Bluefin regs set

[frankypettolina]

Rick you are correct- it is 27 to less than 59.

WHat should really be done in any of these tourneys should be to exclude bluefin altogether- no problem then.

Personally, I will be hard pressed to stay shallow for 1 fish that is 100 or so pounds. I think there will be alot of boats offshore this year.

What sucks is that the Marlin Club just reinstated bigger bluefin calcuttas in the canyon kick off tourney- that is prob a waste now.

[Squidnation]

I agree franky. Actually I think bluefins should be exluded from all tournaments.

The TT will be very interesting and i bet exciting with big eyes and yellowfins. May not be exciting to all the spectators though.

[Bert Rodgers]

I agree franky. Actually I think bluefins should be exluded from all tournaments.

The TT will be very interesting and i bet exciting with big eyes and yellowfins. May not be exciting to all the spectators though.

Bill don't you think it will change everyone's game plan towards that without excluding them with the rule?

Bert

[dstriper]

I know it's hard to believe that there aren't any intelligent people
out in the world but, lets not assume everyone is an idiot. There will
probably be some fools that will kill an oversized fish and release it
or, even poach it on occasion. For the most part I would like to think
that this regulation will have a positive affect. If only half of the fish
that would have been killed make it to spawn we will have benefitted.

[LONGFIN2]

Well, one thing is for sure, I won't be doing much bluefin fishing this year. We'll see about the OC tuna tourny, may just save that money for added WMO calcuttas if decent yellowfins don't show in time. With fuel prices up, that is gonna sting but I just don't see the point in fighting a fish to exhaustion and then letting it go. By the time that much lactic acid builds up in the muscle tissue they should be in my belly God willing, the yellowfins will show up in good numbers whether inshore or off. Oh, and when is the last time anyone out of OC got covered up by longfins

[lsider]

IMO the bluefin retention regs need to be rethinked.

First, whenever you got slot fish a whole lot of them get killed trying to find the slot keeper. It would make more sense, if we are to be allowed to fish for BFTs, to catch the limit based on quantity and not size. A lot of the BFTs last year were between 57 and 65 inches. You tell me when you bring in a fish like that over a period of an hour or so and then try to measure it what chances this fish has to recover when it does not make the slot? How many of them will end up on board to be measured? If the regs are to be one fish or two or whatever then make it just that so people and specially charter boats have an excuse to stop fishing after their fish is caught. With the two fish slot you make people to keep on fishing and possibly do more damage to the resourse until the slot limit is caught. Furthermore, if you end up hooking the 73+" fish of a lifetime, which is improbable this time of the year in our waters but not impossible, are you going to release it after the long time it takes to bring it by and expect it to live?

Second, why the difference between the recs and the charters? I understand the difficulties maintaining a charter business under the current economic environment but at the end of the day we all use our hard earned money to go fishing. Last time I checked it all looks the same. I think other stimuli need to be found to boost up business.

Hopefully the YFTs will show up this year and this BFT slot nonsense will find its cure by itself.

[Fishthebite]

The new regs really burn me up. Unfortunately there will be alot of bluefins "gaffed and then measured" tournament or not throughout the summer below Jersey and South in resulting killing bluefins. This is the worst thing they can do and impose for size regulations. Many recreational and charter boats will have a tough time judging the size of bluefins since they are not the easiest species to measure in the water at the 59 inch mark (100 lb fish). There will be many fish killed as a result, unfortunately, on the "over 59" fish. It would be more admirable to put a moritorium on the BFTs for a couple of years all together and then lets see what happens. It has been successful for crabs and rockfish in the chesapeake. I dont want a moratorium more than the next guy,rest assured, as I love catching them, but maybe the feds should start thinking or it may be the story of the buffalo .....