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Background is the AL DNR wants to/is implementing a slot on the following nationally-known tourney lakes on the Coosa River: Weiss, Neely Henry, Logan Martin, Lay, Mitchell, Jordan:
> ...tournament anglers could still catch and release fish in the 14-20" range, but they could not keep them to be weighed at a designated location at the end of the tournament. The rule would not impact general recreational anglers.
The slot was recommended by the DNR after the results of a study done by Auburn U:
> "When we got the preliminary results of that study, it was pretty evident that tournament mortality was extreme up and down the Coosa," said Chuck Sykes, Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Director. "The data is showing it is tournament mortality. It is not recreational fishermen mortality."
> The study showed that tournament anglers seek large, fast-growing, female fish, which leads to the highest rates of tournament mortality among those groups. 45% of bass weighed in during tournaments died before or after the weigh-in. The mortality rate was estimated to be higher during hotter weather.
> Sykes said the study was funded after years of complaints the fisheries along the Coosa River were in decline. "I have no number. It was enough we initiated a million-dollar study to try to figure out what was going on.
> "Believe it or not, we are getting more calls from the public saying eliminate tournaments."
Naturally tournament fishermen have been super unhappy about it, and the City of Gadsden ain't happy about it either:
> "I wish they would've contacted us to address it with us first. The amount of tourism dollars we could lose from that, it would be devastating to the City of Gadsden. We have 40 to 42 fishing tournaments already scheduled for next year. We already have a restocking program....
> "...we know what we are doing. We need [the DNR's] assistance, not them to come in to try to limit our tourism opportunities. There's been over 60 elected officials here in Etowah County that have unified, and all voted unanimously to please stop this rule from happening."
What I can't tell from the coverage I've seen so far:
1. Has anyone else seen the actual data and is it legit (vs extrapolated or modeled)?
2. Was anything else looked at by the DNR, like maybe improving fish care and tourney release procedures? Or is it that the DNR can't regulate that so...?
What bothers me about what's said in this post:
> 45% of bass weighed in during tournaments died before or after the weigh-in. [That BEFORE part sounds odd.]
> The mortality rate was estimated to be higher during hotter weather. [Estimated? So they didn't measure it in a million-dollar multi-year study?]
> "In the summer months, they are put in a livewell. ...it is kind of common sense. If you are riding 5 fish around in a livewell all over the lake, they are getting stressed to the hilt," said Jeff Martin, District 3 representative for the Conservation Advisory Board. [Jeff, they are put in wells EVERY month, and I'm going to guess you don't fish and have never been in a bass boat?]
> Sykes added the fish are all put in one tank together for the weigh-in which could spread disease. [COULD? What fish disease is that? And then a fish is dead 24-48 hours later from some phantom disease? Does this mean we should all stop going to airports?? 😆 Should we speculate about the DNR??]
> Sykes: "With the slot limit, it will change the way anglers target certain fish. They are realizing where they used to fish on the banks and target the female bass on bed, now they are targeting fish in the middle of the lake." [He's talking about FFS and using it more, like it's better than bed-fishing – which indicates he doesn't understand FFS and when it is effective.]
All that stuff bothers me because it indicates a real lack of understanding about tournaments, bass boats, bass fishing and bass fishermen (the DNR's customers), and thus any possible solutions that might involve those things. Or so it seems from what I've seen so far.
Really surprised that anyone from the AL DNR would say stuff like that because in that state they should know (and love) bass fishing backwards and forwards.
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