Outdoor Notes / Pete Thomas : Yellowtail Catch Is Exceptional Off Coronado Islands

Although albacore fishing has been disappointing in the San Diego area, the yellowtail catch at the Coronado Islands has been exceptional.

“This has been one of the best bites we’ve had in the last 10 to 15 years,” said Katrina Rutkauskas, office manager at H & M sportfishing in San Diego.

“There have been several times when we’ve caught 1,000 fish a day and there have been some days when we’ve had 1,500 to 2,000,” she said.

Because of the absence of albacore, more boats are going out to the islands--14 miles south of San Diego--but Rutkauskas said that has little to do with the large yellowtail counts.

“There’s just a larger school out there,” she said. “Much larger than in the past.”

Most of the fish weigh between 8 and 18 pounds, but some 30-pounders have been taken.

The Arizona Game and Fish Dept. said it has discovered several hot spots for bubonic plague and is warning hunters, campers and other outdoor enthusiasts to follow basic precautions to avoid exposure.

Craig Levy of the state’s Dept. of Health Services said that newly identified plague hot spots were found in Cochise, Coconio, Graham and Greenlee counties.

People traveling in these areas are advised to avoid sick or dead animals and rodent burrows, and to keep pets, which should be protected with flea powder, from roaming freely.

The Department also advises hunters taking rabbits or predators during summer, or bears and squirrels later in the year, to treat their exposed skin areas with insect repellent, to wear disposable rubber gloves when dressing game, and to avoid putting unskinned rabbits or squirrels into game pockets.

Proper cooking will kill plague bacteria in meat, the department said.

Briefly

The public drawing for tags to hunt mountain lions and bighorn sheep is set for Aug. 17 in Sacramento. Applications must be in the DFG’s Sacramento office by Aug. 14. . . . The California Wildlife Conservation Board is meeting Aug. 18 to consider a proposed $5.1-million purchase of coastal wetlands and interior lands to be used for conservation, hunting and fishing.

Hunters and fishermen spent a record $624 million on state licenses and permits in 1986, with participation in fishing showing an increase and hunting a slight decline from the previous year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced. . . . California has surpassed Minnesota as the No. 2 state, behind Michigan, in the number of registered pleasure boats, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. . . . The Dept. of Fish and Game hasa new aquatic toxicology laboratory in Elk Grove, south of Sacramento. It is expected to play a key role in restoring the striped bass fishery in the Sacramento-San Joaquin estuary.

Perris Lake in Riverside County is holding its third annual crawdad festival Saturday. It is intended to reduce the crawdad population to a level that will help maintain a healthy environment for the bass population. . . . The BASS Masters Classic XVII will be in progress Aug. 13-15 on a portion of the Ohio River in Lexington, Ky.