|
The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation
Commission has approved five saltwater gamefish catches as state
records. Three of them also exceed the world record weight for their
species caught anywhere on rod and reel.
A 30 lb. 4 oz. mutton snapper (Wow!) was caught in the
Dry Tortugas by angler Richard Casey of Hollywood, Florida. This
becomes the heaviest non-commercial mutton ever caught, topping Bennie
Kilgore's 28 lb. 5 oz. fish caught in 1993. Way to go Richard!
Barry Houston of Niceville, Florida shattered a 1984
record with a 8 lb. 4 oz. Florida pompano he caught using a Mirror
lure and 10-pound line at Port St. Joe Bay on Oct 16. This is an
all-tackle IGFA World Record.
Capt. Bouncer Smith did it again. While fishing with
the Captain, seven year-old Martini Arostegui of Coral Gables set two
records with one fish. On Dec. 18, while bottom fishing with herring,
young Arostegui caught a 7 lb. 12 oz. barjack that set a Florida State
Record as well as an IGFA all-tackle World Record.
Tina Sanders-Moormann of Panama City filled the vacant
Red Snapper state fly rod record with a 2 lb. 15 oz. fish on May 28,
1999. She was casting a shrimp fly while on the flats boat "Flat
Out" using an eight-pound tippet.
Florida maintains saltwater state records on both
conventional and fly tackle for 74 species. State records are verified
by the IGFA and a complete listing of the saltwater state records and
application forms are available at no charge. All IGFA rules apply to
any applicant in search of a state record. For further information
contact the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission at 620
South Meridian Street, Mailbox MF-OAE, Tallahassee, FL 32399-1600;
telephone 850-488-6058, Fax 850-488-7152 You may also contact the IGFA
at 300 Gulfstream Way, Dania Beach, FL 33004; telephone: 954-927-2628;
Fax: 954-924-4299.
GRAND SLAM CLUBS
Everyone knows about the Grand Slam Clubs, right? By catching and
releasing three specific species in the same day and submitting an
application to the IGFA, you become eligible for a beautiful,
personalized certificate featuring artwork of the species. The clubs
and fish are: North Florida Grand Slam Club, spotted sea trout, red
drum and a cobia; Florida West Coast Grand Slam Club, snook, red drum
and a tarpon; South Florida Grand Slam Club, Bonefish, Permit and a
Tarpon; Florida East Coast Grand Slam Club, red drum, spotted sea
trout and a tarpon.
You can get applications for these certificates at the
above addresses. Of course the IGFA rules apply and you need a witness
to verify the catch. Just ask your captain for the forms for the Grand
Slam Clubs.
Well, I'll see you on the flats.
Captain Dave Sutton is a full time fishing guide in
Biscayne Bay, the upper Keys and Everglades National Park, an outdoors
writer, a guest fly-tying instructor at Biscayne Fly Shop and a guide
for Grand Slam Outfitters of Ocean Reef. To contact the captain or to
book a trip, please call 305-248-6126, send email to djsutton@bellsouth.net
or visit him on the Internet at www.saltwater-nyfisherman.com.
|
