White Seabass Set Off Frenzy

When the big croaker comes to town, a fisherman’s world turns to chaos. When the croaker is the white seabass, that is.

Such was the case over the weekend, when seabass the size of small submarines invaded the northern Channel Islands.

On Saturday, anglers aboard three boats from Harbor Village Sportfishing in Ventura caught 132 white seabass, the largest and most prized of croakers.

The fish averaged 25-30 pounds and a few were closer to 50. The saltwater sportfishing community, which had been cooped up practically all winter because of the rains, was abuzz.

“Our phones were ringing off the hook for three solid days,” said Capt. Louie Abbott, 55, owner of the Harbor Village landing. “All of January it rained, so people were just waiting for something like this to happen.”

Trouble is, the latest storm has put a damper on the bite. Boats from Oxnard to Santa Barbara, battling strong currents and heavy seas, picked up only a few fish in the last three days.

“We got into them once and we’re hoping to get into them again after this storm goes through,” Abbott said.

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More locally, they’re waiting for the storm to pass for other reasons--barracuda and halibut.

The slender, sharp-toothed barracuda made an unseasonal appearance at the Horseshoe Kelp in the days before the rain. Mean as they are, they were a welcome change from the sluggish rockfish the fleet has hovered over the last few months.

Halibut had moved into the Santa Monica Bay, but when the southeast wind kicked up, signaling the arrival of yet another storm, the fish took a dive.

As is the case up north, the storm hasn’t put a damper on spirits.

“At least we’re not in the doldrums anymore,” said Don Ashley, owner of Long Beach Sportfishing.

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Catch and release may not be as effective a conservation practice as people think. For those using scented artificial baits, anyway.

The Colorado Division of Wildlife recently released findings of a two-year study that concluded that fish caught on scented salmon eggs and other synthetic or processed baits are more likely to die after being released than those caught on lures and flies.

“Scented artificial baits, such as eggs, are hit much more aggressively by fish,” said biologist Bergersen, principal investigator for the study. “These baits are swallowed completely by the fish, which become gut-hooked and eventually die of internal bleeding or infection.”

Mortality rates were highest for fish caught with scented baits fished in a passive manner--32%. Those caught on lures and flies experienced only a 4% mortality rate.