Black sea bass

[rincon rob]

I got this one on Saturday on live smelt.I thought it was going to be a white sea bass but to my surprise it was a black sea bass. It pulled harder than the 60 pound white sea bass I caught. I estimated it to be between 40 and 50 pounds.I caught it on 25 pound test and it was about 10 minute fight.it almost made me roll the kayak trying to hook it.ion hooked it revived it and released it .Its good to see those fish coming back I can imagine hooking onto a full size one.it was a good first for me and the only thing I needed to catch that day.

[kixchad]

Good luck dude.

[dorado50]

not good to take those bsb out of water. big fine if seen by dfg. I could be wrong but I don't think so. best to de-hook fish while in water, both for fish and you........

[bigbarrels]

congrats on the catch and release.....

[dorado50]

I can't believe what I'm seeing........double take!

[Im bent]

Those black seabass are definitely making a comeback for sure. I caught one on the beach in about 4 to 5 foot of water. Needless to say it blew my mind.

[Sdspeed]

Originally Posted by Im bent

Those black seabass are definitely making a comeback for sure. I caught one on the beach in about 4 to 5 foot of water. Needless to say it blew my mind.Attachment 10261

BSB doesn't look to thrilled!

[William Novotny]

Originally Posted by Im bent

Those black seabass are definitely making a comeback for sure. I caught one on the beach in about 4 to 5 foot of water. Needless to say it blew my mind.Attachment 10261

Ummmmm? Are you supposed to be doing the heisman shuffle down the beach with a bsb?

[MrPatrick]

If you are going to poach it, yes you do. If you are ignorant, yes you do. If you are in Mexico where you can keep them, yes the do.

[lowprofile]

you cant harvest them but you can pick them up.

nice fish!

[Im bent]

???? I have been fishing A little longer than just yesterday... anyways there happened to be a park ranger there at that time anyway< he was pretty impressed and had no problem with me taking it back out into the the water and making sure it was ok. By the time I realized what I had it was belly skidding on the sand. And of course I had to remove the hook from his lip. So how would you suggest I do that?? Besides they are kinda gamey they taste like a cross between A california condor and a bald eagle..lol So those that are hating STOP!!!

[YakDout]

How's this?

[YakDout]

90 lb broomtail grouper and 120 lb Black Sea bass

[Aaron&Julie]

Originally Posted by Im bent

???? I have been fishing A little longer than just yesterday... anyways there happened to be a park ranger there at that time anyway< he was pretty impressed and had no problem with me taking it back out into the water and making sure it was ok. By the time I realized what I had it was belly skidding on the sand. And of course I had to remove the hook from his lip. So how would you suggest I do that?? Besides they are kinda gamey they taste like a cross between A California condor and a bald eagle..lol So those that are hating STOP!!!

I'm not hating here, just sayin'...

1) A park ranger isn't a DFG game warden. The park ranger might not have even known what kind of fish it was, they're not required to know all of the sport fishing laws.

2) Seriously, what's the cost of a hook, $1 maximum, for such a splendid fish, dragging it up the beach isn't going to help it's health for sure. Being the kind of dedicated fisherman I am, if it was my VERY last hook, I'd still would have kept him in knee deep water, and found a way to retrieve my hook.

3) Yes, there are more BSB around than say 2-3 decades, even after some spear fishermen, and certain PBers slaughtered the species pre-1980s, but we should all try to treat them like the gem that are with as much TLC as we possibly can.
I remember as a kid in the earliest 1970s, of a couple who took their boat to Catalina for blacks routinely, and it seemed like every week, or least every other one, they had a picture in WON, of one or both of them with blacks they caught at that island.
Personally, I think the species has recovered enough in CA to allow a "once in your lifetime" catch and kept BSB. If the DFG sold tags that were good for your lifetime, nontransferable, requiring the same ID process as buying a fishing license, the DFG could make it good for your lifetime, and cost anywhere from $100 on up. Now, an additional law should be stated you must never bring/keep aboard without your lifetime tag in your possession and on you, along with proof of ID. A fine should be levied for a 1st time offense of not having your tag with you, the money going to the DFG. There should be no 2nd time offense, as you can only keep or bring aboard 1 in your lifetime. You must record and register your catch within 24 hours, so that it goes on record that you've caught your "lifetime limit". That's my 2 cents, or a few dollars in pennies.

4) Shame on you…How many California condors and bald eagles have you tasted…You do know they’re protected by law, too.

Aaron

[dorado50]

Hey what happened to the other pics in Rincon robs original post?. Something fishy here?. Deleted....why?

[MrPatrick]

In totally cool with you following local laws. That must have fed a ton of people. If its like any of the grouper I've had, it must have been very tasty.

[jorluivil]

I'll tell you one thing. When we fished Herendira we were hoping, praying and wishing for a BSB.

[dorado50]

Nutten wrong with taking bsb in mex...too bad u didn't mention mex in yer original report.

[lowprofile]

Originally Posted by dorado50

Nutten wrong with taking bsb in mex...too bad u didn't mention mex in yer original report.

thats because he didn't post the original report. he hijacked it.

[j mo]

Im going to say 80 /90 lbs max on that bsb.....