How Gill Nets Work.

[Guest bennyTHEBASS]

Is he still around sam,ps i like catchin n eatin bass-i only keep 1 fish at a time too! all the jargon+propoganda will never do any good as this day n age evrything is down to greed agreed.

[Guest bennyTHEBASS]

samuel-cox:

I realy thought it was illegal to gill net or fish comercialy in the estuaries of Cornwall.

it is. the only way you can net near the shore is to attend the net at all times or splash netting.i also find it dificult to belive they allow peeler trawlig (if there is such a practice) in the tamar i have fishing mates up there,they have never heard of it

[samuel-cox]

yes mate there is a such thing as peeler crab trawling.

It all started with trawlermen who were not catching much and/or were not getting good returns for what they did catch realising that the peeler crabs(sometimes thousand at a time) that they caught as a buy catch were worth money.

They got this market from anglers. They then realised that at times if they targetet the peeler crabs by using smaller nets they could trawl the small creeks, that just happen to be the nursury ground for lots of fish such as bass, mullet flounders ect.

By using these trawled peeler crabs anglers are PAYING TO HAVE THIER FISH STOCKS TAKEN BEFORE THEY ARE MATURE!!!!

Discusting hey

[Guest bennyTHEBASS]

I totaly agree sam, anglers who knowingly buy these crab should be ashamed. you also said earlier that trawls rape the sea bed. this is very true indeed, since scollop dredgers stopped down here in numbers a few years ago, the sea bed on sounders is completly featureless.every thing was towed away. even rockhoppers wreck evrything they contact.

[samuel-cox]

people need to be shown how collect bait properly mate. If you find a peeler under a rock, the chances are if you put the rock back there will be a peeler there the next time you look.

Where in Cornwall are you.I fish Trebeteric, Trevos head, Padstow, Rock, Port Quin, Port Gavern all in the North. I love cornwall although went to Irland instead this year.

[Guest bennyTHEBASS]

Im in mid cornwall mate i know all of the above +many many more. next time u down i could show you some of my fave spots. i also have a boat in mevagissey.

[samuel-cox]

shark fishing????

[Guest bennyTHEBASS]

Thats looe about 20 miles east of me toward plymouth. but we have the worlds greatest dogfish population down here no ****, 1 sesson i caught 48 on 2 hooks once. lol

 

[ 08. January 2005, 01:55 AM: Message edited by: bennyTHEBASS ]

[Alan Taylor]

Steve Coppolo:

I don't know what the answer is.  Short of banning all gill netting,

You have it in one Steve

 

Winter, I have been ill But have been keeping an eye on you, I actually look forward to your contributions now as opposed to then

 

I wanted to stay off this topic because I feel so strongly about it and have posted most of the ins and outs of netting before.

 

Inshore nets with a 4" mesh will catch every thing including diving birds, boat props and scuba divers etc. If you know where to go it is possible to land 20 boxes of Mullet in a 2 day session, after that they are gone never to return.

The place that I know for Mullet is within 50 yards of the beach, the fish can be spotted from the cliffs shoaling up in the string grass ready to spawn.

 

Rolled up nets:- I must assume that the person was shooting his nets across the tide instead of with it :confused:

 

Trammel nets:- It depends on how they are rigged, I used to loose rig the foot rope so that fish (flat) would go into it and try to turn there way out further entangling themselfs. Take a look at the top of a curtain or imagine a concertina and thats what they look like. I rigged Sole nets the same way.

 

6" wreck nets will catch very big Cod, Pollock, Ling, Conger and Sharks. The bigger fish are mainly caught by there teeth so having a good hand with the Gaff ready is essential. Once there swim bladder is gone it is just a matter of turning round and picking up the floaters. The best time of the year for wreck and reef netting is during the spawning season, Jan, Feb, March. Fish come in from the Atlantic just to spawn and netters wipe them out before they get the chance, which is one of the reasons that there are a lot less Cod etc about than years ago. We actually caught and landed the biggest Shark ever to hit Brixham market. I went out on a Cray fish netter once, he wanted to target Shark so I took him to a place that I knew and he ended up having a good haul. How my attitude has changed since those days.

 

I am not ashamed of how I used to earn my living but am ashamed to admit that I have helped with the decline of our fish stocks.

 

If netting was banned the netters could turn there hands to charter boat angling, sight seeing etc. The first few years would be a strugle but if the remaining fish were given the chance to multiply it could only get better.

 

Mackeral:- Mention was made of netting Mackeral, I used to run a couple of Herring nets and caught more Mackeral than Herring in them. I never did see a Mackeral net but I suppose a 1 1/2" mesh would do the job. A hurdy gurdy with 100 feathers is much more efficient though and can produce a good days wages.

 

No one apologise for having a rant on this subject of netting, it should be stopped COMPLETELY, inshore and off shore.

 

I also think that ALL trawling of the sea bed should be stopped within 5 miles of the coast.

 

Thats about it, now you see why I did'nt want to get involved again in this subject.

 

Cheers

 

Alan

[samuel-cox]

gill nets are fished differently in different areas. the average inshore fisherman down hear would be happy with 1, 7 stone box of bass per trip. @ 1.75 per lb that aint much. this is due to the compatition from farmed fish.