THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 31, 1994 TAG: 9407310215
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C14 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BOB HUTCHINSON
LENGTH: Long : 116 lines
Yellowfin tuna anglers along the coasts of Virginia and North Carolina are having one of their worst seasons ever, with fingers being pointed in all directions.
Some folks would like to blame the weather. Others want to charge foreign fishermen. And still others want to believe that commercial purse-seine fishermen are to blame. There has even been a rumor that one seiner brought 176,000 pounds of tuna into Virginia. It was untrue.
Certainly, all of these factors enter the equation. But the bottom line is that too many fishermen in too many places have been after the prized yellowfin for too many years.
For the past decade or more, this species has kept purse-seiners, long-liners, charter boats and private fleets busily sailing to offshore fishing holes from South Carolina to New England. The yellowfin has been the backbone of the industry, if you will.
Now, almost everyone involved with the fishery is concerned that the same overfishing that decimated bluefin tuna stocks has taken too great a toll of yellowfins.
There are some strong signs that this is indeed the case.
First, there's the present scarcity of fish. While good days are occasionally reported, even those who profit most from the yellowfin admit that the fish just aren't as abundant as they were just a few years ago.
Almost as convincing is the fact that the size of the average fish caught off Virginia, North Carolina an other East Coast states is getting smaller.
Too many of those boated this year have been under 20 pounds. And they teach you in Marine Biology 101 that a disproportionate number of small fish is evidence that the fishery is overtaxed, that too many are being caught.
In Virginia and North Carolina, it takes a 70-pound yellowfin to earn a citation from state-sponsored fishing contests.
While North Carolina figures are incomplete, only nine citations have been registered in Virginia this year.
That compares poorly with the 40 or so registered at the same time in 1993.
Incidentally, the world record yellowfin weighed 388 pounds, 12 ounces, and was caught off Mexico in 1977.
Because all yellowfins are caught in federal waters along the edge of the Continental Shelf, management of the fish falls under the National Marine Fisheries Service. Yet the federal government has done little to protect the fish, other than set a 7-pound minimum size.
Supposedly, a management plan is being devised. But there is no target date for completion.
We can only hope that by the time an effective plan is put into effect, there will still be enough yellowfins left to manage.
It's a situation that cries for immediate attention.
SETTING DATES: A three-part dove season opening Sept. 3 and a permit-only Canada goose season running from Sept. 16-30 have been approved by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission.
The early dove season will run through Oct. 1, while the second segment will be Nov. 21-26 and the final segment will be Dec. 12 through Jan. 14.
The bag limit for all three segments will be 12 birds. For opening week, Sept. 3-10, hunting will be allowed only between noon and sunset. But starting Sept. 12, hunting will be legal from a half-hour before sunrise until sunset.
Other hunting seasons recently set by the Wildlife Commission's board include: Sept. 1 through Nov. 9 for king, clapper, sora and Virginia railbirds, gallinues and moorhens; Dec. 8 through Jan. 21, woodcock; and Nov. 14 through Feb. 28, common snipe.
The special Canada goose season will not be open in the following eastern counties: Bertie, Beaufort, Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Hertford, Hyde, Pamlico, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell and Washington, and Northampton county east of Interstate 95.
NEW MEMBERS: Russell M. Hull Jr., a farmer from Elizabeth City, is one of three new members named to the board of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission.
Other new members include Dr. Harley A. Phillips, a veterinarian from Duplin County, and James B. Black Jr., a businessman from Charlotte.
The increase to 16 members was approved by the most recent session of the North Carolina General Assembly.
HAMPTON CUP: The 68th running of the nation's oldest continuous powerboat regatta will be staged on Mill Creek in Hampton Aug. 12-14. Some 100 boats are expected from throughout the eastern United States for the Hampton Cup Regatta.
Classes will include Grand National (old 7-liter), 6-liter, 5-liter, 2.5-liter modified, 2.5-liter stock, 1-liter modified, 1-liter stock, Super Stock, K-Racing Runabout and Jersey Speed Skiff.
Elimination heats will be held the first two days, with the finals on the 14th, according to Jim Goodbody, spokesman for the sponsoring Phoebus Civic Association. Racing will begin at noon each day.
There will be no admission charge, and spectators will be be afforded a splendid view of the race course, which is near Fort Monroe and practically surrounded by land.
A RECORD CATCH: The thing about a record fish catch is that it can happen to any fisherman at almost any time. So here are a couple of things to know if you want recognition for a big fish:
If it's a freshwater species and you caught it in Virginia, the official weighing must be witnessed by an employee of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. This could be a game warden or a fishery biologist. For details, call 1-367-1000.
If it's a saltwater catch, it must be officially weighed by a board member of the Virginia Salt Water Fishing Tournament. For details, 491-5160.
KEY NUMBERS: Here are a couple of ``hotline'' numbers that can be called 24 hours a day. You might want to put them in your little black book.
To report a suspected hunting or freshwater fishing violation, call the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, 1-800-237-5712. To report a suspected saltwater fishing violation, recreational or commercial, call the Marine Recources Commission, 1-800-541-4646.
SHORT CASTS: Christopher Roberts of Virginia Beach has earned a citation from the Key West (Fla.) Fishing Tournament by boating a 30-pound dolphin. He was aboard the Linda D. IV, skippered by Bill Wickers III. . . . The annual White Marlin Open fishing tournament kicks off Monday in Ocean City, Md., and officials expect prizes to total more than $650,000. The contest ends Friday. Last year the winning blue marlin was worth $255,766 for David Taylor of Owings, Md. . . . A 66 1/4-pound blue catfish pulled from the Appomattox River on June 24 has been certified as a Virginia record. It was caught by Larry Clarkson of Newport News. The old record was 57 1/2 pounds. by CNB