Red Tide is thick

[sandydiego]

Originally Posted by JoeGoFish

And I had heard that kayak fishermen were a friendly bunch. Sheesh. For your edification, I was not challenging the integrity of your buddy, I was merely chiming in on a subject that I have a bit of knowledge, and first hand experience with. For your group enlightenment, and BS meter debunking, the link to the GBSB rescue, performed by me, and three of my fishing buddies, is posted here on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIfKhW2nlo0

You will see and hear that I not only took the time to help the fish, but in the beginning of the video, you can hear me explaining to the guy who caught the fish, what we are about to do. I have two descender rigs in my tackle bag, just for this purpose. I've personally witnessed careless, and wasteful anglers dumping bloated fish overboard, only to be killed by birds, boats, or seals. A simple device, and a little bit of effort can get these fish back into the breeding schools they came from.

You will also see that the video of the floundering fish is virtually identical to the photo in the posting. Call it post traumatic stress disorder, or a knee jerk reaction on my part, but when I see an endangered fish prostrate on the ocean, it gets my dander up.

You guys are real ambassadors of the sport...

Would you mind posting a couple of shots of your decender rig? Would be nice to know how to make one. Nice video.

Steve

[roadx]

good info on descender rigs, bloated fish


http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/pdfs/release.pdf

[sandydiego]

Thanks for the info!

[Holy Mackerel]

Well, I guess I will join in this conversation. Fish do not eat during red tide.

Anyone watch that goofball on Big Water Adventures, not to be confused with (BWE). Mark Davis... I have been wanting to bring this up, because he pushes this product for venting swim bladders. I think there have been a lot of posts about high mortality rates puncturing swim bladders, not to be confused with the stomach. Not sure this is a good idea, but what do I know...

Any thoughts?

http://www.teammarineusa.us/

[Tman]

Good job on the save...

FWIW, I have actually paddled over to a boat that had a BSB floundering, while the kooks took their time, and I became the one to cut the line and get the big boy oriented to head back down where he belonged.

Much easier for us yakkers to safely release them.

As far as puncturing the bladder, I have read that not only do you have to be extremely careful and make sure you get the bladder only, either way infection could set in regardless of what you puncture.

[roadx]

the venting tool to ME seems the easy way out. i would think that department of fish and game has done more studies on this then then makers of venting tools. but what the hell do i know ???

[erinoo]

About a month ago I caught a huge BSB. As I got him to the top of the waterI saw he had that big dildo coming out his mouth. He then start floating belly up. I freaked and wasn't sure what to do at that point. I took the hook out of his mouth and tried to turn him right side up. He was so big I couldn't keep him turned right. Then all of a sudden a big burst of air shoots out of his pie-hole, as the air came out the bladder began to subside back down his throat. I then got him turned over, got some water moving through his gills and he swam off...It was pretty cool...

[Dan]

you did the right thing on the kayak. no poking holes in fish. Keep the gills under water and lip em like a big bass. once they get a little life back in em, which is just a matter of time, they will equilibrate their bladder and be able to swim back down.

i think the mob jumped on the new guy because we kayakers (or PBs who fish like a kayaker) seem to be magnets for these things and dealing with them is more of a hassle than an out of control floundering experience.

[Holy Mackerel]

Originally Posted by roadx

the venting tool to ME seems the easy way out. i would think that department of fish and game has done more studies on this then then makers of venting tools.

What you don't trust the objectivity from the makers of this product!

Btw, I am not pushing this tool, when I saw the episodes using it, I thought it was irresponsible.

I have caught a BSB like Billy V.'s and snapped a quick picture just like the one in this thread. A couple seconds later, after flushing water in it's gills, it sounded with a big BOOM back to the bottom.

[Billy V]

I've never had a BSB not be able to swim away and back down to the bottom, this one included.

I have caught quite a few of them over the years on the kayak so you need to learn how to handle them. That urgency is dictated by the fishes condition as it reaches the surface - some come up with liveliness and some are belly up and motionless.

-I don't puncture any part of the fish, and have never found it necessary. I wouldn't attach anything else to the fish that may cause it to tangle, or become hooked again.

Once I remove the hook, I peddle forward with my Hobie while holding the fish by the open mouth or by the gill plate. When water flows through the gills the fish will quickly recover and splash away.
(I can employ the same technique from the skiff)

That is exactly what was taking place in this pic that was shot by a fellow kayak angler.
Another successful release with hook removal.

With my method You See a Live Fish Strongly Swim Away - in the Video I saw a floundering fish get dragged to the bottom with 12 lbs of lead after much handling.

[-scallywag-]

Like the others said....DON'T POKE THE FISH!!!! Billys release tequnique is the best...keep the water flow'in over thier gills until they "fart" sometimes it takes a little while after that they will swim away happy....


Popping the swim bladder is bad for two reasons that I know of:
Infection..... and
Starvation

If the fish cannot obtain or maintain neutral bouyancy then it will be burning alot more energy just to maintain position in the water column tiring it out and burning up valuable hunting energy. This is just my guess as I have no "scientific evidence" to support it.

[blackcloud9]

http://www.dfg.ca.gov/ocal/archives/j_f_05_16-19.pdf

Here is an article on this recommendation from DFG.

But what do you do after 45 minutes of revival attempts, when it's still
belly-up? I carry a clean hollow needle for this scenario as a last ditch
effort, sorry but I do.

[Whizz Bang]

Rabble! Rabble! Rabble! BSB! Rabble! Swim bladder!

Must be the soup....just had a BSB come belly up on me last week. Tilted him upright and pedalled him a little ways (hobies are great for this) and he got real lively on me.

[Dean Machine]

The red tide is getting thicker/deeper.