| Jeff
Kingsley
Q: What is your name?
A: Keff Kingsley
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What
makes you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have fished the Southern California waters for
over 20 years. I have been fishing the East Cape in
Mexico for 13 years, usually in spring or early summer.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: I fish either the offshore banks or the islands
off Southern California twenty plus days a year. I also
fish in the "East Cape" of the Baja for billfish
one week a year.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone
else’s?
A: My own and on charters in Mexico.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing
trips?
A: Recently, yes, historically, no.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - 60% down
Blue Marlin - 50% less
Yellowfin tuna - 30% down
Blue sharks - 60% less
Maco sharks - 50% less
Thresher sharks - 50% less
Yellowtail - 20% down
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught
changed in the last 15 years?
A: The fish I have caught are about 50 pounds smaller.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: Not really quantifiable, but I remember getting
many more strikes in years past, especially sharks.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: I mainly fish outside of Catalina Island today.
In years past, I would fish closer to shore and at the
inner banks with success.
Burleigh Brewer
Q: What is your name?
A: Burleigh Brewer
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What
makes you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I began fishing Southern California waters as a
boy in 1951 and I have fished these area regularly since
then. I am a member of the Tuna Club of Avalon.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: In addition to what I said above, I have also regularly
fish in the Mexican waters from La Paz to Cabo San Lucas
and the mainland areas from Mazatlan to Manzanillo.
I average approximately 45 days per year fishing in
these waters.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone
else’s?
A: I currently do not own a boat, but in the past I
have owned several boats, varying in size from a 16'
outboard to a 33' sportfisher.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing
trips?
A: I began keeping a fishing log about two years ago.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - the decrease varies from year to
year in Southern California, but I would estimate a
drop of 20 to 30% and a 30% to 40% drop in Mexico where
I have fished.
Yellowfin tuna - overall decrease on average of 30
to 40%, but in some years, there is an increase in offshore
areas
Blue sharks - there appears to be a substantial decrease
in numbers
Yellowtail - substantial decreases in coastal areas
generally, but some areas still produce substantial
numbers, but not with the regularity I experienced in
the 1950's and 1960's.
Dorado - an increase during El Nino and La Nina cycles
in Souther California and a 50% to 60% decrease in the
Mexican waters I have fished.
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught
changed in the last 15 years?
A: Yes, they are substantially smaller.
Q: What about the average size of sailfish caught
in the last 15 years?
A: In the Mexican waters the average sailfish size
has dropped substantially during that period. Most sailfish
I have seen or hooked and released seem to be in the
fifty to seventy pound range, while in earlier years
the average size was closer to 90 to 100 pounds. Unfortunately,
in several recent trips to the Manzanillo area the landings
and tourist fishing guides continue to kill and hang
for photos any size sailfish. I guess the only offset
is that the landings claim the fish are filleted and
eaten.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: Earlier fishing in the local area produced substantially
larger striped marlin and substantial catches of albacore.
In Mexico there were substantially greater numbers of
all the pelagic fish to be found on a regular basis.
Now, it is much harder to find adequate quantities of
bait, whether anchovies, sardines or makerel and I believe
this is the direct result of overfishing the bait resources
and indiscriminant removal of larger fish through gill
netting and longline hooking.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: Absolutely. In the 50's and 60's I caught albacore,
tuna, marlin and yellowtail in a number of local Southern
Californian areas less than twenty miles off shore from
the San Clemente flats, Laguna kelp beds, 14-Mile Bank,
Horseshoe Kelp, Rocky Point and Santa Monica Bay. Now,
those fish are seldom found in local waters and one
must travel to the Channel Islands, outer banks and
south of the Mexican border to locate these fish in
any numbers.
Charlie Johnson
Q: What is your name?
A: Charlie Johnson
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What
makes you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I've fished for 50 years, everthing from bass to
broadbill. I've fished in a number of countries around
the world.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: I have fished for thirty years in California, about
30 days a year.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone
else’s?
A: My own.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing
trips?
A: No.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - 90% down
Yellowfin tuna - 50% down
Blue sharks - 99% less
Maco sharks - 50% down
Tresher sharks - 50% down
Yellowtail - about the same
Dorado - depends on El Nino years
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught
changed in the last 15 years?
A: The average size of striped marlin has fallen from
one hundred and fifty pounds to a hundred and twenty-five
pounds
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: Fishing has decreased because of longlines and gill
netters.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: No. I still fish the same areas.
Dean Plant
Q: What is your name?
A: Dean Plant
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What
makes you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have been fishing Southern California's offshore
waters since the early 70's. I have been in the saltwater
tackle retail business since 1975.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: I fish the waters of Southern California, the Baja
and mainland Mexico. I have been fishing these waters
since the early 80's. I currently fish about 50 days
a year.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone
else’s?
A: I fish with clients.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing trips?
A: No.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - 50% less
Yellowfin tuna - varies yearly
Blue sharks - 90% down
Maco sharks - 60% down
Tresher sharks - 65% fewer
Yellowtail - varies yearly, but there seems to be a
lot of smaller fish
Dorado - varies yearly
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught
changed in the last 15 years?
A: I believe the average size has decreased from about
150 pounds down to the 100-125 pound range.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: Fishing in the Southern California bight has changed
substantially during over the past years. During the
early to mid-80's there were several areas one could
target to find striped marlin. It was never a problem
to "find your own fish." Recently, it seems
we are fishing in a tighter fleet. The technology has
also changed with the times. Navigation aids, like Loran
C and GPS, and other things, like satellite sea temperature
imagery and sonar, have all improved our fish finding
ability. Yet, our catch numbers are constantly on the
decline. The shark population has definitely decreased.
Trolling ten years ago we would hook two to three mako
sharks daily. When looking for kelps or tailers, we
would spot several hundred blue sharks. Now, we are
lucky to see one or two a day. The number of yellowfin
tuna change from year to year. As we are the northern
end of their migration, during the warmer water years
the yellowfin tuna fishing can be excellent.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: In past years we had great fishing for marlin and
tuna as close as fourteen miles off the beach. Now we
find ourselves fishing areas twenty, sixty and ninety
miles from port.
Michael Moulton, M.D.
Q: What is your name?
A: A. Michael Moulton, M.D.
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What
makes you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have been fishing off Southern California since
1957. I am currently President of the Avalon Tuna Club,
past president of the Huntington Harbor Anglers, past
secretary of the International Light Tackle Tournament
Assoc. I have fished world-wide for all types of species
of fish.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: Although I fished on the east and southern coasts
of the U.S., currently most of my fishing is done off
the coast of Southern California. I have fished this
area for approximately 45 years. I fish approximately
30 to 40 days a year.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone
else’s?
A: I own and operate a forty foot sportfisher.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing
trips?
A: I have never kept a log.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - 40 to 50% drop
Yellowfin tuna - 15% to 20%
Blue sharks - 15% down
Maco sharks - 40% drop
Tresher sharks - 50% to 75% drop
Yellowtail - down 25%
Dorado - 25% drop
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught
changed in the last 15 years?
A: Yes, it is very evident.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: Going back and forth to Catalina or San Clemente
Island twenty years ago, blue sharks were plentiful,
mako sharks and thresher sharks were also easily caught
and released. Twenty years ago, the Horseshoe Kelp,
San Clemente Kelp beds and other kelp beds up and down
the coast were extremely productive. Since the ban on
gill nets inside the 3-mile area, halibut have increased
tremendously. Commercial fishing without regard to size,
bycatch, etc., I feel, had a great impact on the local
fishery. Longliners have negatively impacted marlin
off Mexico, which indirectly affects the fisheries off
our coast.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: I used to fish 3 to 10 miles off the coast fifteen
to twenty years ago for yellowtail, dorado, barracuda
and all other types of small game fish. Larger game
fish were found twenty to twenty five miles offshore.
Now we must travel to San Clemente Island or down into
Mexican waters to all types of game fish.
Doug Wright
Q: What is your name?
A: Doug Wright
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What
makes you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have been fishing 35 years.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing
trips?
A: Sometimes
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - 50% drop
Yellowfin tuna - 50% increase
Blue sharks - 99% drop
Maco sharks - 90% drop
Tresher sharks - 80% drop
Greg Stotesbury
Q: What is your name?
A: Greg Stotesbury
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What
makes you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have 35 years of saltwater fishing experience,
thirty years as a private boat owner with hundreds of
trips offshore and to Mexico
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: I fish 50 to 100 days a year and have for the past
25 to 30 years.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone
else’s?
A: I have a 25' skipjack F.B.S.F. and 16' CC. I frequently
fish on other private boats from 18 to 50 feet.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing
trips?
A: I have kept a detailed journal for the past ten
years and records of trips going back twenty years.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - major declines in numbers for the
last ten years, now must run offshore to find
Yellowfin tuna - no noticable decline in yellowfins,
but very few bigeye tuna in last fifteen years
Blue sharks - 80% to 90% decline
Maco sharks - 50% to 70% decline and very few large
fish
Tresher sharks - 50% less inshore, 90% offshore and
fish are smaller
Yellowtail - no significant change, although possibly
fewer fish at the Islands
Dorado - no change, maybe even more fish some years
with warm water
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught changed
in the last 15 years?
A: Size seems to have remained stable.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: By far the most noticeable decline is in the pelagic
sharks - mako, blue and thresher. We used to see dozens
of blue and maco every day on the waters offshore. Now
we see few, if any. Drift gillnets and offshore longlines
have decimated the sharks. Marlin fishing has been very
poor now for over ten years. We get occasional good
shows in very tight areas, but not the wide spread bites
we used to get in 70's and 80's. Drift gillnet bycatch
and longliners are to blame.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: Definitely - we spend all of our time offshore and
very little on the beach. No more show of bigeye, marlin
or threshers anywhere but offshore at Clemente , Santa
Cruz or the outer banks.
Frank Adler
Q: What is your name?
A: Frank Adler
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What
makes you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have been fishing for 38 years.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: I have spent about fifty days a year fishing in
Southern California and Mexico for the last 38 years.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone
else’s?
A: I operate my own boat.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing
trips?
A: No.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - 50% to 70% down
Blue marlin - 50% to 70% down
Yellowfin tuna - 10% to 20% down
Blue sharks - 50% to 70% down
Maco sharks - 50% to 70% down
Tresher sharks - 50% to 70% down
Yellowtail - 20% to 30% down
Dorado - 20% to 30% down
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught
changed in the last 15 years?
A: Yes, they are smaller.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: Fishing stocks have decreased because of pollution
and over harvesting.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: Yes and it is harder to find them further out.
Steve Behrens
Q: What is your name?
A: Steve Behrens
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What makes
you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have been fishing off of the Southern California
coast and Mexico for the thirty years.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: I fish in the Southern California waters probably
30 days a year and, on average, about eight days a year
in Mexican waters.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone else’s?
A: I operate my own boat.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing trips?
A: No.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - 50% less in California, Baja seems
about the same
Blue marlin - about the same in Mexico
Yellowfin tuna - about 25% more in California waters
Blue sharks - 50% less in California waters
Maco sharks - have maybe 30% more in Californian waters
in last two years
Tresher sharks - 50% less in California waters
Yellowtail - 30% less
Dorado - 30% more
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught changed
in the last 15 years?
A: Neither striped marlin or sailfish seem to have
changed.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: I just remember how there were so many broadbill
caught twenty years ago. The bigeye would show up off
the east end. Marlin seemed to be more plentiful. There
were just generally more jig strikes. I remember the
fish count twenty years ago with the boat catch being
over 200. Last year it was 50?
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: I feel we are still fishing in all the same areas
we were twenty years ago.
Jim Willis
Q: What is your name?
A: Jim Willis
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What makes
you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have been a recreational fisherman for about 40
years and pretty serious for about the last fifteen
years.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: Mostly offshore Southern California and the northern
Baja. I have spent considerable time in the last 12
years in the Mulege area of the Sea of Cortes. I fish
about 30 to 50 days per year.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone else’s?
A: I have currently have a 26 foot boat now and have
been a boat owner for 15 years.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing trips?
A: No.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Yellowfin tuna - 20% down
Blue sharks - 25% down
Maco sharks - 25% down
Tresher sharks - 25% down
Yellowtail - 25% down
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: Fishing has decreased because of sea lions, commercial
fishing by people who ignore laws and limits, temperature
variations, the rapid increase in sport fishing and
boat ownership, increased populations in Northern Mexico
and Southern California and bait variations, i.e. anchovies
are no longer abundent.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: Most fish are out past the islands of San Clemente
and Catalina, as well as, below the border off Ensenada.
We used to be able to catch yellowtail, yellowfin and
albacore in mass on the inner banks.
Bill Shedd
Q: What is your name?
A: Bill Shedd
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What makes
you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I fished swordfish by harpoon in early 1970's, so
I can compare what I saw then versus now.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: I have fished since 1970 for about six to ten days
a year in the Southern California bight.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone else’s?
A: I fish on others' boats.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing trips?
A: No.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Blue sharks - a 90% decline. I now see less than
10% of the blue sharks I saw in the mid-1970's. Blue
sharks have been impacted in a huge way.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: I am responding to blue sharks here because this
change is so drastic and obvious. In the early 1970's
I would see several hundred blue sharks a day, almost
every day. During the last 10 to 15 years, looking at
the same water, I might see 2 or 3 on a good day. The
fact is that the blue sharks are gone. I believed that
the high seas squid drift gill nets did major damage
to the blue sharks prior to the fishery being eliminated.
Local drift gillnets and Hawaiian longliners have contributed
to the blue shark demise.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: As far as blue sharks are concerned, it does not
matter how far you travel in the Southern California
bight, you will not find them in our local waters in
anywhere near the numbers you found them in the 1970's
and before.
Bill Byler
Q: What is your name?
A: Bill Byler
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What makes
you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I am a sportsfisherman, boat owner who fishes within
a 100 miles of the local coast, a multi-day fisherman
on sportsboats from San Diego, a long-range fisherman
and a Baja California fisherman.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: For thirty years I have been tuna fishing from San
Diego for about 10 to 15 days a year. For twenty five
years I have taken two or three trips to the Baja for
seven days each trip. I also go on two trips of four
to six days each year and one long-range trip of sixteen
days.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone else’s?
A: Both
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing trips?
A: No.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Yellowfin tuna - it seems cyclical to me
Blue sharks - rarely see them anymore on the tuna grounds,
less than 5% of what it was
Yellowtail - fishing is a shadow of what it was in
the 60's, but fairly level for teh last twenty years
Dorado - no change
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: With the early 80's as a baseline: albacore dropped
to less than 5% through the late ninties, then returned
to normal. High seas drift nets were the cause. Blue
sharks were a pest on the tuna grounds 15 to 20 years
ago and are now rarely seen, although I don't know why.
Yellowtail fishing out of San Diego between the 50's
and early 70's was spectacular and now is at best only
10% of the past.
Robert W. Hetzler
Q: What is your name?
A: Robert W. Hetzler
Q: What is your fishing/diving background? What makes
you a knowledgeable source of information?
A: I have a B.S. in Zoology and did graduate work at
the Scripps Institute of Oceanography. I worked for
five years as a scientist for Inter-American Tropical
Tuna Commission and then retired after thirty-one years
at Star-Kist Foods, Inc. I was Director of UASC for
five years and for the past seven years, President of
the Harbour Ocean Preservation Enhancement. I have fished
aboard my own boat for the last thirty one years. I
am currently a member of the Tuna Club of Avalon, Harbour
Rod and Reel Club and the Huntington Harbour Anglers.
Q: Where do you fish/dive mostly and how long have
you been fishing/diving in the waters you are talking
about? How many days each year and for how many years?
A: I have fished mainly from the Channel Islands to
below Ensenada and as far out as ninety miles for the
past thirty one years. I fish an average of 30 to 40
days a year. I have made a fishing trip from Huntington
Beach to Cabo San Lucas, fishing all areas south, as
well as, at least one trip a year over the last six
years to the East Cape area of the Sea of Cortes.
Q: Do you operate your own boat or fish someone else’s?
A: I own my own boat but also fish with other anglers
on their boats.
Q: Do you keep a journal or log of your fishing trips?
A: No.
Q: What percentage (%) change have you seen in the
numbers of the following pelagic fish in the area you
fish in the past 15-20 years (1980-2000)?
A: Striped marlin - A drop of more than 50%, especially
in the last ten years. Fish are found in smaller areas
during the season
Yellowfin tuna - no major changes, but changes from
one season to the next
Blue sharks - big drop of numbers of sharks observed,
down by over 50%
Maco sharks - drop in incidental catch by 40%
Tresher sharks - big drop in incidental catch, especially
in last ten years
Yellowtail - no major changes, but changes from one
year to the next
Dorado - no change, but varies by years
Q: Has the average size of Striped Marlin caught changed
in the last 15 years?
A: Yes - very seldom are fish in excess of 200 pounds
caught and none over 300 pounds. Also number of smaller
fish under 125 pounds seems to be increasing.
Q: Give as many examples as you can of how fishing
used to 15-20 years ago versus how it is today. Try
to quantify these examples as much as possible. We are
most interested in the pelagics mentioned above. Why
have they decreased?
A: Good quantities of marlin were found in many different
areas fifteen years ago. A lot more blind strikes would
occur when traveling from one area to another. Also
a lot more feeders, jumpers and sleepers were observed.
Now one must work closely with other vessels to find
the fish. Running to and from Catalina or the other
islands, as well as, during fishing, we would see many
(15 to 25) surface swimming blue sharks. If I see one
a season now it is unusual.
Q: Do you have to travel further today to get fish
than 15 -20 years ago? Explain where you used to go
and where you have to go now.
A: No, the marlin still show on the same grounds as
in the past, the only difference now is that instead
of boats catching them at serveral different fishing
areas on any one day, they tend to be only in one area
on any given day. The number and availability of marlin
is definitely down today versus 15 or more years ago.
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