We recently went on a trip to Hawai’i (my home state) where we were lucky enough to see a number of large marine animals, but some of these beautiful creatures were tangled in discarded fishing gear. Recreational fishing is not thought to have a significant impact on ecosystems in states other than Florida. While that may be true from a statistical point of view, it is hard to stomach seeing a dolphin or a turtle trailing someone’s fishing line from its mouth or flipper. Does this mean that recreational fishing should be more regulated? No, but it emphasizes the fact that all fishermen should be careful and responsible with their gear.
Here you can see a monofilament line wrapped several times around the left front flipper of a green sea turtle. Because the line will not degrade, it may restrict circulation as the turtle grows.
This dolphin we saw off of Kona has a hook in its mouth large enough to have snagged bits of algae. Although there have been attempts to catch the dolphin to remove the hook, the dolphin has so far proved too wily to let itself be caught. Whether or not the hook is causing pain or discomfort to the dolphin is difficult to tell. This low resolution still is taken from the video clip, below.
This spotted eagle ray was trailing a foot of leader with some of the hardware still attached. We can only hope that the stainless clip will not catch on anything.
I also saw a slate pencil urchin tangled up in a line attached to a golf ball. The golf ball had tiny eye hooks screwed into it so that it could be used as a sinker. Not sure what the point of this is… Is there an over abundance of golf balls in Hawaii? Is there a new casting technique involving a five iron? Some of the critters we captured on video can be seen below.
Larry Fukuhara, a local fishing expert at the Cabrillo Aquarium, notes that fishermen don’t usually want to lose their gear, since terminal tackle can be expensive to replace. Furthermore, fishermen have come a long way since the days when they would cut 300 yards of damaged monofilament line by letting it trail off the back of a boat. The key to retaining your gear, says Larry, is experience: knowing when and how to replace damaged line. In fishing for yellowtail, Larry may replace the last 100 yards of his line by splicing with a blood knot. Knowing that a yellowtail is unlikely to spool as much as 100 yards, this is a good technique to keep both the gear and the fish. Larry has also set up an electric drill to help him reel off as much line as he needs to replace without having to do it by hand. Braided Kevlar line is also an option, Larry says. Although it is more expensive, its breaking strength is far higher than monofilament.
On the whole, fishermen tend to be excellent stewards of our oceans. After all, they are the ones who are out there observing changes in populations and habitat, and fishermen generally recognize that there will be no recreational fishing without ocean conservation. It’s just unfortunate that individual animals can suffer as a cost of this increased awareness and involvement. If you decide to become a fisherman, please take Larry’s advice: learn your craft well and replace your line before it breaks off.
