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CCA Florida focusing on illegal netting

By TERRY TOMALIN

© St. Petersburg Times, published August 20, 2000

FORT DeSOTO -- For months, local fishermen had been complaining about illegal netting on the grass flats near this barrier island.

Pinellas County Sheriff's Deputy Glenn Wilson thought it was just a matter of time until the alleged culprits got careless.

"We were waiting for them," Wilson said of the Aug. 15th arrest. "We watched them put in and then take off with no running lights."

Wilson and fellow deputies Shane Bouette and Tim Goodwin followed the shallow-draft boats in the moonlight.

"We could track them pretty well on the open water," Wilson said. "But when they got against the mangroves we lost them."

The officers waited for the alleged poachers to set their nets.

"We wanted to catch them with their nets in the water," Wilson said. "Then we called for air assistance."

The Sheriff's Department helicopter spotted one of the boats immediately. "He was having engine trouble," Wilson said. "We arrived in our boat shortly thereafter and he was less than cooperative."

John A. Imhoff, a 27-year-old from Citrus County, was charged with several violations, including possession of illegal redfish. Deputies also seized 600 pounds of mullet. Imhoff was accompanied to the boat ramp just in time to meet the second boat.

"They said, "Don't you have anything better to do than harass us,' " Wilson said. John Alexander Barnes, a 29-year-old from Crystal River, was charged with several gill net violations. The owner of the boat, James Zock of Ocala, was charged for running without lights.

The arrests are the latest in a long series of alleged illegal gill netting incidents on the west coast of Florida.

As a result, Coastal Conservation Association Florida has launched a special project to combat illegal netting in state waters. Initial efforts will focus on Southeast Florida from Manatee County to Everglades National Park.

The CCA program will examine all areas of net-ban enforcement from poaching to arrests and prosecution. Many anglers fear the illegal netting is stopping the recovery of many species, including pompano.

According to CCA, commercial landings dropped dramatically after the net ban went into effect, and all around the state recreational anglers saw fish populations increase. Then things began to change. Reports of poaching increased, as did reported commercial landings of pompano caught "offshore" in federal waters.

The CCA began its campaign against illegal netting two years ago when poachers blatantly stacked the filleted carcasses of 52 undersized snook on a public road on Pine Island (Lee County).

Two weeks later, poachers responded to the public outcry by dumping another 45 snook carcasses on the side of the road. According to the CCA, the Charlotte Harbor area continues to be the hotbed of outlaw netting.

Poachers are using increasingly sophisticated methods to elude capture. Cell phones and night-vision goggles are common equipment. Poachers also have hidden gill nets in mangroves and marshes, then picked them up in the dark.

Law enforcement officials are calling on anglers, boaters and residents of waterside communities to keep an eye out for illegal netting activities. If you see something, call (800) DIAL-FMP.

Catch-release tips

To release a fish without harming it, start by pinching down the barb on the hook. Barbs are designed to keep live bait on a hook and play a small part in landing the fish. You may miss a few hook-ups, but it will be easier to unhook the fish.

Use hooks made of non-stainless metal. If the fish swallows the hook and you must cut the line, the fish's digestive juices will cause the hook to deteriorate quickly.

Set the hook immediately. This will keep the fish from swallowing the bait or lure. Land the fish quickly. Don't play it until it is exhausted.

Leave the fish in the water. A net can damage the thin membrane that guards against disease. If you must handle it, use a wet towel to hold it.

Don't let the fish thrash around the boat. The fish usually will calm down if you turn it on its back. Largemouth bass have a built-in handle -- the lower jaw. Grab it there, and the fish will be immobilized. Use a tool, such as needle-nose pliers or surgical hemostats, to remove the hook. Don't try to rip it out. Back the hook out the opposite way it went in. If the fish is hooked deeply, cut the leader or the hook shank.

Don't throw or drop the fish into the water. Place it into the water gently. If the fish responds slowly, hold its mouth open and move it back and forth in the water gently to move water through its gills.

Watch the fish swim away. If it doesn't look healthy, pick it up and try to revive it again.

-- Source: Phil Chapman's Recycle Your Bass

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