Bass Fishing Reality

I'm reading this writing on the state off bass fishing while I agree totally with crevan and other fellow bass anglers.i must say ok we know the problem now we got to work towards the solution.Gone are the days when you could walk down to your fav mark and catch 10 fish.The lack of fish now turns it from catching to actually depending in skill knowledge and watercraft.Yes there not there in numbers ,NO there's not proper safeguarding of bass but let's come together and take action instead of ranting on forums

As I see it, some of the major stumbling blocks that will lessen the effectiveness of any protection policies going forward; compared to the population of the Island, the Bass angling community and associated or interested parties are severely in the minority. As a result; only a small percentage of the population actually know anything of the plight faced by the wild Irish Bass. In simple terms; the only thing most people know about Bass is that it is an expensive fish mostly sold in restaurants.

The need to raise public awareness on this issue is paramount. Public support on an environmental issue has the potential to make that vital difference between rapid success or a long and weary battle to achieve the same aim. In the world of advertising; when they want to attract attention to any kind of issue they attach the face of a celebrity to the issue and public awareness sky rockets.

Surely there must be some celebrity out there with a passion for angling that would throw their weight behind this worthy cause. Dick Warner is one that springs to mind. There would definitely be more than enough material for a television documentary based around the issue. A documentary based on the wild Irish Bass would certainly hit a wide target audience and could only serve to inform and raise awareness among the wider public.

Teach someone to do something wrong; you can be sure of one thing, they will never do it right.

How in the name of god can a group of people decide to bring forward a new set of regulations when it's blatant that the old ones are not being enforced..

I think it an absolute waste of money, again we have a document that has cost thousands of euros maybe even hundreds of thousands and all they can come up with is these couple of unimaginative power points...

Basically the whole document says is that the bass were nearly wiped out, they banned the commercial fishing and now they want pass more hefty regulations onto anglers...

Within five years we won't be allowed to keep a fish but they will still be setting tangle nets 100 metres off the surf...

I find it a disgrace to be honest that this is all they could come up with...

If people think anglers are doing most of the damage then they just are just going around with there eyes closed or they don't have the balls to say what's right...

The whole thing is scandalous and I don't agree a committee set by people put in charge in the IFI should be making drastic decisions against anglers in Ireland...

Having no angling zones for bass is a complete disaster and they surely cannot think that the can survey bass populations like they do with salmon and sea trout populations...

The money invested in these policy groups should have been ring fenced for the officers on the ground to police our local beaches and to get the regulations that we have now in order...

You cannot go forward without fixing what you have in the present...

Excellent stuff John Q - I'll look forward to that meeting!

John D.

A meeting of ideas seems the practical next step forward and if it's to be in November, so be it.
From protection to education to changing the perception of bass in the community, there is a wide range of issues to tease out.

Certainly with the wide range of approaches already touched on in this thread and the seeming appetite to pull it together, there is scope for progress.

Having no angling zones for Bass is a complete disaster

A "No Kill Zone" is very different to a "No Angling Zone", Dan.

Well Dan, while I'm a great believer in free speech, I do believe that people need to be in some way responsible for what they say. Any of us can make all kind of criticisms and accusations on a whole range of topics but an attempt to base them on fact would at least be helpful. Hundreds of thousands spent on the policy document- ah now Dan, your not serious. All my involvement in the policy was completely at my own expense, not one penny for any costs incurred and literally hundreds of hours of work and traveling. All the other people involved spent a lot of their free time working on the research behind the policy. They are already being paid by the IFI or the MI so any extra costs incurred are minimal. One of the few costs was the printing of a handful of the policy documents so that they would be available in each regional office. other than that it is only available online.
As for angling not being part of the problem would you kindly take some time to look at some international case studies and at the demise of the Wexford bass stock in the late fifties and you might change your mind. Nothing in the document states that angling is the core problem. As for dealing with the current problems, we at least now have an IFI policy. You may not know that until recently the IFI had no legal role in enforcement. They actually took it on themselves to take it over from the SFPA with no additional manpower or resources.
As for the reduced bag limit and increase in the MLS, both are generally welcomed by anglers (view your own poll!!). Our current mls is below sexual maturity. It makes no sense killing bass before they have a chance to spawn. Given the widely accepted view that our bass stock is not as good as it should be,surely one bass a day should be enough for any angler at least until the stock looks like it is recovering. How many bass do you need to eat?Very few people would consider this a "drastic" decision.
As for sorting the illegal net/commercial fishery, and I agree this is a big part of the problem did you read the 9 points listed under protection/conservation.You seem to only focus on the points that affect anglers.
As has already been pointed out you are the only one to mention a "no angling zone". The "no kill zone"was included to try to deal with local stock problems in the future. I'm sure you are only too aware of the fact that bass return to the same feeding grounds each year.
As for not being able to keep any bass in five years time, you might want to refer to the title of the thread "Bass fishing reality". If we don't all work together the "reality" is that you may not be able to catch many bass in five years, let alone keep them!

John please don't get me wrong I respect what your doing I really do, I will never follow a crowd and accept everything I'm told when I feel it isn't right...

To be honest I would have taught you were being paid for your input into the document and you say your not, so I really respect that. Honestly you should have been paid because others are and deserve to 100%....

I don't mind the various changes that are being proposed I really don't but I do feel that the angling community is going down the road of complete c&r and that will be a crying shame...

It's the same with hunting and some people talking about a ban on woodcock hunting etc...

I believe before we know it, we won't be able to keep a fish or bird we hunt and some people might think that's ok but for me that couldn't be more wrong...

The bag limit is proposed to be limited and size increased what's the next step after that?

When you see nets as frequent ad I do and blatant poaching then for me it's easy to tell the angler to take the brunt...

People might think that I am just a moaner and full of s*** but I actually do spend 80% of my life alongside some sort of water. I love angling, I really do and angling should be enjoyed...

At the moment if you kill a bass you are actually discriminated against that for me is wrong, you cannot eat healthier then bass and I believe you should be allowed to keep the fish you catch under the regulations we have now...

Just because I believe in this doesn't make me an outcast or a worse or better angler...

The poll you mentioned that I created was not for a me personally, it was actually for the angling community as a whole and that's why I shared it with the community page I manage and the Tralee Bay Sac which I am PRO...

I knew it would go in favour of the new proposals and that for me is democratic decision and a decision I accept...

I actually do read various reports on bass conservation and I have studied environmental science in collage so I have a fair good idea of all things environmental...

Like it said in the bass policy there was a collapse of the bass stocks in the 70's and since the commercial ban there has been a complete turn around...

One thing you will be aware of tho is the complete lack of proper scientific studies on Atlantic sea bass ere in Ireland, the IFI and marine institute have really not been interested in my opinion in sea bass...

We have a chance of making Ireland one of the best bass destinations in Europe and the world but there needs to be loads more work and studies by both the IFI and various other institutes...

Yourself and henry gilby in my opinion are responsible for a massive amount of exposure and ye really have be thanked for that...

Us anglers, not all but the majority will do what where told but I'm afraid my eyes are wide open...

The amount of blatant poaching is disgraceful and believe me every time I make statements like this I get frowned at...

I was out with friends this year in April and there was nets tied across beaches at three o clock in the afternoon... When I got talking to the lad who set them he told me he was at it for the six months...

I am just back from hunting and fishing all day and I really am hoping the day doesn't come when the anti hunting brigade will be in control and the c&r army will prevent an angler keeping a fish...

I don't mean any harm john, I really don't but if I don't agree I am gonna say it..

Tight lines...

I know this is elsewhere on the site but feel it's appropriate enough to be posted here to:

http://www.anglingtrust.net/news.asp?se ... temid=2278

John D.

Your last post here was excellent John Q!

Good stuff.

Thank you,
John D.

I can't figure out what went wrong this year. I have one bass for August . However, other species were also scarce if not absent from the areas that I fish. For instance in July there were very little mackerel in Ardmore. I was 10-12 miles out to get any reasonable quantity. Pollock were also absent from some of the marks that I would troll in the boat. It was like being back in the 80's when bass were targeted by commercial fishermen.

I think that September- November are the prime months around Ardmore for bass. If they are still absent then I will be worried.

A friend of mine rand me from W Cork today. After a summer without bass they had 11 beauties today.

I know some of you have great ledgers and keep good records but maybe start adding info here
http://records.biodiversityireland.ie/s ... saFishSite

the better the database created the more credible any anlging argument can be - the figures will be analysed by professional statiticians and be far more comprehensive than any amount of individuals assesments

of course the info will only be as good as what you put in

but your favourite mark will not be given away or anything of the like - this survey has one purpose only to monitor the biodiversity in the inshore fish species round our coast - nothing can be published or given to a third party without ifsa permission

I'll check it out corbyeire - thanks for that!

John D.

From today's Sunday Times


Just this once, can’t we help the bass be the one that got away?

Charles Clover Published: 7 September 2014
Print
I have been warning that disaster is on its way for the bass. That will be a tragedy for those of us who like eating firm white fillets of wild “sea bass”, as restaurants insist on calling it, and for those of us who like catching our premier saltwater sporting fish on rod and line at this time of year. It will be tough, too, for a few thousand commercial fishermen for whom bass is a profitable sideline.

Bass stocks are in a dire state, as international scientists told the European Union in July. They called for an 80% cut in landings this year to save stocks from collapse, a cut that is most unlikely to happen. It is sad that just as other species, such as haddock and cod, are benefiting from more enlightened management in EU waters, the fish of arguably greatest personal interest to the largest number

From today's Sunday Times


Just this once, can’t we help the Bass be the one that got away?

Charles Clover Published: 7 September 2014
Print
I have been warning that disaster is on its way for the Bass. That will be a tragedy for those of us who like eating firm white fillets of wild “sea Bass”, as restaurants insist on calling it, and for those of us who like catching our premier saltwater sporting fish on rod and line at this time of year. It will be tough, too, for a few thousand commercial fishermen for whom Bass is a profitable sideline.

Bass stocks are in a dire state, as international scientists told the European Union in July. They called for an 80% cut in landings this year to save stocks from collapse, a cut that is most unlikely to happen. It is sad that just as other species, such as haddock and cod, are benefiting from more enlightened management in EU waters, the fish of arguably greatest personal interest to the largest number

Awareness, Awareness, Awareness.
Articles like this in mainstream news will increase public awareness.
More please!

http://westcorkbassfishing.blogspot.ie/ ... es-uk.html

Think that's the full Times article.

Re: Sunday Times article by Charles Clover - I hope you guys don't mind that I took the liberty of posting the full manuscript here?


Regards,
John D.

Re: Sunday Times article by Charles Clover - I hope you guys don't mind that I took the liberty of posting the full manuscript here?

The Sunday Times have copy right. The complete article would go beyond fair use.