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Reef Anglers Facing New Regulations

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By FRANK SARGEANT | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 16, 2008

Updated: 01/15/2008 11:44 pm

Anglers fishing federal waters of the Gulf of Mexico, more than nine nautical miles from shore, will face new gear requirements when seeking reef fish starting this spring.

According to Steve Branstetter of the National Marine Fisheries Service, the new rules are aimed at reducing "discard mortality" in reef fish - that is, undersized or over-limit fish that are tossed back into the sea but do not survive.

Under the new rules, which are expected to be put in place within a few months, commercial and recreational anglers will be required to use non-stainless-steel circle hooks when fishing natural baits for all the popular grouper and snapper species.

The move is aimed at reducing deep hooking of fish. Circle hooks are larger than conventional hooks at a given numeric size, and their circular shape makes it difficult for them to set into a fish anywhere but in the corner of the jaw. The theory is that even fish that swallow baits will not often be hooked deep; the bait and hook slide along the gullet and out to the edge of the jaw, where the point of the hook catches and turns the hook into the lips.

Unwanted fish hooked in the lips usually can be released easily and without lasting injury, while those hooked deep in the throat or gullet rarely survive, according to the NMFS.

Use of non-stainless or carbon-steel hooks is designated because the carbon-steel hooks have been proven to rust away after a few weeks in saltwater. For fish that break the line, or those that are gut-hooked, cutting the line and releasing the fish is likely to result in survival, according to NMFS scientists, while with stainless steel, which does not rust away, the fish might not survive.

Anglers also will be required to have a dehooking device on board while fishing for reef species. Dehookers usually are made of a length of heavy wire, eight to 12 inches long, with a handle at one end and a U-shaped bend at the other.

In use, anglers catch the leader in the U-bend, slide the tool down the leader and over the hook, then turn the hook upside down by pulling up with the tool as they pull down on the leader. The result is to lever the barb out of the fish with little effort, and without touching the fish, in most cases.

The dehookers have two advantages for the fish. Hooks that are deeply set can be easily removed without prying open the jaws, and the fact the fish does not have to be gripped means there's no damage to the slime coat on the skin.

Anglers also will be required to carry on board at least one "venting tool" that can be used to deflate the swim bladders of reef fish intended for release. The tools allow releasing the expanded gasses that result when a fish is pulled from deep water. Unless the pressure is reduced, the fish can't get back to the bottom; it floats on the surface like a balloon until eaten by sharks.

Suitable venting devices, according to the NMFS, include large hypodermic syringes with the plunger removed, or hollow 16-gauge needles set into a drilled wooden dowel. The needle is inserted at a 45-degree angle an inch or so behind the pectoral fin, on the fish's belly, and the gas is released. A knife or ice pick is not a suitable venting tool, according to the NMFS, because these might wound without releasing the gas.

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