shotgun shell in Stripers stomach in Jamaica Bay New York

[Jer]

John J. Lippi just sent us this letter

John J. Lippi
Baldwin, New York

May 18, 2010


New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
625 Broadway
Albany, New York 12233-0001


NYSDEC,
It is with great regret and disgust that I find myself writing this letter. Today May 18, 2010 at approximately 8 AM I was fishing in Jamaica Bay New York next to John F. Kennedy airport and caught only one legal sized 34 inch striped bass. Catching the bait - Moss Bunker is harder than ever this year. Anyway at approximately 10 AM I left. After arriving at my dock space I proceeded to gut the striped bass to take home and eat. Much to my dismay I found a discharged shotgun shell lodged in the Striped Bass's stomach which I've kept. I believe this shell was from John F. Kennedy airports employees assigned to scare off the birds near the airports tarmac. I believe the redness of the shotgun shell resembled a bleeding bait fish to the striped bass and the bass ate it thinking it was food. Please take action to preserve our dying Striped Bass and fine the airport somehow for polluting and have them change the current shotgun shells they are using to a less appetizing color. I could not believe this poor fish had this shell in it's stomach. There is enough pollution in the water from people who just don't care and toss everything from cigarette butts to plastic bags in the water....
I wrote this letter to the NYSDEC intending to mail them the shotgun shell but then thought of Sports fisherman instead hoping they may be able to do something other than the DEC or direct me as to where I could send this shotgun shell for some lobbying action. thank you.
John J. Lippi

[Deep C]

Interresting and unfortunate however color is used to designate brand and often guage of shotgun shell. Primary guage used in hunting for waterfowl and possibly "bird dispersions" would be 12 guage. The red color of the shell as indicated by the author of the letter does correspond with 12 guage color coding utilized by Winchester, Federal amd other ammunition makers.
The coding is a safety measure to avoid putting the wrong guage shell in a gun. In most cases the smaller 20 guage load which are colored yellow (16 guage being purple) could slide into the chamber of a 12 guage gun where it would not be held properly for a discharge. A greater danger would be that a 12 guage chamered behind it could push that round forward obstructing the barrel and causing the gun to burst on firing.
20 guage could be used in dispersing flocks but being smaller and quieter it would be far less effective. An option would be to use remington brand which color codes their 12 guage loads green however that may more closely mimic local bait species than does red.
Then we get to the assumption that this shell was indeed from JFK staff deployed to disperse said nuisance birds. Striped bass are highly migratory fishes and travel through the marshes and estuaries where thousands of hunters gater during a season duck and goose hunting so it really could have come from anywhere.
As to what to do with the shell hull. If its in good reloadable condition i'm sure some of our members would find good use for it.

[quakah]

Sorry you found a bass like this, but the few waterfowl hunters left pay dearly for non toxic loads. Take comfort in the fact that the shells aren't sending lead into the pristine waters around JFK!

Not sure how much traction your complaint is going to get after a plane falls out of the sky and lands in the Hudson last year due to a double bird strike.

Personally, I make the effort to take all empty shells out of the field with us. But quite honestly, when you're hunting on 25 degree morning and the gun ejects an empty shell 6 feet out of the boat into the water, you don't necessarily spend a lot of time looking for it.

Good thing you didn't catch a bass filled with yo-yo weights.


Quakah

[giantfan]

Still better then finding a Coney Island whitefish in there

[tomytuna]

ah Dahhh! How bout the "Sportsman"pick up the discarded shell.place in pockets and put into "waste"container. Or reload?!
But if they come from airport employee,nothing u can do. Gov employee's just don't give a rats behind.

[Avenger]

Maybe it's just me, but Mr Lippi seems to be getting awfully wound up about a freak occurance. It's not a perfect world. Whether an airport employee or hunter lost it I'm sure it's not the norm. I know if I go bird hunting I try to pick up the spent hulls, but sometimes one gets lost in the marsh or it goes overboard. Meanwhile DEC and the state are suppoesed to fine the airport (the goverment fining itself ), ban red shotgun shells, and impose all kinds of regulations over one hull found in an otherwise healthy fish that he killed?

If Mr. Lippi is really an active sportsman he should be very aware of the potential results of crying for government intervention. I'd suggest he keep the shell for an interesting story to swap with his buddies and let the rest go.

[hotreels jr]

I dont think Shotgun shells are going to be the downfall of the striper

[SaltyDog]

This could now be the new hot lure of 2010. Put a feather and hook on it.

[Animal 1]

That guys got sand in his vagina.