DEP Sea Bass Seizure

RWilson2526 · #1 03-05-2012, 11:52 AM

http://www.app.com/article/20120305/...f-legal-season

I've fished with the two guys named at the bottom of the first page....

macojoe · #2 03-05-2012, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Friday said he did not target sea bass that day, told his passengers as he always does that it was illegal to catch them, and he is not responsible for enforcing state fishing laws, if a fisherman keeps a fish illegally.

The captain is responsible for the fish!! I don't allow anything on my boat out of season or shorts!

Blue_Runner · #3 03-05-2012, 03:53 PM

My gut reaction is to say the captian shouldn't have given a statement. Then again, it doesn't matter what you say it will be spun against the fishermen.

captain: "...never have we caught so many BSB at this location in the month of Feb........the black sea bass have not been this abundant in the 30 years that he has been captain of the Jamaica."

eco-wackos: "Proof positive that the species is rebuilding due to our superb intervention......thanks Captain!"

captain: "What they’re doing to us right now with sea bass is like putting a 20-mph speed limit on the Garden State Parkway."

eco-wackos: "Great idea Captain! It will probably save several hundred if not thousands of lives, not to mention lessen the number of road kills and bird strikes.....Thanks Captain!"

Then there's the bit about BSB not being "releasable" due to the air bladder. I don't believe the captain is responsible for the statement but the author of the article did us fishermen a dis-service in the way he phrased that paragraph.

unknown (prob. author): "The fish then can no longer return to the bottom, which makes releasing under-sized fish nearly impossible. Instead of swimming, the fish float on the surface and die."

eco-wackos: "Wow, you're absolutely right author. In order to protect these BSB we need to put closures on all wrecks and reefs because someone might catch and kill a BSB or 20. Thanks author! We'll get right on it!"

Purely sickening......

Down here we're already on short season and 5 per person. Rumor has it when it opens back up we will only be allowed 1 per person and earlier closure than last year due to going over quota in 2011.

Kracker Jack · #4 03-05-2012, 06:13 PM

I love them big velvet headed critters!!!! I have a many found memory wreck fishing for black willies with my dad on his ole' v20. Its a very fine line when they start putting limits and seasons on fish because it effects others livelyhoods. but ultimately you have to stay in the limits of the law.

tsubaki · #5 03-05-2012, 08:09 PM

You can't drop a line offshore around here now without these things eating the bait and even themselves before it hits the bottom.

The SAFMC obviously knows more than us.

Endangered Blackfish, who'd of thunk?

tsubaki · #6 03-05-2012, 08:17 PM

By the way.
http://www.wellcraftv20.com/communit...light=sea+bass
We fixing to be down to 13" and 5 fish "when" the season opens.
http://www.safmc.net/News/NewsReleas...5/Default.aspx

tsubaki · #7 03-05-2012, 08:34 PM

Problematically, I can't substantiate their demise being we have so many around here.
But it is possible it's like the Hooded Merganser as described to me by a Federal Game Warden. "You have 3/4 of the wintering population in your State, therefore the reason for the low possession limits".

Kracker Jack · #8 03-05-2012, 10:22 PM

seabassin has been fairly slow here for a while. Our offshore wrecks like the "triangle wrecks" are loaded with em cause not everybody can fish that far. But our inshore wrecks up to 13 miles get hammered! all small fish.

RWilson2526 · #9 03-06-2012, 04:08 AM

Just for the record i dont approve that the guys I know where catching that amount of out of season fish...although there was 4 of them and it seems like they may be charging them both with the total catch for all 4 guys....either way they got way greedy and are going to pay big time it seems.

Blue_Runner · #10 03-06-2012, 09:03 AM

Yeah, I in no way am in favor of breaking the law either. What I have a problem with is going from 20 per person to all out seasonal closure. Is there no happy medium? I tend to agree that 20 fish at 12" is a bit excessive. Why not something like 10 fish per person at 13" ? Or even 14". That would make a heck of a lot more sense IMO. These fish are prolific by all accounts.