by MJEdens » Mon Feb 16, 2009 7:18 am
I have been fishing here in centeral florida for about 35 years now. I have commerical fished for reef fish, and also been srimper. I know that srimping waste a lot of young fish in all species, as throw back. Most are eaten by gulls,pecilegns, and plegic fish tageing along with these boats. Most of the small fish that are shouvled overbord are dead and dieing. I think and have looked at them and it seams that they have smothered, from the mass of fish srimp and trash packed aganist them, in the net. I love srimp too, and am saying that maybe the net boats should pull their nets more offten to help elemate the smothering of by product. I have also seen longline boats in the gulf, in the zones that was alloted for them to fish, throw back small grouper, that were dead or hurt from being on the line all night. Most of the throw backs form this one boat that we were watching, about 100 feet away were not useing any type of deflateing tools on the fish just throwing them in the water and they were floting by us trying to get into the water. Lots were being eaten by dolfins, and sharks before they could equlise their swimbladders to get back down. Now I know that there are a lot of sporting fishermen and women, that catch and relese fish. But take a longline that is 10 to 20 miles, Yes Milse slong and hooks every 50 to 100 feet and that is a lot of throw backs. This type of fishing is indescermentate fishing and waist lots of fish that no one sees, but the crew. Sop I belive as most that the numbers that the NFA has given are inflated. I'm not aganist fishermen makeing a liveing fishing. But please be more concerned about your throw backs. It is your livehood also. Take care of it. MJEdens