Thursday, December 30, 2004
Bill Cochran's Field Reports: More beef required of catfish
Bill Cochran is a Roanoke Times outdoors columnist.
Bill Cochran's Outdoors
Recent columns
- Less freedom at Hatteras for surf casters
- Here’s the scoop on hunting shed antlers
- Want more grouse? Get used to hearing chainsaws
- Sunday hunting bills aplenty, but some hunters hold out
- Column archive
Bill's Mailbag
Bill's Field Reports
Resources
Add another 10 pounds to the next blue catfish you catch if you want to earn a trophy fish citation from the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. Starting Jan. 1, a blue cat must weigh 30 pounds or more and must measure 38 inches or longer to earn a citation. The current weight is 20 pounds and length is 34 inches.
Blue catfish citations have been running more than 1,000 per year since introductions in the James and Rappahannock rivers and Kerr Lake, as well as elsewhere, have taken off.
The new trophy criteria for blue catfish will be more reflective of the current status of blue catfish angling in the commonwealth,” said Bob Greenlee, DGIF biologist.
BILL
MINIMUM WEIGHTS BOOSTED
The minimum weight to earn a citation for a spot or sheephead in the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament will be higher beginning Jan. 1.
The spot citation requirement is being advanced from 1 pound to 1 pound, 2 ounces. Huge numbers of big spot showed up during the 2004 season, resulting in more than 2,000 citations. In the 1980s and early '90s, the count never topped 12, said Claude Bain, tournament chairman.
The minimum size for a sheepshead will increase from 7 to 9 pounds. Anglers are targeting this species more than in the past. Better than 200 citations were caught this year.
The new size standards are an attempt to “fine tune” the program and bring citation standards more in like with actual sizes of fish, Bain said.
Swordfish are being added as a new species to the tournament and will have a minimum size of 200 pounds.
BILL
OUTDOOR BRIEFS
>Finally, a trophy bull elk has been killed in Kentucky following reintroductions of this species beginning in 1997. Rita Tharp, a 54-year old retired farmer and grandmother, killed a state record elk after drawing one of the 41 hunting permits issued by Kentucky this season. The elk had six points on each side.
>A die off of millions of croaker along the Atlantic, from New Jersey to Florida was caused by a bacterial infection of the gills, according to the Virginia Institute of Marine Science. The exact cause of the problem is unknown, and may never be know, VIMS officials say.
>In-Fisherman Television hits the airwaves this week on The Outdoor Channel. There also are plans in January for In-Fisherman Specials on 45 select stations and cable channel RFD-TV. In-Fisherman will air its In-Fisherman Critical Concepts beginning Jan. 2 on most Fox Sports Channels. Programming times and venues can be found on in-fisherman.com/tv/schedule/tv_schedule/.
>Greg South, a Richmond medical doctor and past Bassmasters Classic contender, is chairman of the American Sportfishing Association Fathers Club. The club provides an opportunity for members to honor or remember their father through a $5,000 contribution toward the betterment of angling. Check for details on www.asafishing.org.
>A recent survey by the National Crop Residue Management Survey revealed that 41 percent of all American cropland is now under a conservation tillage system, meaning that farmers are leaving the stubble or residue from the previous crop to cover at least one-third of the soil’s surface after planting.
>Ron Curtis has been elected president of the Smith Mountain Striper Club, replacing long-time president Rex Smith who decided not to run again. Vice president is Steve McCallun and secretary is Joe Esposito.
>David Fitts, popular pro BASS angler from North Carolina, is seeing improvement in an eye ailment that has threatened his career, which includes a Bassmaster Classic win and Angler of the Year award. Fitts believes his problem began when he was struck by lightening during a June Elite tournament.
BILL
VIRGINIA SALTWATER FISHING TOURNAMENT
Here are the standings in the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament:
BLACK DRUM: 95 pounds, Joseph Roub, Baltimore, Md., Hog Island Bay.
COBIA: 103 pounds, 8 ounces, Vince Ainsley, Aylett, lower-western Chesapeake Bay.
CROAKER: 5 pounds, Jarvis Taylor, Richmond, lower York River.
DOLPHIN: 50 pounds, Jereme Wilson, Chesapeake, off Virginia Beach.
FLOUNDER: 14 pounds, 4 ounces, Betty Smith, Chesapeake, lower-eastern Chesapeake Bay.
GRAY TRIGGERFISH: 5 pounds, Mike Barboza, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.
GRAY TROUT: 12 pounds, 12 ounces, Greg Thayer, Gloucester, upper-eastern Chesapeake Bay.
KING MACKEREL: 52 pounds, Cecil Smith, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.
KINGFISH: 1 pound, 14 ounce, Bobby Smith, Portsmouth, lower-western Chesapeake Bay.
POMPANO: 3 pounds, 6 ounces, Arlon Stith, Petersburg, lower James River.
SEA BASS: 6 pounds, 14 ounces, Mark Fueller, Rio Grande, N.J., off Virginia Beach.
SHEEPHEAD: 19 pounds, 3 ounces state record, Jeff Hutton, Virginia Beach, lower eastern Chesapeake Bay.
SPADEFISH: 13 pounds, 10 ounces, Jake Mapp, Franktown, upper-eastern Chesapeake Bay.
SPANISH MACKEREL: 6 pounds, 6 ounces, Patrick Quisenberry, Mechanicsville, upper-western Chesapeake Bay.
SPECKLED TROUT: 13 pounds, 12 ounces, Walter Kellum, Hayes, Mobajack Bay.
SPOT: 1 pound, 10 ounces, Wilson Haynes, Wake, lower Rappahannock River.
STRIPED BASS: 63 pound state record, Carolyn Brown, Virginia Beach, off the Virginia Coast.
TAUTOG: 22 pounds, 9 ounces, Julie Ball, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.
TUNA (BLUEFIN): 180 pounds, 4 ounces, Okey Bolling, Pasadena, Md. off Eastern Shore.
TUNA (OTHER): 241 pounds, Mike Wolf, Sterling, off Virginia Beach.
WAHOO: 107 pounds, Chris Miles, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.
BILL
MEETINGS/EVENTS/SEASONS
Smith River Trout Unlimited meeting, 7 p.m. Jan. 6 at Rania’s Restaurant in downtown Martinsville (147 E. Main St.), program on tying the Allieworm and Soft Hackle Nymph by Al Kittrege and Ralph Mueller. Guests welcome. Information from Shane Pinkston, 276-638-3757, or Ted Tomczak 276-629-2962.
SaltWater Sportsman Magazine National Seminar Series, Virginia Beach, Jan 15, 6 hours of instruction at Virginia Beach Convention Center, nationalseminarseries.com.
Bassmaster University, where pros instruction anglers on bass fishing, Jan. 22-23, Wyndhan Hotel Richmond Airport, Richmond, instructors include Kevin VanDam, Denny Brauer, Shaw Grigsby, Woo Daves, Zell Roland, Mike Auten. Information from 866-732-BASS.
Richmond Ducks Unlimited Wild Game Feast, Feb. 3, Tredegar Iron Works, $75, information from durichmond.com.
Eastern Sports and Outdoor Show, 50th anniversary, Feb. 5-13, State Farm Show Complex, Harrisburg, Pa. Reported to be the largest consumer show of its kind, easternsportshow.com.
Wilderness First Aid Class, March 12-13, Blacksburg, 18 hours of hands-on instruction and study that results in a two-year certificate, coast $160, visit wfa.net.
Youth day spring gobbler hunt, April 2.
Spring gobbler season, April 9-May 14.
Got an event? Let us know: xtrails@earthlink.net.
