Anglers must obey tale of the tape

There now are new slot and bag limits at Lake Walk-in-Water and Lake Istopoga, two of central Florida's best bass lakes.

By MIKE SCARANTINO

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 15, 2000

How did your last few fish measure up? Were they large or small? Did they meet your expectations?

If Florida anglers want to keep hauling in trophy catches, they will have to participate in restricted bag limits and more catch and release fishing to ensure future experiences. Especially as recreational fishing grows.

State agencies charged with the difficult task of monitoring and improving fish populations are finding slot limits necessary to not only improve numbers of fish, but the size and quality of those stocks.

Slot limits, long used in saltwater, are now making their way to freshwater.

As of July 1, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) set new slot and bag limits on two of central Florida's best bass lakes.

Anglers fishing Lake Walk-in-Water in Polk County and Lake Istopoga in Highlands County will no longer be able to harvest bass between 15 and 24 inches in length. Each angler can also keep no more than three fish per day. Only one of those fish may exceed the 24-inch maximum.

Anglers fishing these two lakes and wanting to keep a few fillets for the table may harvest fish 14 inches or smaller, and/or the one trophy fish over 24 inches, so long as the combination of fish equals no more than the allowable three-fish bag.

"The current reductions on bag limits, and restructured slot limit should have a pronounced and positive effect on future bass populations in those two locations," FWC fisheries biologist Phil Chapman said. "They should maintain a quality trophy fishery, while improving the numbers of fish to be harvested for consumption and future breeding stock."

Slot limits have been tried in freshwater before. At times they have had positive results and at times the results were not encouraging.

When conserving fish stocks, angler compliance is critical to all conservation efforts, whether in fresh or saltwater.

If the majority of anglers fish to maintain membership in the "Igloo Army," by filling their coolers to the brim, stocks will remain difficult to improve. If a majority of anglers continue the current trend of fishing more for the sport than the meat, healthy stocks of trophy-sized fish are not a dream.

Maintaining both a trophy fishery and substantial numbers of smaller fish for consumption is a balancing act. While smaller fish are better for eating, and by their sheer numbers make up the bulk of future spawning stocks, the trophy-sized fish are an important component to the ecological diversity of a body of water.

Even under optimum conditions, big fish are harder to maintain.

According to FWC studies of Lake Walk-in-Water and Lake Istopoga, the harvest of fish larger than 18 inches is occurring at a rate much faster than the system can replace them. In Lake Walk-in-Water, fish longer than 18 inches make up 3 percent of the population, yet they account for 25 percent of the fish harvested.

In saltwater, where slot and size limits have been used more often, there are many success stories.

Redfish are a prime example.

In Texas, due to limitations, redfish populations have rebounded so well that not long ago anglers were given the option of increasing their daily bag limit from three fish per day to four. Anglers spoke loudly against the measure, wishing to maintain continued improvement to the stocks.

In both salt and freshwater, slot and bag limits are designed fish by fish to promote optimum growth and numbers of a given species.

Take redfish for example, initial conservation efforts in the gulf began by lowering the maximum size limit of the fish. Female redfish reach sexual maturity after achieving approximately four to five years of age and 31 inches in length. In 1987, Florida established the 18- to 27-inch slot limit. Evidence strongly suggests a positive increase in fish populations since that time.

Spotted sea trout are another example of a growing species because of restricted take.

In 1989, the marine fisheries commission went to the first slot limit. In 1996, the rule was regionalized for socioeconomic reasons. Then again this year, those rules were tightened a bit to expedite the spawning potential ratio of the species and continued improvement to the stocks.

According to Mike Murphy of the Florida Marine Research Institute, data shows the limits are having a positive effect in most regions of the state, and a pronounced improvement in the northeast region. Like saving money for the future at an annual percentage rate of 6 percent, one could become rich if they were fiscally responsible. The same theory applies to improving fish stocks. It takes a prolonged period of time, along with responsible anglers, to make a difference.

Compliance is good for the foreseeable fishing future.

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