Outdoor Almanac July 2010

Fishing
CATCHES: 
Guided by IGFA Certified Captain Alberto Bartoli, and using shrimp for bait, Roberto Godi of Arcole Veroma, Italy landed a potential IGFA All-Tackle record after catching a wels catfish (Silurus glanis) earlier this year.  The giant fish weighed 113.5 kg (250 lb 3 oz) which Godi caught while fishing Italy’s River Po. He said the fish fought for 45 minutes before he was able to pull it to shore onto a smooth-surfaced mat where it was weighed, photographed and released alive. The current IGFA record is 242 lb 8 oz (110 kg) caught February 2009, also from the River Po.

Thomas M. Evans Jr. of Grafton, Vermont, USA, guided by Al Dopirak, landed a huge tarpon (Megalops atlanticus) while fishing a brown toad fly off Pine Island, Florida near Ft. Myers. This potential men’s 6 kg (12 lb) tippet record took two hours and ten minutes to land and weighed in at 88.22 kg (194 lb 8 oz). The current IGFA record is 177 lbs (80.28 kg) recorded off Homosassa, Florida in May, 1994.

Boating
According to BoatUS, boaters in some parts of the country continue to have a difficult time gaining access to the water.

The fourth annual BoatUS Recreational Boating Access Award was designed to recognize those individuals or groups who have succeeded in preserving or improving public waterway access.  “Ultimately, boating access is a local issue and this award recognizes those advocates across the US who are succeeding in reversing the trend towards declining waterway access,” said BoatUS President Nancy Michelman. 
  
Judges will look at four criteria: First, the challenges faced in retaining or increasing access in an area; Second, the direct impact or measurable results of the solution; Third, the level of success in increasing awareness of the importance of boating access to a community and; Fourth, “repeatability,” the ability to use the successful approach as a model for other areas. Eligible activities must have been undertaken in the last three years.  The deadline for applications is October 1, 2010 and winners will be announced by October 31. Previous entrants are asked not to reapply. For more information go to www.BoatUS.com/gov/AccessAward.

Habitat
According to a report recently released by the Gulf Coast Joint Venture (GCJV), scientists have completed analyses demonstrating that the massive losses of coastal wetlands during the past half-century have reduced the capacity of Gulf Coast marshes to support wintering waterfowl. Potential impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill means waterfowl may encounter even greater food shortages when they arrive on the Gulf Coast later this year.

“We’ve known for years that coastal habitat loss and degradation have been slowly reducing the Gulf Coast’s capacity to support wintering waterfowl,” said Dr. Mike Brasher, GCJV biological team leader. “However, no study had quantified the consequences of coastal marsh loss to waterfowl food availability.”
“Basically, we asked how many acres of marsh it takes to feed a desired number of waterfowl, then compared that to what is presently on the landscape,” Dr. Brasher said.

The study area included coastal marshes from Mobile Bay, Alabama, to Corpus Christi, Texas.  In southeast Louisiana alone, coastal marsh food resources may support 1.3 million fewer waterfowl. These are the same marshes where redfish, spotted seatrout and many other gamefish grow up.

Government
If the recent actions of the NOAA’s South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAMFC) are any indicator of the future of fisheries management, recreational anglers may have a rude awakening.

The Council approved an amendment to address overfishing of red snapper and rebuild the South Atlantic stock during its meeting in June.  Measures include a continuation of the closure of the red snapper fishery for both commercial and recreational fishermen in federal waters in the South Atlantic and a new area closure off of central east Florida and Georgia.

After reviewing huge negative public comment and the management alternatives, the Council modified the area closure for snapper and grouper species, reducing the closed area by eliminating much of the previously proposed area off the coast of Georgia. If approved, management measures in Amendment 17A will likely be implemented later this year.  A new stock assessment is being conducted for red snapper and the results will be presented to the Council in December 2010. 

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