Sport Fishing April 2017

WITH LITERALLY MILLIONS OF VOICES VYING TO BE HEARD ON THE INTERNET, SCREAMING OUT VERBAL MOUNTAINS MADE FROM MOLEHILLS IS ONE WAY TO GET NOTICED. Now that I have your attention, I’ll admit that there’s not much shocking here — merely a bit disheartening. It just seems to me there has never been a better time to remind SF enthusiasts: Don’t believe everything you read. I attribute my concerns to a trend I’m seeing of late, a trend I call “hyperbole inflation. That might seem redundant because hyperbole is already inflated, such as an outlandish exaggeration of some actual event. The language of hyperbole is everywhere online. No, really! OMG, it’s just unbelievable! It seems that “gotcha” words like “Incredible!” “Amazing!” “Terrifying!” and the like are omnipresent. Of course the…

THE POTHOLE IN the sea grass was the size of a city bus and too deep to walk across. But along its sandy edges and in its deepest quarters, snook were trapped like rats. We hopped out of the boat, trudged across a barren grass flat, and cast our twitchbaits into the oasis. Almost immediately, I hooked up to the first linesider of the day. This particular fl at was close to a nearby pass. Periods between falling and incoming tides were shortened because of that proximity. With the outgoing tide moving at full force, we knew the deep hole would be worthwhile to wade-fi sh. But it surprised us to find snook, seatrout and redfish all trapped together in the deeper-water refuge. We had no idea what was going…

(Thunnus atlanticus) CHALLENGE OUR EXPERTS (And Win Up to 10,800 Yards of Line!) SEND IN YOUR QUESTION and any relevant photos of your mysterious catch or observation for our experts’ ID and feedback. If we publish your question and you have a shipping address within the United States or Canada, you’ll win a 3-pound spool of Berkley Pro Spec ocean-blue or fluorescentyellow monofilament (1,000 to 10,800 yards, depending on line strength) or a 1,500-yard spool of Spiderwire Stealth braid up to 100-pound-test! Send questions and images via email to fish facts@ sport fishingmag.com (include your hometown) or via post to Sport Fishing Fish Facts, 460 N. Orlando Ave., Suite 200, Winter Park, FL 32789. SPONSORED BY SF FISH FACTS EXPERTS NORTHEAST Mike Fahay, Sandy Hook Marine Lab, New Jersey SOUTHEAST…

SERIOUS KITE-FISHERMEN will tell you that kite-fishing is a remarkably productive way to live-bait fi sh off shore. Nearly any species that swims near the surface and feeds on baitfi sh is tempted by struggling herring, goggle-eye, menhaden, mackerel or mullet. From billfi sh to tunas, wahoo to king mackerel, the target list is plentiful. If the fish are concentrated in a specific area, or following a specific path up- or down-current, most experienced anglers set out two kites with two or three baits each. South Florida winter sailfishing is probably the bestknown kite-fishery, but across the country in California, long-range boats use kites with live flying fish to catch monster tunas while slow-trolling. The proper kite can make or break a day of fishing. Simply put, all kites don’t…

1. ENHANCED DANCE Sebile has released its second-generation Stick Shadd, enhancing details on the face and gill plate of the hard bait as well as altering the body texture, upgrading terminal components, and reducing the price. Stick Shadds come in a variety of sizes, colors and buoyancies, including sinking, fast-sinking, and suspending for casting and trolling. The baits swim horizontally; a power keel under the belly creates an erratic action when twitched. They cost $6.99 to $19.99. 2. SOLID SIGNAL Humminbird’s new solid-state CHIRP Radar uses pulse-compression technology to improve target separation and enhance resolution. As with chirp sonar, the unit emits multiple pulses — in this case, electromagnetic rather than sound — at different frequencies that return with more data for better detail. The 21-inch dome offers an effective…

A new all-tackle length-record 133-centimeter (52.4-inch) California yellowtail [A] was caught in Long Beach Harbor this past January by Kenzo Tokunaga, a resident of Tokyo, after a 10-minute fight. If approved, this will defeat the 102-centimeter (40-inch) fish caught off Loreto, Baja, in 2015. Impressive for a 10-year-old angler, a 67-pound, 9-ounce giant trevally [B] required an hour of Ryan Meads’ time to defeat. The smallfry-category angler, of Slade Point, Australia, caught the fish off Mackay, Australia, this past December. The catch would smash the existing 31-pound, 1-ounce smallfry record caught in Australian waters in 1998. Another catch pending as a smallfry record is the 27-pound Pacific snook [C] that 10-yearold Juanfelipe Adum of Miami, Florida, landed this past December while trolling a Rapala near Salinas, Ecuador. If approved, it…