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Originally Posted by dakota560
In the absence of regulations I couldn't agree more. Problem with the sea bass closure other than the obvious is the ripple effect it has on other stocks. With the fluke fishery where it's at, if everyone concentrates on ling how long before that fishery feels the impact especially since these fish right now are spawning and females are loaded with eggs. Years past there were any number of fish to target so the fishing pressure was spread over a much broader base. Today that's all changed.
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Great Point! It's always about the future. Despite all of the warnings by our fathers and grandfathers about conservation and preservation of the fishing stocks, when fishermen are given a chance to catch big spawning fish, all of the warnings go out the window. The same is true when it comes to limiting the number of easily caught fish that go into fishermen's coolers.
When the seasons close or are limited and the bag limits are reduced, everyone cries and complains. By then, it's too late because the damage was already done. Fishermen have to control themselves and their bravado. How many times do we see words like slaughter, coolers' full, drop and reel, epic, boat limits etc. to describe the fishing? History does repeat itself and we never seem to learn. I'm not just pointing fingers at the recs. but also at the commercial boats that also seem to have forgotten how the overfishing by their predecessors destroyed their industry.
Ling, filled with eggs (roe) that are getting ready to spawn will be the next targeted fish. When they are caught up during this time period, what are the chances for them to replenish an already depleted fishery? The posts on this board in the future will be about where have the ling and whiting gone?
Fishermen will always target the fish that are the most plentiful and the easiest to catch until those fish are gone. And the beat goes on and a another generation of fishermen come on the scene without having learned any history from their parents or grandparents.
With the record numbers of black seabass being boxed everyday this year, there is no doubt that the bag limits and seasons will be reduced next year.
If the ling get clobbered during the summer like the seabass did this spring,
expect restrictions on them too.
