Non-Profit Member based Organization
Striped Bass Live Release Weigh-in Protocol
The
Who is required to practice live release of striped bass in SBCC tournaments?
The SBCC will encourage all anglers to practice responsible catch and release during cooler months when the likelihood of long-term survival is high. The SBCC will require our all anglers to strive to develop habits to handle and return striped bass alive in all SBCC tournaments. SBCC striped bass anglers receive penalties for each fish weighed in dead in our tournaments. In some areas, and during times of higher water temperature, all anglers are requested to follow a “catch-your limit and quit” rule. Any angler culling a dead fish of legal length will be removed from the SBCC membership and will forfeit any prizes they may have previously qualified for. Rules and policies are available to show our high standards of conduct.
What are the weigh –in procedures at an SBCC tournament?
In the Boat: The SBCC anglers have built or purchased a device called a Striper Tube that they use to keep fish alive in during the tournament. This unit keeps the fish in an upright (nose down) position, which keeps them off balance and calm. The unit holds 11-20 gallons of water and re-circulates the water across the fish’s gills. In the winter, no temperature control is required. During May through early June, the water temperature is controlled by adding bottles of frozen water to keep the temperature in the 65-70 degree range. At the present time, once the surface temperature reaches higher than 76-degrees, fish are not allowed to be returned to the water from the boat while using a striper tube during any of our events..
At the weigh-in: The SBCC Conservation anglers keep the fish in the striper tube until it is their turn to weigh in. The black insert of the striper tube is removed and the fish and water from the tube insert are poured into a holding tub and taken to the scale. At the scale, the fish are weighed in on a rubber sling to reduce any removal of slime coat by handling the fish. For any special handling, most fish will be controlled using lip grippers or by wearing gloves. After weigh-in, the fish are placed in a concentrated salt (non-iodized) dip for 5-10 seconds to start the regeneration of slime coat. If the fish appear stressed, they are moved to a tank with high concentrations of oxygen. The fish are moved to a 3000-gallon filtrated and oxygenated holding pool where they may be held for up to 24-hours or more to ensure survival from angling and weigh in stress. Finally, the fish are transported back to the body of water they were captured by truck to be released. In special cases under the approval of the local fisheries management authorities, fish may be released elsewhere. Any state agency wishing to tag fish are welcome to do so. Any fish determined to be non-releasable are kept for table fare by a licensed angler and/or by the SBCC.
Special NOTES:
The SCDNR completed telemetry and blood testing that proved the stripers lived upon release during periods of cooler water. And the research by
American Fishery Society, Southern Division brief:
