of judges in fishing tournaments with legal action proposed against fishing fibbers. The Texas legislature has just passed a bill making it a misdemeanor, or a felony, to cheat during fishing tournaments or "derby's" as they are called. According to Fox News instances have occurred in Texas where "anglers altered the size or weight of fish, including a case in 2009 in which a man was disqualified from a tournament and fined after dropping a lead weight into a fish." Some people in Texas seem to take bass fishing WAY to seriously. Similar derby's have drawn attention for the fact that large fish are now few and far between. Some events may even need to be cancelled for lack of big fish to catch. The practice of 'catch and release' on mountain rivers is well established and fishery sustainability is well practiced. It's still rare in the oceans where the fish derby's are typically held. Hanging big fish-- typically the breeders in the ocean ecosystem --for a trophy photo is still the standard fare. It has gotten so bad off southern California that the LA Times reports the organizers of the Santa Monica halibut derby had to change the regulations this year to allow any big fish caught to win a prize. [caption id="attachment_4062" align="aligncenter" width="520" caption="halibut fishing derby source: Homer News"]

[/caption] The days of killing big fish could easily end if simple rules conserving these marine breeders were enacted. Following the fly fisherman codes, the derby regulations should be: catch the fish, take the photo, let it go, tell the story. WHB

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Tags: catch and release fish stories fishing derby's fishing tournaments fly fishing ocean conservation sustainable fisheries trout fishing

1 comments on article "Fish tales"

Jake

And what a great photo that is. I had no idea halibut got so huge!

5/16/2011 7:30 AM

Fish tales

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Jake

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