Death Sentence for Boca Grande Tarpon

by Diana Rudolph • February 1, 2012 • 21 comments

You might want to finish your meal before watching this video. These tournaments are very real and very destructive.

In Blogs, Breaking The Surface • Tagged ,
  • Abocatarpon

    I am a second generation captain from Boca Grande. I have fished the pass for my entire life. Something needs to be done about this type of fishing. It is killing our great fishery.

    ALL TARPON TOURNAMENTS IN BOCA GRANDE PASS ARE CATCH AND RELEASE EXCEPT THE PTTS! Everyone of the fish that people are holding in this video DIED! (and are weighed in PTTS Tournaments will die, this is why all other tournaments are catch and release) They are dead from over exertion. We would see more dead fish on our beaches but the sharks take out the trash.

    These jigs (as their called) are never jigged. Just drop it to the bottom and then real it up one crank. Then sit there until you feel the lightest bump, then start reeling as fast as you can, and if your lucky that giant circle hook will snag whatever ran into your line several feet above your hook. Which is why jigs are only effective during slack tide when the fish stack up in large schools. (often 30ft thick and 100's strong). They do not catch fish on hard tides when the fish spread out along the bottom. The tarpon bite live bait best when they spread out, so why wont they eat a jig then too? (assuming this jig is imitating a natural food source)

    I avoid fishing slack tide (as do all local traditional captains) and the jig fisherman/ ptts plan their trips/tournaments around it! These local captains I speak of have been fishing Boca Grande for 4 or 5 generations. We all avoid fishing in the daylight because of this zoo.

    Something needs to be done! I want my kids kids to catch a tarpon!

    • Guest

      It is impossible to snag a tarpon, or anything, with a circle hook. Circle hooks are a safe and ethical way to catch tarpon because they PREVENT snagging. The bulk of snags are actually caused by the "native" island guides that use live bait on J-hooks which snag fish. The J-hooks will hook fish anywhere, where as a circle hook will catch on the corner of the mouth. The native guides don't want us to fish "their water" because when the off island fisherman go there we outfish them and this is their excuse to make us leave.

      • guest

        Try attaching a short line to a circle hook, then slowly drag it across your forearm. Whats your result?

      • guest

        hahahahaha…..I'm glad you think you outfish us!

        • Kayakc

          But in boca we arent using a short line, we are using 40-60 feet of line. So lets drop that circle hook straight down with more line and pull it up, WOW it slides right off!!!

          • guest

            I wish I could draw you a picture……. Your line is bending over the fish. Your boat is moving down tide but the fish is stationary relative to the bottom. So when you feel that light bump and start reeling…….the hook slides up the side of the fish just like your forearm in my example. Yes you are using 40 plus feet of line, but is the fish 5 feet under your boat?

            As Abocatarpon said:

            Here is some SCIENCE for you: (2002-03 FWC Study) http://myfwc.com/research/saltwater/tarpon/catch-….

  • SafeFisherman

    ALL TARPON TOURNAMENTS IN BOCA GRANDE PASS ARE CATCH AND RELEASE EXCEPT THE PTTS! Everyone of the fish that people are holding in this video DIED! (and are weighed in PTTS Tournaments will die, this is why all other tournaments are catch and release) They are dead from over exertion. We would see more dead fish on our beaches but the sharks take out the trash.

    You are most incorrect. Of 65 fish caught in a tournament 65 were released alive and swam away under FWC supervision. The FWC works hand in hand with this tournament to tag THOUSANDS of tarpon for research. The amount of money generated from the tags captains need has produced over 1 million dollars for the FWC and aided them in their quest to improve the fishery for years to come. Live baiters who were fishing the area before the tournament came to town have a bad taste in their mouth because they're threatened by a better and safer way to fish for tarpon that spooling out hundreds of yards of mono that eventually get tangled, cut, and left in the pass. These old fogeys are a dying breed and are the main cause of tarpon destruction in the pass. Their selfish and thoughtless fishing habits are often overlooked and thought by many as "a safer way to fish" but for anyone who has seen the cleanup process of the pass every year would know, the huge balls of line found at the bottom, usually do not have a jig or circle hook on them, both of which are required by the tournament.

    Only a misinformed, utterly ignorant captain would ever come to the conclusion that the cleanest, safest, most REGULATED tarpon fishing tournament that generates hundreds of thousands of dollars for the local community and FWC would ever be anything but a blessing for the Tarpon fishing community.

    -3rd generation boca grand captain

  • Abocatarpon

    Here is some SCIENCE for you: (2002-03 FWC Study)
    http://myfwc.com/research/saltwater/tarpon/catch-…

    I'll review for you:
    Of 26 fish caught jig fishing: (6 out of 26= 23% caught in the mouth inside out, So 77% FOUL HOOK)
    6 were caught inside/out the mouth,
    3 ouside/in the mouth,
    7 in the clipper,
    2 in the head,
    1 in gills,
    1 in mouth
    and 6 unknown. (how you can land a fish and not know were its hooked is beyond me)

    Of the 32 fish caught live baiting: (28 out of 32 = 87.5% caught in the mouth inside out, 12.5% Foul Hook)
    28 were caught inside out the mouth
    3 in the mouth
    and 1 unknown.

    77% Foul hooking for jigging, 12.5% foul hooking for live bait…..ITS FUNNY HOW THE FWC FOUND THIS DATA INCLUSIVE! Your right the FWC does make alot of money from the PTTS.

    Here is a little more science from the FWC:
    http://myfwc.com/research/saltwater/tarpon/catch-…

  • bob

    Swam away and lived are a BIG difference! EVERY FISH WIEGHED HAS TO HAVE A $50 KILL TAG IN IT AFTER IT HAS BEEN GAFFED. (yellow tag in fishes mouth during video) These are issued by the state and are required if you are going to kill a tarpon. Why do you tag these fish if they are alive and well?

    Whoever said that Live baiters use Mono is crazy. You can't find a Traditional Local Captain on Boca that uses mono for tarpon in the pass. We all used dacron until the new braids came out years ago. See we mark our lines with yarn so we know exactly how deep we are fishing. This prevents us from catching bottom, angler errors, etc….. Its very hard to thread yarn thru mono.

  • abocatarpon

    *****Only a misinformed, utterly ignorant captain would ever come to the conclusion that the cleanest, safest, most REGULATED tarpon fishing tournament that generates hundreds of thousands of dollars for the local community and FWC would ever be anything but a blessing for the Tarpon fishing community.*****

    …….Cleanest and most safely regulated? What other tournaments are you comparing it to, because their are none like it in this world. This is a one of a kind thing so your statement is correct……….

    …….Utterly ignorant?……
    Do you live in the area? If you lived in this area you would know that your PTTS Tournaments generate very little economy on Boca. Do you pay dockage on Boca? Do you eat lunch/dinner on Boca? Do you buy gas, tackle, boat repairs, bait, on Boca? Some of your clients do stay here yes. This misinformed utterly ignorant island thanks you for that.

  • Kayakc

    When a tarpon is weighed, it is in "posession" of the fisherman, so it requires a tag until either it is kept or released. Now there is a big difference between snagging and killing a tarpon. A tarpon can easily swim away if it is snagged. What is killing the tarpon is the native boca guides that are using j-hooks that gut hook and kill tarpon. And i fish boca grande regularly when tarpon season is in and when PTTS is fishing there. I see tons of people on the beach for this event. So it is the on island guides that are hurting the tarpon. Also, the "native" boca grande guides fish the PTTS events, so it isnt all off island folks.

    • guest

      ****When a tarpon is weighed, it is in "posession" of the fisherman***** almost correct, When you GAFF the fish it becomes the fisherman's possession!

  • Kayakc

    It's known that to weigh the fish you need to gaff it to bring it to the scale. Also, this video is wrong on many points, and wrongfully aims inaccurate information at the PTTS. The professional tarpon tournament series is 6 tournaments, which Boca Grande is fished for tarpon mainly 3-4 months out of the year. The PTTS does not change tarpon movement patterns or changed their behavior. The PTTS is not a high impact series, and does not cause negative impacts to the fishery. There is no evidence of this being caused, as PTTS is just a small part of the tarpon fishing that occurs at Boca Grande.

    There are not that many tarpon that are killed because of the PTTS. The tarpon that are killed are just recycled back into the environment and are eaten by predators, which either would eat the dead tarpon or just eat one that is alive, so either way a tarpon dies. Many of these tarpon deaths are blamed on the anglers that use jigs.

    The majority of recreational fishing tarpon deaths a caused by the J hooks. These hooks are swallowed by the tarpon which either damages the gills or damages their guts. Circle hooks will not gut hook a fish nearly as much as a J hook. Yes, it is proven that circle hooks will snag a fish, but a snagged fish will swim away fine, it equals getting a scratch on your skin that heals. Guys, we are out there to fish, not complain and bicker about who's using what hook and such, it's everyones water that wants to use and it's time we are out there to catch fish and not act like children towards each other.

    Tight lines,
    CP

  • guest

    You are most correct! We all need to work together to figure out a solution to our declining Fishery. If you don't believe its in decline then you haven't fished here long enough.

  • Fish123

    Its funny how they say you can't snag a fish with a circle hook every person who jigs know they snag almost all of these fish if not all. The way they snag them is they offset the circle hook. Why would you offset the hook if you weren't trying to snag the fish?

  • Concerned

    No, the decline of the fishery cannot be blamed soley on the 6 tournaments a year that the PTTS has, but the EXAMPLE it sets as well….these are highly visible, televised tournaments. What most people that do not live here know of tarpon fishing comes from what they see on the Sunshine Network. You see a bunch of boats catching huge fish, and yes, it looks so exciting! So now we have a bunch of inexperienced fisherman (which also presents a danger to other boaters, local or not) that are going to head out there in the morning when the schools are packed tight and try to get one just like they saw on TV…..it's like playing the Claw game, drop your hook and you're sure to come up with something! But the easy way isn't always the right way.

    As much as it has become an "us" vs. "them", with ridiculous name calling, "my way is better", it's NOT. This is about the Tarpon, which is an amazing, precious resource to us ALL. Where else can you go to find a place like this? Sure, there was a time the local guides were all doing the same thing, but look at it this way…..there was once a time where people thought it was perfectly okay to smoke and drink while you are pregnant, and there was a time you didn't wear seatbelts or put your child in a carseat. Wasn't there a time we thought the Earth's resources were endless? We have LEARNED that those things can be damaging, so we CHANGED the way we do things! If this fishery is damaged, it affects YOU and YOUR tournaments, too!

    Yes, the fish swim away after they are weighed, but the fact is, we DO have dead tarpon that wash up on the beaches in the hours after the PTTS tournaments are over. A tournament is about going after the largest fish, and the largest ones are BREEDING FEMALES. If the females are dying, where will the new generation of fish come from?

    I'm sure there is a way we can all work together to save this unique resource we have here. Say what you want about the "traditional" boca captains, but I assure you they are very educated and have seen what this kind of stress has caused to the local Fishery, and have made changes to try to save it. I know it's hard to convince someone when there are so many thousands of dollars on the line, but if it continues, we won'y have to worry about it anyways….because who wants to watch a tournament where no fish are being caught?

  • Weekender

    I was under the impression fish foul hooked or hooked in the mouth…either way ….have the same mortality…..it would seem the method they are hooked foul w jigs or in the mouth with live bait has the same or at least similar result….some fish will die. I think it was data from the state…..anyone familiar with this data that can expound? I think it was a study done w fish tagged and marked w transponders/tracking devices…seemed like good science….just saying…I get the impression this is locals vs. weekenders….personally I like to fly fish…I'm sure some of them die despite my best efforts….but I try…

  • Jason

    If a fish is hooked in the face or hooked in the mouth the mortality is the same. The method of piercing the fish ..jigging or live baiting …is not what this is really about. Everyone needs to be honest…it's about locals vs weekenders. You can dance all around it as long as you want to. But the facts are the facts. If a tarpon is landed by a jig fisherman or a live baiter the mortality is the same. The duration of the fight , the proximity of sharks etc… All play a role in the mortality of boated tarpon and applies to any method of catch. It's the same. The argument and wedge between the two groups is all about money and it's locals vs weekenders. Get over it and go fish the great boca grande resource and be good! Enough said.

  • Mark

    It is not the same. The mortality rate is vastly different between live bait vs. jigging. Scroll up and re-read the facts.

  • BocaNut2012

    Most of what is being posted here is irrelevant to Save The Tarpon's objectives.

    1. If you believe the practice of gaff, drag, hoist and weigh is both obsolete and wasteful in this day of catch and immediate release, you are a Save The Tarpon supporter.

    2. If you believe existing safe boating laws should be rigorously enforced during PTTS events, you are a Save The Tarpon supporter.

    3. If you believe in ensuring public access to Boca Grande Pass at all times, you are a Save The Tarpon supporter.

    It's really very simple.

  • Guest

    Tarpon fishing in boca grande is not bombarding fish with large hooks and weights so that you snag one after another , it is just like any other fishing. I personally have fished boca grande many times with jigs that they say snag the tarpon and have caught nothing. The fish actually eat the lure! For example, we spent two days straight in the pass. On day one, the fish were biting and the sonar was showing lots of tarpon below us. We hooked multiple fish that got off. On day two, the sonar was again showing tons of tarpon below and we caught nothing, not even a single bite. So if we are snagging the tarpon with the jigs, that would mean that we would have had a steady amount of hook-ups throughout both days, which we obviously did not have. Have you ever noticed that some teams in PTTS catch tons of tarpon and others catch little or none? If it was just snagging fish one after another, then it could be said that all the teams participating in the PTTS would catch the same amount of fish, which they do not. There are numerous tournaments in boca grande pass, but it is interesting how PTTS is the only one targeted. As for the dead tarpon, they are just simply recycled back into the ecosystem.

    E. Ineligible fish for weigh in or release points will include but not limit fish that have;
     
    1. Jumped into, and remain in a boat
    2. Been brought aboard a boat
    3. Been hooked outside of the mouth of the fish
    4. Been bitten by a shark during the fight to the severity that the fish is unable to be released alive.
    5. Been hooked by two different teams.
    6. Hooked outside of the boundaries
    7. Handled by the gills"

     note: 3. "Been hooked outside of the mouth of the fish"
    So that means hat if we are snagging all the tarpon then none of them would be eligible, unless it is hooked INSIDE OF THE MOUTH! Which means that the tarpon would have had to intentionally eat the jig. 

    So all this shark-eating, snagging, and destruction isn't anything like they make it out to be, just think about it and actually listen to what we are saying.