On the Line

Florida Snook Slot is a Hot Topic  

By Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

In fisheries management, slot limits are a commonly used tool in both fresh and salt water. The main purpose is to allow a controlled number of specimens to be harvested by anglers while protecting breeding size females and juveniles so that they may reach spawning size. In many cases, these sub-slot juvies do get a chance to spawn at least once before going home in the cooler.

Anglers have mixed opinions on slot limits, and Florida's Atlantic and Gulf coast slot limits for snook are very much a hot-button topic, especially today, September 1st, as the 14-week fall season opens on the Atlantic coast. The Gulf coast harvest season will not open until September 1, 2013, to further protect stocks that were especially knocked back by the historic deep freezes of 2010 that killed millions of snook statewide.

The slot is definitely restrictive, at 28 to 32 inches on the Atlantic coast, and 28 to 33 on the Gulf. The bag limit is conservative, at one fish per person per day. It can be a tough nut to catch that slot snook during open season, and many anglers feel that a 27- to 34-inch slot would be more reasonable.  Many go as far as to claim that the snook have recovered to the point that even more relaxed regs are in order. The slot stood at 27 to 34 inches as recently as 2009.

Today, my local newspaper's outdoor columnist, Ed Killer, covered the subject, titling his column, "Time to Widen the Snook Slot." He claims he likes to eat a snook every now and then, and with the 4-inch window, the odds are stacked against that. He is not wrong about that.

Anglers may have a better chance of a payout at a Vegas slot machine than catching that coveted slot snook.

I have to ponder: Would doubling the 4-inch slot to 8 inches jeopardize the chances of this fishery's rebound to pre-freeze numbers? Some say yes, others say no. Fisheries biologists definitely say the current slot is necessary, and say only future stock assessments will provide the tale of the tape.

Here's what I especially wonder about: Does the current 4-inch slot limit, which makes it harder to land a "keeper," in reality force anglers to fish harder and longer, and catch and release, and thus handle (and stress) more snook in the long run?  This may have merit, when you think about it.

I will say this: On the surface, it would appear that snook are plentiful where they typically congregate, such as the spawning aggregations in passes and inlets, and around structure such as bridges, docks, jetties and the like. But, I will argue that there is far less "spill over," or the typically wide distribution to habitat such as grassflats, beaches and other places.

You can't judge the fisheries' health by observing a small segment of it. It is that simple.

In Martin County (Stuart/Jensen Beach area) many anglers I talk to say that they catch far fewer snook while fishing for seatorut, reds or other targets in the Indian River Lagoon since the freezes. I can attest to that--my personal fishing logs reflect that. And those smaller juveniles, which were especially hard-hit by the cold kill, are still thinned out. It is by no coincidence that we have had two of the best years of spotted seatrout fishing (both for numbers and size average) in this region in recent memory. When one predator declines in number, other predators flourish.

The snook will come back in time, though no matter how regulated the recreational snook harvest is, habitat health will probably be the ultimate deal-maker or breaker.

Visit the following link to read up on snook and current the stock assessment, and please leave comment here, or email me at mike@flyandlighttackleangler.com

visit http://myfwc.com/media/2202449/14Snook-Presentation.pdf

--Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

On the Line

Booster Shot Time for Fly Fishing Industry  

By Mike Conner, editor-in-cheif

Looks to me like the Fly Fishing Industry needs a booster shot, again.

A lot of water has coursed down the stream since the movie, "A River Runs Through It," hit the big screen. The major booster shot that the movie provided, like it or not, prevented a flyfishing industry free-fall for some time, but right now, manufacturers are looking for the next big thing.

Fly fishing recruitment and promotion has proved difficult to say the least, though companies such as Orvis (through an aggressive and well-conceived fly fishing introductory program) and Temple Fork Outfitters (by way of reasonably priced, quality gear) are holding their own in a bleak economy.

It wasn't so long ago that the big guns in the rod and reel making business ran big full-page glossy ads that typically depicted dream-trip images. You know, those permit, tarpon, bonefish and billfish catches halfway across the globe that damn few fly anglers can afford to take. Sure, that marketing approach works for the small number of well-heeled fishermen among us, who tend gravitate to fly fishing eventually.

But what about growing the ranks? Fly fishing is by far the oldest type of sportfishing. It can be very basic, and low-key, and guess what? You can catch just about every species of gamefish and "food" fish on a fly, in fresh and salt water.

Why doesn't the fly tackle industry tap into the middle-class guys and gals who hit the water with spinning and baitcasting gear and who just may be open to adding fly fishing to their fishing?

That's the approach we will take at Fly & Light Tackle Angler. Mix it up. Fish with all genres of tackle. There is no downside. We do it. We live it.

When was the last time you saw a fly fishing ad with a picture of a fly fisher beaming over a nice seatrout, or a jack, Spanish mackerel or a largemouth bass? For me, never.

I did take a look at a few fly fishing print magazines this week, and of the very few ads in those books, the majority of the companies used closeup photos of their products rather than on those scene photos of anglers and world-class fish in world-class destinations.  Is this a change of attitude? 


Could be--reports from the recent International Fly Tackle Dealer (IFTD) trade-only show in Reno, Nevada strongly suggest it. Trusted sources tell me the thing was a dud, and retailer attendance was lousy as was the case in 2011 in New Orleans. And the show organizers did not announce next year's show location, going against tradition. Rumors are that IFTD will happen under the "big top" with ICAST next year in Las Vegas.

Hmmm....expose fly fishing to a throng of media and sportfishing industry folks? The purists and elitists may cringe at the thought, but I suggest they roll up their sleeves and take the needle. Shots only sting for a second. And they can heal what ails you.

On the Line

Who's Fishing for My Vote?


While driving back home from my local polling place today it occured to me that I was more informed about the candidates than in years past. Today was a Republican primary for county commissioners, clerks, a sheriff and two congressmen. A pretty full slate that would likely draw good voter turnout.

It also dawned on me that despite the fact that all of the candidates vying to be elected have pretty good web pages with details about their missions and backgrounds, they were kinda sparse in the personal and lifestyle department. Sure, they all mentioned family, and there were some requisite mentions about "caring for the environment," I was hoping that someone running for office here in seaside Martin County, Florida would have said:  "In my spare time I go fishing." Or, even boating or diving. Something. Even a candidate running for Congress, whose son owns a local fishing rod manufacturing company, did not list fishing as a favorite activity. But I figure he has to fish, right? I mean, C'mon!

I voted for him, whether he fishes or not. Besides, the alternative was voting for an outsider, a true carpetbagger!

Most voters are looking for someone like-minded right? I want to put a bona fide "salt" in office. Sometimes those photos of the candidate with the kids and wife or husband walking on the beach wearing trendy beachwear seem so damn staged, you know? Especially when they are all pasty white.

My hometown is nuts about recreational fishing, and it is located on the St. Lucie River, which joins the Indian River Lagoon just a two-minute boat ride through an inlet to the Atlantic ocean. Recreational, and to a lesser extent, commerical fishing, pumps big bucks into our economy, as is the case throughout the coastal U.S.  The health of my local waters and fisheries suffer badly at times due to agricultural pollution, and there are always issues regarding suburban growth and its effect on our fishing habitat.

So yeah, I would probably give a candidate more serious consideration if he or she came out and said something like, "My aim as your elected official is to establish a balance between economic growth so long as it does not adversely affect our waterways because it is also my goal to catch plenty of snook, tarpon redfish and trout today, and I want my kids and grandkids to do the same for years to come."

I would wave signs on street corners for a candidate who made that kind of stand.

I just wish someone on today's ballot was really "fishing" for my vote. 

On the Line

Don't Feed your Fish to Fish

by Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

Predation in oceans, rivers, lakes and streams is a fact of life, or death, as the case may be. It is the rare angler who has not witnessed large apex predators, such as sharks and porpoises, or alligators in fresh waters, home in on the scene where he or she is catching fish. Like it or not, an appreciable number of released fish, and even fish locked in battle with an angler, fall prey to something bigger and badder higher on the food chain.

So, what to do when this happens? Keep hooking fish and hope for the best? Or, elect to stop fishing when and where the chances of your catch being "lunched" (particularly those that you plan to release, or must release due to regulations) are high?

Yesterday, I was fishing the surf near my hometown in Stuart, Florida. The surf is chock-a-block with juvie bay anchovies right now. There is a brown ribbon against the sand for miles, hugging the beach to escape the jacks, Spanish macks, blue runners, snook, and small and large tarpon feasting on the numbers. And, there are lots of big sharks, blacktips and menacing bull sharks in particular.

At one point, I cast a streamer fly to a rolling 30- pound tarpon, only to have it grabbed by a chunky ladyfish--naturally, right?  As the ladyfish struggled, the tarpon turned and attempted to eat the lady. The ladyfish jumped off, the tarpon slowed, but then panicked and shot out of there.

 "What spooked that 'poon?" I wondered aloud, until an 8-foot bull shark surged ahead right on that tarpon's tail. I doubt the shark caught the tarpon, but had I hooked the tarpon, the shark had an easy meal.

In the next ten minutes, I spotted at least a half-dozen more, cruising the same lane outside the minnows where the tarpon were. It was obvious what they were after. I stashed my fly rod at that point. Though I came to primarily jump tarpon on fly, I have no desire to feed tarpon to the sharks, as way too many anglers do, though not purposely in places such as Florida's Boca Grande Pass.

I wish every angler would make this decision whenever faced with a similar situation.

    

On the Line

Catch-and-Release-to-Survive

by Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

During an address to the sportfishing media during the week of the ICAST sportfishing trade show in Orlando earlier this month, American Sportfishing Association (ASA) President and CEO Mike Nussman announced the launch of a commendable public awareness program, FishSmart.

"In fresh water we've done a great job in reducing fish mortality with fish that anglers catch," said Nussman. "More than 80 percent of anglers who caught fish that they could have kept, reported releasing some of them. In saltwater alone, the number of released fish exceeds 200 million annually, and with increasing regulations such as size limits, bag limits and seasons this number is sure to grow."

"However," as Nussman noted, "One of the keys to successful catch and release efforts is having the right kind of tackle that improves the chance that released fish will live. The overall FishSmart program is designed to address this and other fisheries conservation issues, such as angler education, head on."

It is a message that anglers have heard before, if not from an organization that represents our sport. This outdoor writer, and many others, have hammered this message home time and time again, with the realization that it does fall on deaf ears all too often. Particularly the ears of anglers who chase world records or look for headlines, or claim that the lighter the tackle, the more a fish can "show its stuff."

Sure, a long slugfest with a tough gamefish is thrilling, but in the long run, not ideal for that fish if it is to be released. What I hear all the time is that using tackle that shortens the battle measurably "takes the challenge" out of cathcing a fish. I will cite examples such as the guy I know who refuses to use a fly rod heavier than a 6-weight and light tippet for big Florida bonefish. Or the sports I have come across who are dead-set on catching big tarpon on spin tackle more suited for redfish. I used to fish with a fellow who cast a 4-weight fly rod for tailing redfish in the heat of summer and then babied them on his light tippet forever. It took 10 minutes to revive them to swim away, barely, and I am convinced they were a shark's lunch soon thereafter. I do not fish with him anymore. And I hope he doesn't do that anymore.

It all boils down to what is essentially "stunt" fishing and what is responsible catch-and-release fishing. If you plan to put your catch on ice for dinner, by all means go as light as you dare. Although most anglers beef up on tackle considerably when out for meat, don't they? There is even some evidence that overly long, drawn-out fights build up lactic acid levels high enough to affect the quality and flavor of fish flesh, so keep that in mind.

If you plan to release your catch, tackle up accordingly to catch them as quickly as possible. Otherwise it's just catch-and-release-to-die.

This hefty dock snook, caught by angler Jon Macca, was landed on a 9-weight fly rod in under two minutes, held out of water for less than 10 seconds for a quick photo, and swam away in great shape.   

On the Line

Pick the Right Stick  

by Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

A trip to Flamingo on Florida Bay this past Sunday further solidified my fishing philosophy: Pick the Right Stick. Though my plan was to fly fish for tailing redfish, andI fact did hook and land the first redfish I spotted and cast to with my 8-weight rod, things changed in a heartbeat.

The wind died, and the flat looked like an ice skating rink--not a ripple. The sun was now high enough to light up our world, which makes fish-spotting easier, but in a tradeoff, fish see you better, too. The reds were all singles, and as my host Richard Kernish said: "They aren't tailing as much as yesterday. Yesterday they were "flopping over" standing on their heads. And we had some wind and a light chop.

Translation? Easier fish to approach and feed. "Dumber" fish.

We would pole silently to within 70 feet of a fish, and it would feel us and would move off irritably, pushing a wake as it did. After a dozen refusals on long, long casts, and showing them the fly pretty darn well most times, we knew what time it was: Spinning rod time!

I jumped on the poling platform and Richard tied on a nice, fat plastic jerbait, Texas-rigged. A single red tailed up 120 feet away. Richard launched a long cast just beyond the fish, which had no clue. Richard twitched the bait. The redfish pounded it. Richard's rod bent double. And he looked back at me with that look that said, problem solved. And we repeated the scene a half dozen times in the next 15 minutes until the water rose further and the fish dissappeared.

"We would have caught 20 fish if we made the switch earlier," Richard commented later. No doubt, we would have. But that's okay, we have scored big numbers many times on fly. But on this day, casting from even a full fly line's distance just did not cut it.

Do I prefer fly casting? Sure. But I also like to catch redfish after going to bed at midnight, rising at 4 a.m. and driving 170 miles to fish for maybe 6 hours. So, I will do what it takes without reservation. I pick the right stick. Every single time.