Author: BD STAFF

Only days away, National Hunting and Fishing Day provides a perfect opportunity for men and women to celebrate the outdoors. Each year NHF Day signs up industry sponsors to donate products and schedules events across the nation to get more people outside and teach newcomers about shooting sports and fishing. Always held on the fourth Saturday in September, NHF Day 2012 is set to take place on September 22nd. Help the industry celebrate this annual “holiday” established by Congress in 1972 to recognize hunters, anglers and recreational shooters for their leadership and contributions to conservation in America. Through dues and…

The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) is advising consumers not to eat recreationally harvested mussels and clams, commercially or recreationally caught anchovy and sardines, or the internal organs of commercially or recreationally caught crab and lobster taken from the northern Channel Islands located offshore of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. Dangerous levels of the nerve toxin domoic acid have been detected in some of these species and may be present in the other species not yet tested. Domoic acid is a naturally occurring toxin that can cause illness or death in humans. No cases of human poisoning from domoic acid…

The crew on OCEARCH recently tagged a massive great white shark with a fine-scale motion sensor — a first for scientists. The female great white, which weighed more than 2,500 pounds and measured nearly 15 feet long, was tagged and released on September 13 during an expedition off of Chatham, Massachusetts. The project is a group effort, led by Chris Fischer’s OCEARCH and includes researchers from the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, Mote Marine Laboratory and other collaborators. The great white shark was tagged off of the M/V Ocearch, a unique ship, which uses a custom lift to raise giant…

The California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) is now offering online harvest reporting for hunters and anglers for the 2012 season and beyond. While the reporting requirements for hunters and anglers have not changed, the way information is reported is now faster and easier. Hunters and anglers can report their harvest details more quickly, and that information can be put to use promptly by fishery managers and game wardens. Standard mail reporting is still available and can be done through the address printed on the report card. DFG Expands Online Services To report online, just go to DFG’s Online…

The American Sportfishing Association (ASA) and the American Fly Fishing Trade Association (AFFTA) recently announced a partnership in which they will combine their trade shows in one venue in 2013. Both the International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades, better known as ICAST, and the International Fly Tackle Dealer Show, known as IFTD, will be held July 10-12, 2013, at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. Both ASA’s and AFFTA’s Boards of Directors voted unanimously to support the new partnership and co-locating ICAST and IFTS in the Las Vegas Convention Center next July. “By joining forces with ICAST…

The team on Chaser, a 54-foot Viking with Capt. Jimmy Kingsmill at the helm, was in the zone on Day Two of the Zane Grey Invitational based in Dana Point, California. The Chaser released one striped marlin on Day One of the tournament and lost another fish late in the day, so they were already hot as the second day of fishing began, but they really found their groove on Day Two. The Zane Grey Invitational is the first event in the California Billfish Series presented by COSTA and always attracts the top offshore boats on the West Coast. This…

A juvenile tarpon habitat restoration project planned near Boca Grande, Florida, recently got underway. Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, in collaboration with The Lemon Bay Conservancy are working together to identify and restore appropriate habitat for juvenile tarpon. Juvenile tarpon require very unique habitat, the fish’s ability to gulp air from the surface allows them to live in water that contains very little oxygen. These areas support little in the way of predators to juvenile tarpon — larger fish need oxygenated water, and wading birds have a tough time getting into the typically overgrown areas. Mucky backwater mangrove and marsh areas…

Guy Harvey Donates Florida Youth Project The Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation, recently donated $50,000 to the Florida Youth Conservation Centers Network (FYCNN), furthering its commitment to marine education efforts in the Sunshine State. The FYCCN is a non-profit partnership between the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the Wildlife Foundation of Florida. Working with 85 partner organizations, FYCNN has served more than 120,000 Florida youths in the past three fiscal years by connecting them with traditional outdoor activities. The Guy Harvey organization’s donation will provide seed funding to establish 10 permanent summer camps for youths to introduce them to…

The 2012 Zane Grey Invitational, the first tournament in the California Billfish Series presented by COSTA kicked off with eight boats fishing for more than $60,000 in cash. The fleet left the harbor in Dana Point, California, with lines in at 7 a.m. and headed out to the fishing grounds. Crews had high hopes as the Southern California striped marlin bite has shown a huge improvement over the last couple of years. Chiqelin, a 54-foot Bertram run by Capt. Mike “Beak” Hurt called in to Tournament Control just before 10 a.m. with the first hook up of the 2012 California…

This past spring, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) biologists tagged 136 trophy largemouth bass greater than 8 pounds in Florida’s public waters. Each trophy bass had a yellow plastic dart tag inserted into the back of the fish just below the dorsal fin. Each tag has a unique number that identifies a monetary reward value and information on how to report catches. Tagged bass came from 41 lakes and rivers that varied in size, water quality, habitat types, fish populations and angler demographics. Angler catch and harvest rates vary between lakes and rivers, so this approach allows for…

Boats stored for the winter in regions with consistent below-freezing temperatures have it best in heated storage facilities, except when winter storms bring power outages and the heat goes off. Suddenly, the boat’s motor, which is often not winterized or prepared for freezing temperatures, becomes a liability as water in the engine block freezes, destroying it. And for boats stored in warmer states, an unexpected cold spell can lead to ice damaging the engine block. That’s why no matter where you keep your boat over the winter, Boat Owners Association of The United States (BoatUS) recommends having ice and freeze…

Billfish Conservation Act Passes House Recreational anglers scored a big victory in Congress today as the Billfish Conservation Act passed overwhelmingly in the House of Representatives. The Billfish Conservation Act will make it illegal to import marlin into the United States, which is currently the largest importer of billfish in the world. With less demand for billfish, marlin will not be targeted as much by commercial interests. Fishing organizations are also working with foreign countries to teach them how valuable billfish can be as a game fish, as opposed to a commercial catch. The bill still must pass the Senate…

Florida’s East Coast Anglers Can Help Gather Red Snapper Data Researchers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are looking for anglers’ help to capture information about the important Atlantic red snapper fishery. The recreational red snapper season opens for two weekends this month in south Atlantic federal waters. FWC researchers, law enforcement personnel and volunteers will be out along Florida’s east coast during each day of the season asking recreational fishers about their red snapper trips and their catch. The recreational season runs Sept. 14-16 and 21-23 in south…

Anglers will be allowed to retain adult hatchery chinook salmon along the 70-mile stretch of Washington’s lower Columbia River during a weeklong pilot fishery that starts on September 10. The new pilot fishery, approved by fishery managers from Washington and Oregon, will run through September 16 from the Rocky Point/Tongue Point line upstream to Warrior Rock near the mouth of the Lewis River. The daily catch limit during the pilot fishery is two adult hatchery salmon, two hatchery steelhead, or one of each. Only one of the salmon may be an adult chinook. Anglers must release any chinook salmon, coho…

Australia is in the final stage of creating and implementing its National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas (NRSMPA) and for Australian anglers this could mean the loss of some of the world’s best fishing grounds. The proposed Coral Sea Commonwealth Marine Reserve will establish more than 194,000 square miles as a no-take zone that prohibits all forms of fishing. In Western Australia, iconic recreational fishing grounds including the Perth Trench and Geographe Bay will be closed to all fishing. The Billfish Foundation (TBF) is asking all anglers to support the opposition to these closures. It is coming down to…

Red snapper — a fishery that has been closed for three years now — is set to reopen in September of 2012 with a limited season. The South Atlantic Marine Fisheries Council (SAMFC) met in June of 2012 and discussed the options of a short season for red snapper in the South Atlantic. The SAMFC recommended to NOAA Fisheries that a limited harvest period be permitted on the East Coast. South Atlantic Red Snapper to Reopen The season will consist of two, three-day weekends for recreational anglers, along with a small commercial harvest. The Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) supported the…

Less than five months after the removal of the Elwha Dam, adult Chinook (king) salmon were observed in Olympic National Park. These are the first observed Elwha River salmon to naturally migrate into the park. When the Elwha Dam became operational in 1913, twenty-five years before the establishment of the park, over 70 miles of habitat were blocked to fish passage. The Chinook were observed approximately two miles upstream from the boundary of the park by Phil Kennedy, Lead Fisheries Technician for the park, “We knew this was going to happen and as I saw the fish roll, my heart…

As medical scientists move closer to catching the cure for cystic fibrosis, anglers in the Florida Keys are lending their efforts by fishing in Redbone tournaments to fund the gene research which will soon change thousands of CF patients lives. “We had no idea 25 years ago when we started these tournaments just how many remarkable strides would be made increasing the life expectancy of young CF sufferers,” said Capt. Gary Ellis, “especially now with the most promising ones through gene research.” Gary and his wife Susan are preparing for the 23rd annual Robert James Sales S.L.A.M. Celebrity Tournament in…

The problems facing our waters are many and varied – just like the anglers who are uniting to raise awareness for those problems, and raising money to solve them. Never before has such a large group of anglers – 50 teams across North America – joined the Recycled Fish 24 Hour Fish-A-Thon presented by Berkley Fishing. This Sept. 7 at 7 p.m., these intrepid anglers will make their first casts and then fish for 24 hours continuously – each team on its own home waters. In Alaska, “Team Urbanite” is made up of two couples, Jarred and Renee Behrendt, and…

Effective immediately, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Robert Barham announced an emergency closure of a portion of coastal waters due to the emergence of a large tar mat and concentrations of tar balls on adjacent beaches. This action is taken in coordination with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, who will assist with the investigation to determine the extent, source, and impacts of the oil in the environment. The area affected by this emergency closure includes the portion of state outside waters seaward a distance of one mile from the shoreline from the eastern shore of Belle Pass…

The Zane Grey Invitational, the first event of the 2012 California Billfish Series presented by COSTA, kicks off on September 9th in Dana Point. The Southern California striped marlin bite is producing solid action coming off of the full moon. With great fishing, and big bucks up for grabs, all signs are pointing to a banner year for the Zane Grey Invitational and the California Billfish Series presented by COSTA. The fishing keeps on improving with striped marlin reports come from the 209, the 267, Avalon Bank and the Slide. Boats are signing up fast, so don’t delay and get…

St. Thomas Blue Marlin Peje Boy Scout Tournament There was a five-way tie for top boat honors going into the fourth and final day of fishing in the 40th Anniversary USVI Open Atlantic Blue Marlin Tournament (ABMT) in St. Thomas, nicknamed the “Boy Scout” for the event’s chief beneficiary. Of the boats vying for the top spot, only one, the crew aboard Carlos Garcia’s 47-foot Cabo, Peje, released a blue marlin on the final day, Peje’s seventh of the tournament. The final blue was enough to give Peje the win. “It was a long day,” said Garcia. “We didn’t hook…

There was proof positive on the third day of fishing in the 40th Anniversary USVI Open Atlantic Blue Marlin Tournament (ABMT) that there’s a whole new generation of skilled blue marlin anglers out there. Seventeen-year-old Mason Domel from Austin, Texas, fishing with his family aboard the Cabo 48, Deguello, was the first of three junior anglers to release a blue marlin in the tournament. Better yet, the fish was a 600-pound whopper that had Domel in the fighting chair for 1 hour and 58 minutes. “This was the first time I pitched my own bait,” Domel explains, about how he…

As of 9 a.m., August 30, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Enforcement Division agents had rescued 1,537 people in St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany and Tangipahoa parishes who were in need of help after Hurricane Isaac made landfall. LDWF agents worked around the clock evacuating residents to higher ground from rising floodwaters. The following is a breakdown of rescues by parish. • St. John the Baptist Parish: 1,435 people and 131 pets using 50 agents with vessels • St. Tammany Parish: 60 people and one pet using 10 agents with vessels • Tangipahoa Parish: 42 people and…