[video of fish through link below]

September 22, 2009—UPDATE: A gelatinous fish found off Brazil's Bahia coast has been touted as a previously unknown species. But the six-foot-long, toothed oddity may be a known member of a group of mysterious bottom-dwellers known as jellynose fish, another expert says.

Scientists in Brazil found what they thought was a strange, new species of fish off the coast of Bahia.

The fish was over six feet long, with a long tail and was found floating on the surface of the ocean by researchers from the TAMAR project, a sea turtle conservation project.

SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Guy Marcovaldi, TAMAR Project: "At first, I got really scared when I saw this huge thing in the water. But then, I decided to jump in the water and film it."

But within the scientific realm, this family of fishes is actually well-known.

According to David Johnson, an ichthyologist with the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, the specimen is part of a group of fishes known as Jellynoses.

They aren't often seen, though, because they are bottom dwellers living at depths beyond a thousand feet.

These fish may reach a length of around 6 feet, and weigh about 100 pounds interesting, considering that they start their lives at just a half an inch in length as seen in this photo.

They have small teeth, no scales and are gelatinous with a large body fat content not good for eating.

This fish has been preserved in formaldehyde, and will be maintained in the zoology department at the Federal University of Bahia. Could this be a new species of Jellynose? Dave Johnson says it's possible, but unlikely, and the only way to determine that is through careful study.

But, new species are being identified all the time. Currently, there are around 30,000 known species of fishes in the world, and scientists believe there are thousands of others yet to be described.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/09/090921-brazil-bizarre-fish-video-ap.html

No scales, how odd. I wonder how that benefits them?

Fisherman reels in monster 6ft perch... after battling with a CROCODILE

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/10/16/article-0-06D927C3000005DC-233_634x720.jpg

By James Tozer
16th October 2009

It's not often that you'd describe the angler, rather than the fish, as the one that got away.

But that was certainly the case for Tim Smith, who lived to tell the tale after tussling with a crocodile over this monster 6ft Nile perch.

The art teacher, 39, had already been engaged in a titanic battle to reel in the 249lb fish for 45 minutes in his tiny motor boat on the Victoria Nile in Uganda when he realised he had a fiercer rival.

Fortunately, however, it was the 39-year-old art teacher who turned out to be the one that got away, managing to tether his catch to the boat before firing the motor into life, leaving his opponent empty-mouthed in his wake.

And he was able to pose by his giant prize - which may be a record - for this spectacular photograph.

Back from his Ugandan trip and home to mercifully crocodile-free Northern Ireland, he told yesterday of his transformation from being the hunter to the hunted.

He had been grappling with the fish while in a small boat on the Victoria Nile in Uganda, about a mile downstream from the stunning Murchison Falls, for about 45 minutes when he realised he had competition.

'Suddenly the boat lurched and I nearly fell out,' he said. 'I didn't really know what had happened.

'The next thing is, the crocodile launches itself at me, mouth wide open.'
Nile perch

Catch of the day: Even a hungry crocodile struggled to fit the perch in its jaws

Fortunately it had misjudged its jump and fell short, hitting the side of the boat.

'If it had launched itself another foot I'm sure it would have got hold of me,' he added.

'It obviously hit the front of the boat to try and knock me out and then went to the other side.

'When you realise something that size is trying to eat you, it's really quite daunting. I just fell back into the centre of the boat, still holding the rod.'

By then the fish had almost given up the fight, lying flat on the water close to the boat, giving the reptile its final chance.

'I just saw the crocodile swim up and grab the fish's tail and spin it around in a death roll, but because of the size of the fish it couldn't get a proper grip,' said Mr Smith.

That enabled him to grab his catch, tie it to the side of the boat, pull up the anchor and make his getaway - and just in time.

'By the time I got the engine started the crocodile was just coming around,' he said. 'I slammed into gear and the croc dived and disappeared.'

Mr Smith, who works at Portora Royal School in Enniskillen, then drifted down the river, tied the fish to a tree and went to a nearby wildlife safari lodge to get help.

He is now applying to the International Game Fish Association to have his Nile perch established as a record - until now, the heaviest caught on a rod and line weighed just 230lb.

Nile perch - which themselves have a voracious appetite - were controversially introduced to Lake Victoria and surrounding rivers in the 1950s, quickly decimating native species.

They have, however, provided a useful source of income for local people, both through commercial fishing for export to Europe and also international angling tourism.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1220924/Fisherman-reels-monster-6ft-perch--battling-CROCODILE.html#ixzz0UM3BlxFF

Good stuff, fishing is one of my favorite things... One I caught a few months ago.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/irishpride1118/IMG00670.jpg

Good stuff, fishing is one of my favorite things... One I caught a few months ago.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y21/irishpride1118/IMG00670.jpg

Striped Bass? GOOOOOD eatin'.

Nice fish!

When I first saw that perch, I thought it was a photoshop.

What's the biggest fish you ever caught?

My record for largemouth bass is 5.75 lbs, landed in private pond outside Kirksville.

I have also caught an 11-lb carp out of the Jordan in Salt Lake City.

That fish is in the foreground and the man is a ways back from it. Looks like just a trick.

Hey Scott have you noticed a decline in the # of stripers and their average size over the past 5-10 yrs? I surfcast off the coast of Mass and I haven't caught one over 40 lbs in years.

[Holy fucking Christ... Hitler wasn't kidding when he said life's a struggle.]

10-foot Great White Shark bitten nearly in half by 20-foot 'monster shark' near Australian beach

By Ethan Sacks
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Monday, October 26th 2009, 10:30 AM

http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2009/10/27/alg_shark-bite.jpg
A 10-foot shark was bitten nearly in half by a 'monster shark' twice it's size - and that Great White is still on the prowl off the coast of Queensland, Australian officials said.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water...

Swimmers were warned that a "monster shark" was prowling off a popular Australian beach, one that nearly bit a 10-foot great white shark in half last week, London's Daily Mail reported.

Based on the bite marks, experts say the larger shark must be twice its victim's size.

The smaller - relatively speaking - great white was hooked on a baited drum line when it was attacked, and was still alive when it was hauled onto a boat off north Stradbroke Island in Queensland.

The fatally wounded shark was found just a few miles away from the island's popular beaches, a haven for surfers and bathers.

"That cannibal thing is what great whites do; they'll eat anything, including their own kind," Hugh Edwards, a local shark expert, told Australia's 7 News. "It would be sensible not to swim in that area for a little while."

Though shark attacks worldwide dipped from 71 to 59 between 2007 and 2008, according to the International Shark Attack File, and few of them were attributed to great whites, the large shark had been vilified even before Steven Spielberg's 1975 thriller.

Speculation is that this "Jaws"-sized shark has been lured to the area by the rotting carcuses of three whales that were trapped in anti-shark netting surrounding the Queensland coast.

But Queensland Fisheries Minister Tim Mulherin told Australia's Courier Mail that the grisly find shows why those nets were still essential.

Five people were fatally attacked in the late '50s, the Courier Mail reported, but only one since the nets were put in place in 1962.

"Whatever attacked and took chunks out of this big shark must be massive," surfer Ashton Smith, 19, told the Daily Mail. "I've heard about the big one that's lurking out there somewhere.

"We're all being very, very cautious."

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/2009/10/26/2009-10-26_10foot_great_white_shark_bitten_nearly_in_half_by_20foot_monster_shark_near_aust.html

YouTube - shark attacks shark queensland australia

'IT'S A WONDER' Suspected killer's fish lives after seven months alone in a townhouse
November 07, 2009 4:28 PM

MIRAMAR BEACH — When employees from Contractor’s Choice and members of the homeowners association walked into alleged murderer Danny Baker’s long-vacant townhouse, they expected to find mold. But they were shocked to find a fish had survived seven months without food or clean water.

The fish, which appears to be a plecostomus and blends in with the rocks in his large tank, was overlooked when police came into the home to remove Baker’s other fish and birds. He was almost overlooked a second time, as much of the water in his tank had evaporated, and the remaining water was black with filth by the time the townhouse was opened for cleaning.

“I was very upset because I thought the police had taken everything after Danny’s arrest,” said Dianne Richmond, vice president of the homeowner’s association. “This poor fish has been in that boiling house with no air conditioning and nothing to eat for about seven months.”

The first floor of the townhouse is dominated by a fish tank that is built into the wall and stretches almost the entire length of the living room. The remaining space is filled with a couch and four bunk beds, as well as two more fish tanks in a corner. Large bird cages, which according to a neighbor held birds that could recite prayers and say “I love you Danny,” cover the back patio.

The fish went unnoticed for so long because Baker’s home was closed to the homeowners association after his arrest in February for allegedly shooting five Chilean students in his Miramar Beach subdivision with a rifle. Two were killed and three were seriously injured before Baker barricaded himself in his townhouse. He surrendered to police the next morning, and is currently awaiting trial.

Months later as workers began the long process of cleaning and removing mold, the fiancee of Contractor’s Choice owner, David Fritz, noticed something moving in the tank. After sprinkling some fish food in the water, the plecostomus immediately moved for his first real meal in months.

Josh Olis, an account manager at Contractor’s Choice, said he didn’t believe it when his boss told him a fish was still living in that tank, and he had to see it for himself. After confirming the fish’s existence, he and the owner put about 50 gallons of water back in the tank. He said he would continue to make sure the fish was fed for as long as the company is working in the home.

“I think we’re going to accept him into the cleaning family for now,” Olis said. “He’s been living in that tank for so long, surviving off algae. I have so much respect for him, I had to name him.”

As of press time, the future of Theo, as Olis calls the survivor, was still up in the air. Richmond and employees from Contractor’s Choice said they will continue to care for him for now but hope to find someone to give him a permanent home.

“This poor fish has really worked for a new home,” Richmond said. “It’s a wonder he’s survived this.”

http://www.thedestinlog.com/news/wonder-11853-miramar-alone.html

http://www.bountyfishing.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/fangtooth-fish1.jpg

Fangtooth Fish

The Fangtooth fish is found in midwater depths of about five kilometers (three miles). They are extremely muscular and their teeth are so long that when the jaw is shut, the lower pair must slide into special sheathes on either side of the fish’s brain to avoid impaling it.

YouTube- Fangtooth fish

The biggest fish I ever caught was a brown trout in Edwards, CO, near my mother's place. The beast was well over 20 pounds. It was in a pond on the Cordillera golf course. It took me over half an hour to reel it in on a fly rod with 8 pound test line. Once I finally did get it ashore I saw that its mouth had developed grotesque protuberances which looked like spikes. It was, quite simply, an aquatic monster! I didn't have a camera on me and had no intention of trying to eat the thing, so I returned it to its native habitat, exhausted as it was from the fight.

The bookend of this little "big fish" tale is that a Mexican kid later poached the thing out of the same pond with some help from his dad. They took a picture, and his family feasted on the beast.

The photo and story ended up in the local paper. I told my mother several years later when she recalled the newspaper story and its connections to my post-catch ravings to her after I had caught it: "That's the fish I told you about!!!"

Piranha found in Palm Springs pond
Wildlife officials believe fish came from aquarium, apply poison to pond

They're a staple of B-movies, relentless aquatic killers, swarming hapless victims and stripping the flesh from their bones.

They are the South American piranha. And they've come to Palm Beach County.

Jake Duchene, 15, hooked a red-bellied piranha about three weeks ago in a retention pond near his Palm Springs townhome. Since then, state wildlife officials have found two more, and on Tuesday poisoned the whole lake to get rid of any straggling piranhas.

Jake Duchene, who found the first one, went from elated to deflated as he watched officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission pump rotenone into the pond, killing everything inside.

"My son is beside himself," said his father, Darren Duchene, 47. "I think it's ridiculous to poison the whole lake."

Real piranhas are a far cry from their celluloid portrayal, but extremely destructive in a non-native habitat like South Florida, said William Fink, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Michigan.

"That's the reason they're illegal," he said, referring to a Florida law banning piranhas. "They will get loose and they can potentially breed."

Fink said piranhas can easily take over habitats. He's never heard of a single case of a piranha killing a human, but they will attack birds, other fish and even larger animals.

Fink said piranhas are popular pets because of their unearned reputations as man-eaters. But upkeep can be expensive and feeding them — they'll often only eat live meals — can be a pain, Fink said.

"People can't afford to keep them fed or they get sick of them and they dump them in a pond," he said.

State officials think that's exactly how the three piranhas got loose. They defended poisoning the lake Tuesday, saying it helped them find the two others.

"The consequences of leaving piranhas in the water could be absolutely horrendous for the habitat," said Gabrielle Ferraro, spokeswoman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/palm-beach/fl-palm-piranha-20091117,0,2820464,full.story

The biggest fish I ever caught was a brown trout in Edwards, CO, near my mother's place. The beast was well over 20 pounds. It was in a pond on the Cordillera golf course. It took me over half an hour to reel it in on a fly rod with 8 pound test line. Once I finally did get it ashore I saw that its mouth had developed grotesque protuberances which looked like spikes. It was, quite simply, an aquatic monster! I didn't have a camera on me and had no intention of trying to eat the thing, so I returned it to its native habitat, exhausted as it was from the fight.

The bookend of this little "big fish" tale is that a Mexican kid later poached the thing out of the same pond with some help from his dad. They took a picture, and his family feasted on the beast.

The photo and story ended up in the local paper. I told my mother several years later when she recalled the newspaper story and its connections to my post-catch ravings to her after I had caught it: "That's the fish I told you about!!!"

That wasn't a brown trout OZH, it was a catfish or bullhead. Did those protuberances look like this:

http://pond.dnr.cornell.edu/nyfish/ictaluridae/black_bullhead.jpg

Man sentenced in LA for smuggling fish into US

12/31/2009

LOS ANGELES—A man who tried to smuggle six endangered fish into Los Angeles has been fined $7,500 and sentenced to six months of house arrest, two years probation and 200 hours of community service.

A federal judge this week in Los Angeles sentenced 35-year-old Ricky Vu of Garden Grove.

Federal prosecutors say Vu hid six Asian Arowanas, also known as dragon fish or lucky fish, in his luggage on a commercial flight Sept. 28 from Indonesia. They are illegal in the United States without a permit and worth thousands of dollars on the black market.

Authorities says the fish, which can grow to 3 feet long, were found alive in bags of water when his luggage was searched.

Vu pleaded guilty in October to a misdemeanor charge of illegally importing the endangered fish into the United States.

http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_14100540

Carp and the Lakes

December 28, 2009

Unwelcome species don’t get much more unwelcome than Asian bighead and silver carp, which were imported to Southern fish farms in the 1970’s, escaped into the Mississippi system and have spent a decade or more moving slowly upriver toward the Great Lakes.
Skip to next paragraph
Related

The fish are fertile and voracious, crowding out native species by vacuuming up algae and plankton. They are also bizarrely dangerous to boaters, erupting from the water like self-hurling bricks.

Ever since the fish started heading north, ecologists have warned about the devastation that awaits if they get loose in the Great Lakes, unchecked by natural predators and muscling out every competing species. It is not just the lakes’ $7 billion fishing industry that could be blighted by carp, it’s the entire ecosystem, already badly compromised by other invasive species and pollution.

The watery path that could seal the Great Lakes’ doom is the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, which links the Mississippi River system to the Great Lakes. Electrified underwater barriers erected by the United States Army Corps of Engineers in the canal may already have failed; carp DNA has been detected on the wrong side of the fences.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency is spending a modest $13 million to tighten the canal’s defenses, by shoring up low-lying land beside the canal and nearby carp-infested waterways so the carp can’t ride floodwaters past barricades and into Lake Michigan. In a case that has just reached the United States Supreme Court, Michigan is suing Illinois and the Army Corps to force the closing of two canal locks that give a direct route into the lake.

The only sure way to stop carp — and whatever other invasive species are waiting — is to close the canal and again separate the Mississippi and Great Lakes watersheds. That would be hugely costly and politically difficult, given the importance of shipping to the region.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/29/opinion/29tue3.html

When I was kid, I loved fishing...100 meters from my house is river with
Brown trout...i loved to catch those brave and strong fishes.

In Slavonia, North part of Croatia, on river Danube, there is realy big fish...
Wels catfish
http://www.javno.com/slike/slike_3/r1/g2009/m05/y203728212947848.jpg

This "bastard" was captured in Vukovar...95 kilos...240 centemeters long (2,4 meters)
http://www.javno.com/hr-hrvatska/ulovljena-grdosija-od-95-kilograma/259755

And how is catfish hunts in Croatia?

People have smal river boats, then they catch small fish to use it as bait for catfish. Hunt is during night, when catfish took bait and hook itself, he drives boat across river....for many hours....during that "fish" drive, Croats usually drinks and sing. When catfish exost it's power, then fishermans rise it from river to surface ad kill it...

Once I must try that...whole night of riding in small boat with drunken guys

No scales, how odd. I wonder how that benefits them?

Silly you! That makes it non-kosher and keeps Jews from eating it.

Photogallery:

http://bazonline.ch/wissen/natur/Fremdes-aus-tiefster-Tiefe/story/27685672

http://files.newsnetz.ch/bildlegende/30145/381206_pic_970x641.jpg

Photogallery:

http://bazonline.ch/wissen/natur/Fremdes-aus-tiefster-Tiefe/story/27685672

http://files.newsnetz.ch/bildlegende/30145/381206_pic_970x641.jpg

This looks like a diving Jew to me.

'IT'S A WONDER' Suspected killer's fish lives after seven months alone in a townhouse
November 07, 2009 4:28 PM

MIRAMAR BEACH — When employees from Contractor’s Choice and members of the homeowners association walked into alleged murderer Danny Baker’s long-vacant townhouse, they expected to find mold. But they were shocked to find a fish had survived seven months without food or clean water.

The fish, which appears to be a plecostomus and blends in with the rocks in his large tank, was overlooked when police came into the home to remove Baker’s other fish and birds. He was almost overlooked a second time, as much of the water in his tank had evaporated, and the remaining water was black with filth by the time the townhouse was opened for cleaning.

“I was very upset because I thought the police had taken everything after Danny’s arrest,” said Dianne Richmond, vice president of the homeowner’s association. “This poor fish has been in that boiling house with no air conditioning and nothing to eat for about seven months.”

The first floor of the townhouse is dominated by a fish tank that is built into the wall and stretches almost the entire length of the living room. The remaining space is filled with a couch and four bunk beds, as well as two more fish tanks in a corner. Large bird cages, which according to a neighbor held birds that could recite prayers and say “I love you Danny,” cover the back patio.

The fish went unnoticed for so long because Baker’s home was closed to the homeowners association after his arrest in February for allegedly shooting five Chilean students in his Miramar Beach subdivision with a rifle. Two were killed and three were seriously injured before Baker barricaded himself in his townhouse. He surrendered to police the next morning, and is currently awaiting trial.

Months later as workers began the long process of cleaning and removing mold, the fiancee of Contractor’s Choice owner, David Fritz, noticed something moving in the tank. After sprinkling some fish food in the water, the plecostomus immediately moved for his first real meal in months.

Josh Olis, an account manager at Contractor’s Choice, said he didn’t believe it when his boss told him a fish was still living in that tank, and he had to see it for himself. After confirming the fish’s existence, he and the owner put about 50 gallons of water back in the tank. He said he would continue to make sure the fish was fed for as long as the company is working in the home.

“I think we’re going to accept him into the cleaning family for now,” Olis said. “He’s been living in that tank for so long, surviving off algae. I have so much respect for him, I had to name him.”

As of press time, the future of Theo, as Olis calls the survivor, was still up in the air. Richmond and employees from Contractor’s Choice said they will continue to care for him for now but hope to find someone to give him a permanent home.

“This poor fish has really worked for a new home,” Richmond said. “It’s a wonder he’s survived this.”

http://www.thedestinlog.com/news/wonder-11853-miramar-alone.html

My brother has had his for 15 years.

Surfer films 2 Great Whites checking him out.

Pretty cool video. The sharks are not that big, 7 and 9 feet, but seaweed touching my leg scares the hell out of me, so who cares if they were "smallish."

Big Wave surfer Chuck Patterson was stand up paddle surfing in San Clemente, CA when two sharks circled him for 15 minutes. So of course, he went back looking for them the next day.

"The day before I shot this video, I was SUP [stand up paddle] surfing with a couple friends and 2 sharks circled us for about 15 minutes. The next day, I decided to go back out at around More..the same time and take my camera mounted on a 10 ft pole and do some exploring. Sure enough within 5 minutes, a 9 ft shark came out of nowhere and circled twice and slapped his tail on my board before disappearing. Then a minute later, a 7 ft young juvenile Great White swam circles around me for 12 minutes."

LiveLeak.com - Surfer Uses Underwater Camera to Capture Two Great Whites Sizing Him Up

When I was kid, I loved fishing...100 meters from my house is river with
Brown trout...i loved to catch those brave and strong fishes.

In Slavonia, North part of Croatia, on river Danube, there is realy big fish...
Wels catfish
http://www.javno.com/slike/slike_3/r1/g2009/m05/y203728212947848.jpg

This "bastard" was captured in Vukovar...95 kilos...240 centemeters long (2,4 meters)
http://www.javno.com/hr-hrvatska/ulovljena-grdosija-od-95-kilograma/259755

And how is catfish hunts in Croatia?

People have smal river boats, then they catch small fish to use it as bait for catfish. Hunt is during night, when catfish took bait and hook itself, he drives boat across river....for many hours....during that "fish" drive, Croats usually drinks and sing. When catfish exost it's power, then fishermans rise it from river to surface ad kill it...

Once I must try that...whole night of riding in small boat with drunken guys


Only the flesh of young Silurus glanis (Wels) specimens is valued as food. It is palatable when the catfish weighs less than 15 kg (33 lb). Larger than this size, the fish is highly fatty and not recommended for consumption. The eggs are poisonous and should not be consumed.

Has anyone eaten the meat of a large wels?

Regulators steal fisherman of his 900-pound catch

http://rt.com/files/usa/news/fish-rafael-tuna-catch-085/fisherman-regulators-900-pound-fish.n.jpg

Carlos Rafael of New Bedford, Massachusetts says there is something fishy with the way the US government regulates his job.

Rafael is a professional fisherman — or at least was — but is thinking of jumping ship after authorities told him to toss back the big one.

Rafael was recently out on his boat when his crew inadvertently snared an 881-pound tuna using a fishing net. It doesn’t take a marine biologist to know that that’s a pretty big fish, and at a near-record weight like that, Rafael stood to make around $400,000 off the beast’s meat.

In America, however, it isn’t always that easy.

Yes, Rafael had a permit — after all, he’s a professional. The fisherman had in fact purchased 15 tunas in the last four years, reports The Standard-Times. Those accreditations don’t apply to nets, however, says US regulators, so because Rafael didn’t use a rod and reel to land his catch, they scooped up the tuna and will keep the cash.

When the fisherman caught the fella, he called up a bluefin tuna telephone number maintained by fishery regulators to let them know about his big catch. He figured that by alerting them immediately, he’d be able to set up a deal just as quickly. "I wanted to sell the fish while it was fresh instead of letting it age on the boat," he says. Earlier this year, a fish only slightly smaller fetched $396,000 in Japan, so Rafael was eager to get the tuna onto land and eventually into the hands (and mouths) of consumers.

When the fish made its way to the shore, however, regulators were waiting.

http://rt.com/usa/news/fish-rafael-tuna-catch-085/

Yes, Rafael had a permit — after all, he’s a professional. The fisherman had in fact purchased 15 tunas in the last four years, reports The Standard-Times. Those accreditations don’t apply to nets, however, says US regulators, so because Rafael didn’t use a rod and reel to land his catch, they scooped up the tuna and will keep the cash.

When the fisherman caught the fella, he called up a bluefin tuna telephone number maintained by fishery regulators to let them know about his big catch. He figured that by alerting them immediately, he’d be able to set up a deal just as quickly. "I wanted to sell the fish while it was fresh instead of letting it age on the boat," he says. Earlier this year, a fish only slightly smaller fetched $396,000 in Japan, so Rafael was eager to get the tuna onto land and eventually into the hands (and mouths) of consumers.

When the fish made its way to the shore, however, regulators were waiting.

Yeah, I bet they were.

Federal fishing regulation has all the wackiness of the environmentalists, plus all the blatant graft of. . .oh. . .19th century Nevada silver mining. That's on top of the 'normal' nightmare of dealing with government bureaucrats.

Yeah, I bet they were.

Federal fishing regulation has all the wackiness of the environmentalists, plus all the blatant graft of. . .oh. . .19th century Nevada silver mining. That's on top of the 'normal' nightmare of dealing with government bureaucrats.

Bureaucracy gone mad and corrupt. The purpose of restricting or banning nets or gill nets is because commercial fishermen have a tendency to fish the fuck out of everything in sight thereby drawing down stocks and basically screwing it up for everybody and since new technology makes the nets larger and more efficient=mo money.

Then there is the battle between the commercial fishermen and the recreational fishermen with the recreational fishermen saying the commercial fishermen are over fishing and we ain't making no money.

In steps the feds to try and manage the mess and result is to fuck it up even more.

Regulators steal fisherman of his 900-pound catch

http://rt.com/files/usa/news/fish-rafael-tuna-catch-085/fisherman-regulators-900-pound-fish.n.jpg

Carlos Rafael of New Bedford, Massachusetts says there is something fishy with the way the US government regulates his job.

Rafael is a professional fisherman — or at least was — but is thinking of jumping ship after authorities told him to toss back the big one.

Rafael was recently out on his boat when his crew inadvertently snared an 881-pound tuna using a fishing net. It doesn’t take a marine biologist to know that that’s a pretty big fish, and at a near-record weight like that, Rafael stood to make around $400,000 off the beast’s meat.

In America, however, it isn’t always that easy.

Yes, Rafael had a permit — after all, he’s a professional. The fisherman had in fact purchased 15 tunas in the last four years, reports The Standard-Times. Those accreditations don’t apply to nets, however, says US regulators, so because Rafael didn’t use a rod and reel to land his catch, they scooped up the tuna and will keep the cash.

When the fisherman caught the fella, he called up a bluefin tuna telephone number maintained by fishery regulators to let them know about his big catch. He figured that by alerting them immediately, he’d be able to set up a deal just as quickly. "I wanted to sell the fish while it was fresh instead of letting it age on the boat," he says. Earlier this year, a fish only slightly smaller fetched $396,000 in Japan, so Rafael was eager to get the tuna onto land and eventually into the hands (and mouths) of consumers.

When the fish made its way to the shore, however, regulators were waiting.

http://rt.com/usa/news/fish-rafael-tuna-catch-085/

Thats one old fish....not sure the meat would be worth a dime for quality, but apparently good enough for commercial market.

Rafael was recently out on his boat when his crew inadvertently snared an 881-pound tuna using a fishing net. It doesn’t take a marine biologist to know that that’s a pretty big fish, and at a near-record weight like that, Rafael stood to make around $400,000 off the beast’s meat.

Are those figures right? That works out to over $450 per pound. Tuna's expensive, but it ain't that damn expensive.

Are those figures right? That works out to over $450 per pound. Tuna's expensive, but it ain't that damn expensive.

Yes, bluefin tuna is that expensive. Particularly prized for its use in sushi it sells for over $1,000 dollars per kilogram.

The most expensive bluefin tuna will be the last one in the sea.

Are those figures right? That works out to over $450 per pound. Tuna's expensive, but it ain't that damn expensive.

What Steve B says is right, far as I know, which aint far. But I've read more than once they pay hyperexorbitant prices for certain sealings in Japan.

Texas has a season on red snapper. Who knew?

Hawaii woman reels in half-ton marlin after FOUR HOUR battle that lost her a world record after help from crew

Molly Palmer misses a world record for her 1022.5lb fish because of a rule prohibiting her from not reeling it in herself

By Daily Mail Reporter

23 August 2012

Hawaii woman reels in half-ton marlin after FOUR HOUR battle that lost her a world record after help from crew

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/08/23/article-2192500-14A88E81000005DC-950_634x817.jpg

A 5-foot-9-inch woman tournament fishing in Hawaii waters fought a 12-foot marlin more than four hours before getting it on her team's boat and weighing it at more than a half-ton — a would-be world record.

But 28-year-old Molly Palmer is missing out on the glory and thousands in tournament prize money for one pesky reason: Her team's honor code.

Palmer needed to reel in the fish by herself in order for it to qualify as a valid catch for the tournament, according to rules set by the International Game Fishing Association.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2192500/Hawaii-woman-Molly-Palmer-reels-half-ton-marlin-FOUR-HOUR-battle-nearly-caught-world-record.html

http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/17xxeqrogf01rjpg/xlarge.jpg

http://gawker.com/5940016/great-white-shark-washes-up-on-new-england-beach

7 accused of fishing fraud in Texas tournament
The Associated Press
Published: Thursday, Aug. 23, 2012

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas -- Investigators say seven people have been charged with fishing fraud in a South Texas tournament.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department game warden Jason Duke said Thursday that the suspects allegedly submitted a 2.6 pound flounder not caught during the contest.

The South Padre Island Chamber of Commerce sponsored the Aug. 10-12 Ladies Kingfish Tournament. Duke says the defendants won a $5,000 second-place prize.

Duke says warrants were served last weekend to four women who entered the tournament and three men. All have been arraigned and are free on bond.

The fraud in a fishing tournament charge is a third-degree felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

A message left with the chamber for comment was not immediately returned Thursday.

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/08/23/4751195/7-accused-of-fishing-fraud-in.html

Sharks Attack Cape Cod on Labor Day weekend - YouTube

'Penis-head' fish discovered in Vietnam

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/img/2012/world/3008_fish_lg_g.jpg

A new species of fish with a penis on its head has been identified in the Mekong Delta in Vietnam.

Phallostethus cuulong is the newest member of the Phallostethidae family — small fish found in Southeast Asian waters that are distinguished primarily by the positioning of the male sexual organ.

Male phallostethids have a copulatory organ, termed the priapium, under the throat for holding or clasping onto females and fertilising their eggs internally, according to conservationists.

"We have scientifically identified a new penis-head fish in Vietnam," researcher Tran Dac Dinh from Can Tho University told AFP.

The fish was known to Vietnamese people in the Mekong Delta but had not been described scientifically before a team identified the species last year, he said.

9News (http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/8524401/Penis-head-fish-discovered-Vietnam)

New species of fish

http://www.nation.com.pk/print_images/480/2012-12-01/new-species-of-fish-1354383140-2988.jpg


A NEW species of fish has been named after President Barack Obama by the researchers who discovered it.

The freshwater fish has distinctive bright orange and blue colours and is generally found in fast-flowing rivers around America.

It is one of five new species of darter - the smallest member of the perch family - to be discovered in recent months. The remaining four species have been named after three other presidents and one vice-president.

The tiny fish - which are normally under 50mm in length - have been spotted by researchers from Geosyntec Consultants and Saint Louis University in waters in Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.

New species of fish | The Nation (http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/entertainment/02-Dec-2012/new-species-of-fish)

Fish story lands in NC's high court, $1M on line
By By EMERY P. DALESIO | Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — About four hours after the fishing charter boat Citation left dock on the Outer Banks to compete in one of the country's richest deep-sea fishing tournaments, crewmembers were in the fight of their lives. Something huge was hooked, but it was invisible to human sight as it dove for the ocean bottom about 27 miles off the North Carolina coast.

Five hours later they hauled up a monster, an 883-pound, 14-foot-long blue marlin. They knew the silvery-blue torpedo of muscle bigger than a bear would mean a huge payday in the June 2010 Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament when they recorded their catch in coastal Morehead City.

"When we finally saw it we couldn't believe it," the Citation's captain, Eric Holmes of Buxton, said at the time. "To catch a fish this big ... it's something. It really is. We got lucky and it's good to be lucky."

But their luck soured. The boat's owners landed in a fight for the $910,000 in prize money that continued Tuesday with arguments to North Carolina's Supreme Court.

Tournament officials disqualified the Citation's crew because the 22-year-old first mate, Peter Wann of Alexandria, Va., did not have a $15 North Carolina fishing license when the fish was hooked. His license was purchased while the Citation was still two hours out to sea and chugging toward a landing.

Tournament rules state that a fishing license is required for everyone aboard a participating vessel, said E. Bradley Evans, a lawyer for the contest's organizers. That rule was also emphasized at a pre-tournament meeting that Holmes and Wann did not attend.

The non-profit group that runs the tournament has no gain in disqualifying the Citation, but did so to protect the contest's integrity, Evans said.

"If none of the rules are material, then people could take rifles and shoot fish. They could fish at any hours of the day if they want to," Evans said. He said the rules were critical to the operation of the tournament and the most important aspect.

Wann thought the Citation had a blanket license that covered the entire crew, and when he found out there may have been a question if his license was active he got online while still miles at sea and bought another while still outside the state's territorial waters, which extend three miles from shore, said Darren Jackson, an attorney for the boat's owners.

"Maybe it was just luck that they happened to have a computer with internet access out in the middle of the ocean, but they did. And they did get the license," Jackson said.

State regulators couldn't decide when or if Wann violated state fishing laws and had to amend the citation they issued the mate, Jackson said. While one tournament rule said North Carolina required a recreational fishing license for anyone aboard, the language didn't state that failing to follow the state law could lead to disqualification from the contest, Jackson said. Disqualification for violating the fishing license rule was as unreasonable as if the same punishment were leveled for other violations that didn't tilt the competition, like going too fast in a "no wake" zone or failing to have the proper number of lifejackets on board.

"They applied this provision with the most drastic remedy they could," Jackson said. "It's the ultimate decision. It's their death penalty, so to speak. I would argue to you that's the height of arbitrariness."

The high court should send the case back for a jury to decide, Jackson said, not let stand a lower-court ruling that he said doesn't pass the smell test.

The Citation's lawsuit to reclaim its winnings was dismissed after it was transferred to the county where the tournament is based, and after local Superior Court Judge John Nobles Jr. decided its merits without a jury. Only just before the hearing did the Citation's lawyers learn that Nobles was the former law partner and vacation buddy of the attorney representing the boat finishing second after Citation.

Claud Wheatly III and Nobles had taken several vacations together, including during the time the lawsuit had been under way, the Citation's lawyers said. Owners of the second-place Carnivore stand to divide $999,453 after taking the winner's share and part of the third-place money.

Wheatly noted to the high court that Citation's lawyers have no evidence that Nobles displayed any prejudice or bias in the case.

http://news.yahoo.com/fish-story-lands-ncs-high-court-1m-line-093532675.html

Money, intrigue, and fish. Who says administrative and admiralty law aren't sexy?

I sold this photo on ebay a few years ago. Guess who?

http://img689.imageshack.us/img689/8348/c812sb.jpg

Here's an old one of author Zane Grey.

Note: Zane Grey once held eleven worlds records in deep sea fishing, all since broken, and his trophies were displayed at the Museum of Natural Science. He also owned patents on fishing lures. His records:

Bluefin Tuna, 758 Lbs. Nova Scotia, Canada 1924
Yellowfin Tuna, 318 Lbs. Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, 1924
Pacific Sailfish, 132 Lbs. Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, 1924
Pacific Sailfish, 135 Lbs. Zihuateneyo, Mexico, 1924
Yellowtail, 111Lbs. Bay of Islands, New Zealand, 1926
Broadbill Swordfish, 582 Lbs. Catalina Island, California, 1926
Pacific Dolphin, (Mahi Mahi), 53 Lbs. Vairao, Tahiti, 1930
Giant Tahitian Striped Marlin, (Pacific Blue Marlin), 1040 Lbs, Vairao, Tahiti, 1930
Pacific Sailfish, 170 Lbs. Vavau, Tonga Islands, 1931
Pacific Dolphin (Mahi Mahi), 64 Lbs. Vairao, Tahiti, 1933
Silver Marlin, 618 Lbs. Vairao, Tahiti, 1933
Silver Marlin, 710 Lbs. Vairao, Tahiti, 1933
Tiger Shark, 1036 Lbs. Sydney Australia, 1936
Marlin, 450 Lbs. Bora Bora, Tahiti

http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/6403/441b.jpg

Another vintage photo. Don't know the people, but that's one big fish!
http://img846.imageshack.us/img846/8059/fc3r.jpg

http://gawker.com/5978358/leading-danish-fishing-magazine-accused-of-objectifying-both-women-and-animal-for-publishing-photos-of-naked-ladies-making-out-with-fish-nsfw

Must be a Jew owned mag.

Researchers: Giant goldfish threatens Lake Tahoe

Feb. 23

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Giant goldfish could be threatening the ecology of Lake Tahoe on the California-Nevada border.

Biologists with the University of Nevada, Reno say they're finding a growing number of the fish in the crystal clear lake.

Researcher Sudeep Chandra told KCRA-TV the discovery is especially worrisome because the fish eats a lot and excretes "lots of nutrients" that stimulate algae growth.

Some of the goldfish have grown to 18 inches and could eat smaller fish and create new competition for native trout.

Chandra says that with no prior studies on goldfish for guidance, researchers are catching the giant fish and bringing them back to their lab to study.

It's not clear how the goldfish got into Lake Tahoe, but it's believed to be from people dumping aquariums into the lake.

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/researchers-giant-goldfish-threatens-lake-tahoe

It's not clear how the goldfish got into Lake Tahoe, but it's believed to be from people dumping aquariums into the lake.

They are referred to as "Bucket Biologist"
Someone decides they want their lake to have Tilapia, so they bucket it in.

It's not clear how the goldfish got into Lake Tahoe, but it's believed to be from people dumping aquariums into the lake.

They are referred to as "Bucket Biologist"
Someone decides they want their lake to have Tilapia, so they bucket it in.

Tilapia are delicious. I haven't heard of anyone dumping them in North America, interesting. They are freshwater Asian/African, I don't see why they couldn't survive here.

Tilapia are delicious. I haven't heard of anyone dumping them in North America, interesting. They are freshwater Asian/African, I don't see why they couldn't survive here.

Blue Tilapia is what I see most of and are very common in Florida, but to everyones surprise they demonstrated the ability to thrive in colder water climates where the oxygen levels were thought to be non supportive of this species. They are along the same lines as carp in regards to taking over a water system. They are aggressive and cannibalistic. Utah is a class example of this when someone dumped Tilapia into a lake up there. True story. The fish took over. The government spent millions draining the lake and treating the soil for eggs. Not long after the lake was reinstated the Tilapia were back. In Hawaii Tilapia are considered junk fish.
Pike are another example of a good water system gone bad because when they are artificially introduced they will wipe out a lake. When they have eaten everything they result to cannibalism and the Pike population then becomes reduced down to stunted size cannibalistic fish.
It is a federal offense to have a fish in a bucket. One way the gov deals with this is a poison that eliminates oxygen from the water. Unfortunately it kills everything else. In Colorado, they have hybrid lake Trout upwards of 30 pounds. This sounds great except the government has repeatably failed at killing or at least controlling these huge trout. The reason the gov is targeting them is that these trout are killing the other trout species like the cutthroats which equate to tourist dollars.

I know what's for supper tomorrow: tilapia. Delicious! The only dumping going on is down at customs where they hole up on ice overnight, halfway to my belly from some Chinaman's fetid pond.

Seriously, talapia is good eating. I loves me some bottom feeders and organ meats.

Utah link on Tilapia. It states that this one lake is fed by warms springs which is why they survive, but there are other places that have seasonally cold temperatures and the fish still survives.
http://www.utahfishinginfo.com/utahfish/tilapia.php

Here they are talking about Trout as an invasive species.
http://www.tu.org/science/aquatic-invasive-species-ais

70 pound freshwater Striped Bass.
http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/51239/alabama+anglers+monstrous+striped+bass+is+one+for+the+record+books/

Extraordinary Trout Has Tolerance to Heavily Polluted Water

http://animalvista.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/brown-trout-Salmo-trutta-fario-8.jpg


New research from the University of Exeter and King's College London has shown how a population of brown trout can survive in the contaminated waters of the River Hayle in Cornwall where metal concentrations are so high they would be lethal to fish from unpolluted sites.

The team believe this is due to changes in the expression of their genes.

The researchers compared the trout living in the River Hayle with a population living in a relatively clean site in the River Teign. The results showed that the accumulation of metals in the kidney and liver -- where metals are stored and detoxified -- were 19 and 34 times higher in the Hayle trout, respectively.

Extraordinary trout has tolerance to heavily polluted water (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/07/130724103007.htm)

http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/1zO3_5czVvGrQZfcXbn_CQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTYzMA--/http://l.yimg.com/os/publish-images/news/2013-08-20/ec237f98-3568-4840-a90b-27af54e77b27_970786_541610855876778_595503338_n.jpg

Cue the halibut puns, a German angler has caught a 513 pound fish in Norway and it could make a helluva meal.

Marco Liebenow was fishing with friends in Kjollefjord when he hooked something that felt as large as a submarine, according to Field and Stream. But the catch was alive and wriggling — it was a nine-foot-long halibut that took an hour and a half to reel in.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/daily-buzz/german-angler-catches-monster-513-pound-halibut-145544727.html

This African fish can start having babies at 17 days old (http://io9.com/this-african-fish-can-start-having-babies-at-17-days-ol-1270583694)

http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/18zgo61ab9abipng/original.png


The catchily named Nothobranchius kadleci is the fastest-maturing vertebrate species known to science. In just over two weeks, this fish can reach sexual maturity and start laying eggs — and those eggs only need another 15 days before they are ready to hatch. So why does this species need to cram an entire generation into a single month?

The reason is that this species, native to southern Mozambique, can't count on permanent access to water, which tends to be a pretty big deal if you're a fish. (Or most any vertebrate species, really, but fish really need water if they plan on surviving for long.) N. kadleci and its cousin species live in pools in the Mozambique savanna that don't exist year-round; rather, the pools form as the rainy season deposits clumps of water into the various natural, shallow depressions found throughout the region. Yes, this is a species evolved to live in what are basically just glorified puddles, and such a tenuous existence makes for some pretty incredible adaptations.

Because the pools tend to disappear as soon as the rainy season ends, the fish need to get through an entire life cycle as fast as possible.

According to Dr. Martin Reichard and his team at the Czech Republic's Institute of Vertebrate Biology, the fish are capable of adding growing an additional 25% of their mass every single day, which is what allows them to reach sexual maturity after only about 17 days. Of course, even the ability to reproduce so quickly wouldn't mean much if the fish couldn't survive the times when the water disappears completely. While the end of the rainy season spells doom for the specific fish, their eggs are adapted so that they can remain tucked away in the soil throughout the dry part of the year, just waiting for the return of water to hatch and begin the super-charged life cycle anew. That supply of dormant eggs means the species can potentially even survive entire years without rain.

Speaking to the BBC, Dr. Reichard says that his team's lab-reared fish might actually be underselling just how fast these fish can reproduce:
"It is biologically very relevant for these fish to be able to sexually mature very fast because their habitat may dry out in three to four weeks. If they mature very fast, they can produce a new generation... I'm pretty sure if conditions are good, they would be able to sexually mature even faster in the wild. If conditions are inferior - food is less abundant, there is a high density of fish - it would take them longer but they can still complete their lifecycle."
For more, check out the entire original paper (http://www.evodevojournal.com/content/pdf/2041-9139-4-24.pdf) over at EvoDevo (http://www.evodevojournal.com/content/4/1/24/abstract).

This African fish can start having babies at 17 days old (http://io9.com/this-african-fish-can-start-having-babies-at-17-days-ol-1270583694)