IGFA Proposes Release Records

[RLewin]

The International Game Fish Association wants to begin using a new system of record keeping to promote catch and release. These records will be based on length not weight. Anglers must send in a photo of the catch next to a measuring device such as tape measure. The new category poses many questions and concerns. Do you think release records are a good idea or a bad one? And, make sure to read Peter Wright's column in the upcoming November issue of Marlin.

[RLewin]

Great idea, another way for the rich fishermen to get more records.You can buy tape measures that are marked incorrectly. Why don't they just do away with records all together?

[Linwood]

That sounds good to me.I do not think it will stop all the landings though;a Captain makes his living by earning a reputation.There will still be a lot of brood stock hanging dockside to establish a record of productivity.On the horizon there seems to be federal regulations in the works that will limit Blue Marlin landings to 250 fish along the entire Eastern Seaboard of the USA.Obviously there will be a certain amount of sandbagging going on.There are an awful lot of boats that say all billfish must be released.Then you see the same outfit hanging a tournament winner at the dock.Look for the commercial guys to have a tougher time making a profit on the high seas from higher operating costs and perhaps a decreased demand for their catch.Hey!that comment about rich people?Get a clue dude.There are some damn good rich people in the fishing business,and a lot of them became wealthy by being honorable.

[Steve_Mras]

I think that release records are a great idea, but they will also be vulnerable to abuse. In the current IGFA record system, a certified scale on land (with corroborating length/girth measurements) is the great equalizer. Even then, people have attempted to game the system. Fortunately, most of these attempts are flushed out because the cheating mind usually does not cover all aspects.

We have succesfully performed live weigh-in and release records on makos and threshers (current Women's 6 lb thresher), which involved capturing the fish in one location and transporting it alive for weighing on land, or a structure imbedded in land (i.e. a pier) in another location. Sharks are pretty hearty and can live awhile on a washdown hose. Still we must carefully plan these attempts to target fish where the distance to a suitable weighing location is nearby. Inherent in the planning efforts is a thorough knowledge and respect for the IGFA rules.

If the IGFA opens up the records to release records recorded merely by weight, I suspect that the system will be increasingly vulnerable to abuse. Merely recording a length of a fish will not tell enough information. For example, in the current record system lenght and girth measurements are used to corroborate the weight. These measurements are not "required", but are an important part of the overall data package used to substantiate the catch, especially when there are questions. With length measurements, most anglers take a measurement along the curvature of the fish (i.e. on top) when the proper measurement is the flat measurement with the fish laying on the tape. I foresee a lot of variability in measurements taken on live billfish in the water. Just too much going on with a big fish moving in the water. Some might put in the extra effort to get the most accurate measurement possible; others would go for the quick tournament release. That is where the certified scale eliminated most of the guesswork in the process.

If you're asking for suggestions to tighten the process, I'd suggest considering the areas where there is variability in the method and the areas where it would be vulnerable to abuse.

[Nick_Fuegi]

Yes a new method is needed. The current system encourages the killing of large marlin. This in turn gives an excuse to anyone that wants to kill a marlin.

Modern technology already owned and carried by 99% of marlin fishermen solves this problem. I worked out how.

See thread http://www.marlinmag.com/forum.jsp?ID=558199

Nick

[albert]

This is step in the right direction. Maybe IGFA finally "gets it"?

You know I've often wondered how many bills survive a half-hour fight only to die later. I'd like to have a camera on the bottom during a tournament just to see what goes on.

[Adrian_Graham]

People want to get records for their own benefit; five minutes of fame. In fact, it's the fish that is the record in any case; not the angler.

I've hooked two likely marlin world records in my time (see 2005 Xacara report at www.azoresmarlin.com, where you can read the story - also reported in Marlin Magazine). We got a release capture one one, but there was no way any mate - even Jeff Thomas - could ever take wraps on the drag we were using at the time, so we couldn't get it close enough to the gaffs. At the time I was disappointed; it would have been great to land the fish and find out whether it was nearer to 1200 than 1600 or vice versa.

In retrospect, it would have been exitement for a short while followed by endless guilt for killing such a marvellous fish, for really no good reason.

The problem is; if I were faced with the same thing again, would I remember that feeling or would I get carried away and want to take the fish? I'm not sure I know what the answer to that question is. We're all greedy sometimes. Still - it probably never will.

The only final comment I have is that any decision anyone ever takes follows them for the rest of their lives; what is more important - that there are large marlin still swimming around, or that you've got a record?

Adrian