After less than a year, a tagged bonefish has been re-captured off Abaco.
That’s the work of the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust for ya.
You should be a member… if you are reading this you probably want to catch bonefish in the future and the folks that are doing the science to figure out what areas even need to be protected are the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust.
Join.
Some bits and pieces from around the web.
In other news, my interviews for the coming weeks are Bill Marts from The Fly Shop and…. Yvon Chouinard from Patagonia. I do one a week, so Bill in next week and Yvon will follow.
It’s Census Time… although, if you are prone to government conspiracies and believe Obama is the Anti-Christ, you probably aren’t filling yours out… and that’s OK by me.
However, it is also Bonefish Census time, and that is important business. April 21st is the date for the “Great Counting.” The Bonefish and Tarpon Trust, as you might expect, is at the center of it all, along with Miami University.
Fall census results have indicated a population of just over 320,000 bonefish in the Florida Keys fishery. We want to use the Spring census to calibrate our Fall estimates and to determine if there is a seasonal component to the bonefish population size estimates. Of particular note, your participation in this year’s census is critically important because we are trying to get a handle on the extent to which January’s extremely cold weather has impacted the Florida Keys bonefish population.
Get the info you need at the BTT website and if you are out there, you should take part.
A Bruce Chard Bonefish from them there Keys.
Well… just how much are those Bahamian Bonefish worth? That’s the question asked by the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust (along with Bahamian National Trust and the Fisheries Conservation Foundation).
Turns out, it’s a pretty impressive pile of scratch.
To determine the economic impact of the bonefishing industry to The Bahamas, the Bahamian Flats Fishing Alliance (BFFA) commissioned an in-depth study, which has just been released. The results were astounding: the total economic impact of flats fishing in The Bahamas is nearly $141 million annually! Even in a time when global recession has caused fishing-related tourism to drop 11.6% from 2007, the fishery continues to provide considerable economic value to this region. The results of this study provide strong evidence of the need for responsible conservation and management of this vitally important cultural resource.
You probably have guessed bonefish are valuable. $141M is certainly impressive (out of a total GDP of about $9B). Of course, something worth so much deserves a fair measure of protection and that was really the point of the study (read it here). From enforcement of existing laws protecting bonefish to land use decisions and water quality efforts, the Bahamian people can now put a number on exactly just how important is is to protect the Gray Ghosts.
Hey Buddie... you are worth a LOT!
Have you been wanting to go on an Orvis trip? Have you been wanting to go to Belize? Have you been wanting to be a part of the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust‘s Traveling Angler Program? If you answered “yes” to, well, any of the above question, I may have the skinny on just the trip for you. Right now there are only TWO spots left.
April 4th is the date for an Orvis trip as part of BTT’s Traveling Angler Program. Details can be found here.
You’ll even get some new gear out of it…
To make the experience even more fun, Orvis will provide each angler with a brand new Helios rod and Battenkill Large Arbor reel to help them catch as many “research subjects” as possible.
The lodge is El Pescador, which seems like a pretty fantastic operation, and you can expect Dr. Aaron Adams to be there as well. Here is what they say about the trip:
Proceeds from this trip will go to help Bonefish & Tarpon Trust conduct valuable research and education programs, ensuring that bonefish and tarpon will be on the flats for many years to come. An important part of BTT’s research includes collecting fin clippings for genetic analysis and tagging fish to learn more about their life cycle and migration patterns. Participating anglers will work closely with Aaron J. Adams, Ph.D., Director of Operations and Research, Bonefish & Tarpon Trust. You will help conduct valuable research while at the same time enjoying a fantastic bonefishing vacation. We chose El Pescador Lodge because it is the perfect place to experience quality bonefishing at this time of year and there is something for everyone in the family to enjoy.
Now… doesn’t that sound like a good time? It is about $5K, putting not on the cheap side of things (I could do about 5 trips for that much cashish), but the experience is bound to be very special.
Orvis + El Pescador + BTT
Building on the data gathering goodness from their bonefish tagging program, the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust has launched a Permit tagging program with the support of Costa Del Mar. Seems things kicked off on March 15th while I was away paying attention to other things.
Thanks Costa del Mar
Here is what BTT has to say about it:
Costa Del Mar has agreed to fund and support a multi-year, statewide tagging study of Permit in Florida. A donation of $15,000 in the first year will allow us to purchase thousands of tags and materials for tagging kits, and will go a long way toward researching permit movements and the fishery.
Seems Costa Del Mar is doing some pretty interesting things these days between this investment in Permit research in Florida and their recent short film about Permit/salty goodness in Belize.
Only good stuff can ensue
The hope really is to build the body of knowledge about Permit. If you want to preserve Permit, or Bonefish or Tarpon, you need to know what they need, where they go and where they breed so you know where to focus your efforts. This is a great step forward.
I was at the Pleasanton Fly Fishing Show and I saw a book I had heard about a few times, but had not seen close up… Fly Fisherman’s Guide to Saltwater Prey by the Grand Poobah of bonefish knowledge, Aaron Adams.
Hot Damn. What a book.
Want to see what a “Depressed Mud Crab” looks like (no, I’m not making that up and I don’t know why he’s so down in the dumps)? There are two pictures and comments like this…
This species is the most abundant on intertidal and shallow sub-tidal oyster bars of the Gulf of Mexico and southeastern U.S. Atlantic coast.
See… good to know.
Not only does the book have just about every bit of bonefish (or, for that matter, tarpon, permit, snook, etc.) food possible, but it also has flies tied by some of the greats that mimic those food sources. Fly tiers like Dr. Adams, the late Jack Gartside, Marshall Cutchin, Tony Petrella and Oscar Feliu do a damn good job of tying up the flies and giving tips.
Just simply a fantastic book with the information you need to show up wherever your next trip takes you with a fly box or two full of the right flies.
I’ll be volunteering for the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust for the duration of the Fly Fishing Show in Pleasanton, February 26-28.
If you are a Bar Area-ite and are heading to the show, stop by and say “hi” and give me a chance to try and shake some money out of you for chat about Bonefish, Tarpon and Permit research and conservation.
yeah... what he said.
I understand that FWC is recommending some further protections for bonefish in Florida. Florida Fly Fishing Magazine recently covered the issue.
Right now, you can’t harvest bonefish in Florida due to the cold snap, the damage that cold snap caused and the temporary protections that were enacted afterwards. If you’d like to see such regulations extended/expanded, check out the Florida Fly Fishing Magazine site for who to contact.
As you might expect, you are encouraged to support the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust.
Pirates of the Flats has been a joy. I was a little surprised on one occasion to have tennis show up on my DVR instead of bonefishing. I really don’t like watching tennis… even the ladies in the tiny skirts… just not my thing. I understand that ESPN has to do what they have to do, just wish they (whoever the “they” is in this situation) could get the tags right.
If you missed an episode or two, or had tennis screw up your plans, there’s a rebroadcasting schedule for Pirates of the Flats on the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust website.
So good, you should watch it twice.
