tagged rays???

Hi everyone,

Caught and returned a couple of tagged rays back in the summer and wondered if anyone knew if I should be reporting them to anyone, and if so who? I'm guessing someone must be interested to know where they'd got to and how big they were?

Cheers,
thescotsman

This may help
http://www.sea-angling-ireland.org/bull ... php?t=8238

thanks jd,

I'll send on the details to them, although I don't have the tags seeing as the rays still had them when I put them back in the water. Only 399 flatfish and rays tagged and I caught 3 tagged rays (at different times) from the same spot in Cork Harbour - what are the odds? Or is this telling us something about rays?

One of our group had one on the ill fated SAI trip from Carrigaholt a couple of months back too.....

Hello again Pete,
Where did he/she catch it? I caught mine all off buoy 6 in Cork Harbour. Only fished for them there a few times, something like a 30% return on tagged rays. I thought that thousands of them must have been tagged.

Scotsman,
I take it they were blondes taken on the bank. These rays would have been tagged by charter skippers, more than likely Brian Byrne out of East Ferry.

That tagging programme is part of the “Marine Sportfish Tagging Programme” run by the CFB. Peter Green used administer the programme before he retired last year. I’m not sure who runs it now but would imagine that Norman Dunlop or Bridie Fleming would be able to sort you out.

Here’s the deal, any angler returning tag details as well as weight, size and location of the fish (do not return the tag, leave that in the fish) gets a nifty sport fish tagging programme t-shirt. You will also get back info as to who tagged the fish and how long ago it was.

The blondes do not stray too far from where they’re tagged. We tagged over 50 in a two-week period a few years ago and never got one back! The yellow tags are more durable that the disc-type that were used before, however commercial pressure must be coming to bear on the blondes because they are not as many around as before. There is an unofficial catch and release policy. Certainly all the anglers I know release the rays as do the charter boats. There are a good few tagged specimen ray on the bank so you never know!

Thanks Jim,
That makes more sense to me now. I'm not the miracle fisherman I thought I was :oops:
Yes, they were all blondes biggest was 22lbs and all off the bank indeed. I must dig out the tag numbers (on my old phone) and bag myself one of those t-shirts.
Catch and release is the way to go with them definitely, think the €20 for the other program is crazy, although seeing as most of them were coming back from commercials, you'd suspect anglers were putting them back.
Anyway, thanks for clearing that up for me and I'll pass on the details.

It was caught at a mark just off Poulnasherry in the Shannon estuary Scotsman.

Only 4 more months and we'll be back there again
Hooray!!!

Sorry, this winter lay off is driving me nuts!

See you in June Pete!

Tell me about it Kev..... Gale force Southerlys since mid November down here.... Theres no peace. See you there in June, you promised me a Tope :wink: !