North Australian FISH FINDER TM forums

I've heard thet mackeral have a very low survival rate because they use all

of thier energy when they fight this is why they are such a good sport fish

Personally if i get 2 mackeral per person (only ever happens to me at channel point).

We start to target something else cause we believe that anything we catch

will just die if we keep it

Still got a bit of a metrey in the freezer, only fish I've kept this year and only the third big one ever. It was either me or the crocs that was going to eat it. Swam it for about 20 minutes but she was buggered. Not happy it died but no qualms whatsoever about necking it under those circumstances. The other two got et cos I was hungry.

If someone wants to eat the occasional sail and its legal - whatever, more important things to get upset about with regard to the fishery IMO.

As for feeling sorry for Dodgy yeah right. kick the baby fish killer when he's down I say. betcha he clubs baby seals as well

Thanks double haul. Was feeling abit out numbered but I will stand my ground and make my point. Whilst i was in Broome i learn from very talented and passionate fishos. I know AL from reelcruizy but most of my fishing for sails was done on Bilistic with skipper Chris and his then deckie is my partner. We were surprised how many sails we saw off dundee. We came second in the darwin billfish comp. We are very passionate about billies and barra. Never pull a sail out of the water cos they look best silver and lit up. Rarely bottom bounce so cant be blamed for the raping and pillaging that goes on. What is the billfish log? PS: People i am not judging anyone just certain individuals make sick. Im just glad that there is not alot of people that know how to catch them up here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wasn't trying to outnumber you Karen, I wouldn't want to upset FFF's metre-fish guru

I've taken a few pix of sailfish in the water and some of the pix look really good, but people still want to see a pic of anglers holding the fish with the sail up

Pulling a metre-plus barra out for a photo has its risks - there's been stories of big barra being released and found dead later.

Matt Flynn wrote: Pulling a metre-plus barra out for a photo has its risks - there's been stories of big barra being released and found dead later.

yeh like this one.. 108cm.. released to breed again another day, only to be belly up next pass after a shark bit its tail off.. let me tell you its better in my belly than a croc

Oh an luvindafish.. it tasted blooooooooody beaaauuuitifullllllllll

goodonya luvindafish

stick it right up em nothing wrong with being passionate about a good cause, that being conservation of fish stocks.

that dodgy character has earned that name for good reason if you ask me. thats probably why he has to spend so much time in the mines. let the fish stock recover for 6 months from his raping and pillaging.

luvindafish wrote: We are very passionate about billies and barra.
Rarely bottom bounce so cant be blamed for the raping and pillaging that goes on.
PS: People i am not judging anyone just certain individuals make sick. Im just glad that there is not alot of people that know how to catch them up here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Plenty of people are pasionate about their fishing. I can assure you I am as passionate a person as you can find when it comes to getting out there.

How can you wash you hands of what bottom bouncers supposedly do? How does that make you a better class of fisho? What makes you think that everyone out at Dundee was keeping all the Sails, the comments of one bloke at a tackle shop saying he would like to try some? Sounds like he might have got the reaction he was after to me.
Fact was no amount of swimming was going to help that little Black that morning. If it was ok it would have been released, just like Harmseys Blacks and Goldcans sail a couple of weeks before. And just like Max's Sail and Marlin more recently.
Decision was made to get some use of of it instead of feeding it to the sharks.

Do you honestly think that if Sails were easier to catch in Darwin people would specifially chase them as a table fish?
Im in Port Hedland so not too many around here either but guys in Karratha and Broome rarely keep fish. Ask them if they have ever tried it though.

That little marlin was just about dead from memory eh dodgy? He looked like a skipping bait as soon as the dropback tightened up

most of my fishing for sails was done on Billistic with skipper Chris and his then deckie is my partner

Not him is it? Nice fella, both had a good ethic towards fish handling. something well worthy of keeping to the fore in fish forums, especially if it seems warranted.



Having said that if that was the key message it's a shame to cloud it with the much more subjective issue of taking a particular species of fish, its an opportunity missed.

On handling, I think most people here have good knowledge on handling practices for the fish they target, that doesn't mean they're the full bottle. New information given the right way is usually vacuumed up pretty quickly and peer pressure can be a wonderful tool for enforcing (post a pic of a barra suspended just by bogga grips and then state you released it and watch the comments come thick and fast).

In this case brief explanations of how a circle hook is better on the fish and more importantly how you modify your hook up to suit the different style of hook (so people keep using them). Plus some info on the stress factor of lifting the fish on board for a pic and why its more applicable to this species. Some examples on what alternative ways there are to photo the fish in a lower stress situation would help sell the message (as above)


As for eating or not eating, providing it's legal and the stocks are not under immediate threat (taste aside) I can see no reason why the odd sail fish should not be released at the profit of a spaniard, which would be kept more often than not. Often 'pretty or 'thrilling' fish are placed on a pedestal above other fish for no other reason apart from the fact that they jump or look good. There's a view by some in the south that all barras should be released because they are such a magnificent fish, they don't understand that they are an important food fish up here.

In fact some would ague that you get both the thrill of the capture and the meal out of the mack, why subject the sail fish to the stress of the capture, just to let it go???

There is nothing wrong with eating your icons

I woudl add a comment similar to

"I hear sails taste a little like koala, but I dont know; never eaten a sail"

BUT

A) I would hate someone to think I was making a mokery of this post (which I am not)

B) Having read another post where someone took a tongue in cheek comment out of context

I am afraid if I had said it I might well be moderated.

On the subject though, each to their own and I am glad to read various opinions.
Regards

Chris

Its all good. Look each to their own on pulling them out of the water. We simply dont. They release better and the photos are better. No brown fish! Yes Mat risky with big barra too but ive not had one belly up on me as yet. Good on you coroboree bandit you enjoy that fish
Cheers Hilly. Definately passionate and i know im right cos im a female Dogyone you cant tell me that the reef fish stocks arent under pressure from over fishing ie: rape and pillaging! for which we dont do BUT i never said, and dont get so defensive, that i am a better fisho....but hav you seen my photos? kidding. Its just not our thing. And i AM NOT saying everyone is eating sails either. I just strongly disagree with it. You obviously believe that the fish was dying so thats what you did.As for the guy in the shop "i gunna slit its throat, a fish is a fish". NOT out on context. RAPE AND PILLAGER!! All i know is that it is privillage to catch & release them. Photo not of Ben but of guy who took over from him. Billistic boat and crew is the best.Dick I am a huge advocate of circle hooks and keeping the fish in the water. Its what the billistic boys do and what we do too. Sails fight like demons but are a fragile fish when you start handling them but what do you do. Each to there own

One of my small sails caught and released recently at dundee

in the end you are betting looking in your posts than dodgy ever was, so i want you to keep posting.

and dodgy, keep your shirt on in future photos thanks.

thats the pot calling the kettle black eh big fella

HMMM thats not a banana peel hanging out of your barras mouth now is it corroboree bandit??? Well no wonder she went belly up. You have much to learn. NO bananas on board!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well thanks KK, and here i was thinking that it was because of my fishing talents