Hooked up 10

HOOKED ISSUE 10 2017

KINGFISH SCIENCE

up

LEGASEA LAUNCHES FISHCARE SH SWORDFI RECORDS

TUMBLE

TRAILERBOAT BLUE MARLIN

GRANDER

www.nzsportfishing.co.nz 1 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

New Zealand Sport Fishing Council is one of the longest serving incorporated organisations representing recreational anglers.

The NZSFC was formed around the IGFA fishing rules and ethics so that a consistent standard could be set when comparing catches. The NZSFC offers additional records classes for New Zealand records beyond what IGFA offer for juniors and small-fry anglers. We have refined some of the IGFA rules to make them more suitable for our contests.

Our New Zealand based IGFA representatives keep a close liaison between IGFA and (NZSFC) and have regular input into issues that could affect New Zealand anglers. We have promoted valuable marine research that is internationally respected. This includes the game fish tagging programs for marlin, sharks, tuna and kingfish which now has a history of 17 years of information.

The Council created and continues to support the NZ Marine Research Foundation (NZMRF) for the primary purpose of conducting research on fish species benefiting our membership that could not, or will not be financed by government agencies.

Information from research carried out by the NZMRF has been very valuable when justifying our position in species management. All they have to do is remind themselves, that the majority of what the NZSFC does is for the benefit of individual members rather than equal benefits for each club.

More fish in the sea, better access, water quality, individual legal protection, record recognition, research, advocacy, fishing data collection and dissemination are all individual benefits of belonging to the NZSFC.

2 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

CONTENTS EDITORIAL ...........................................................4 EXECUTIVE PROFILE: BRENDA SAUL ................6 WEIGHMASTER ROUNDUP .................................8 IGFA RULES UPDATES ......................................11 FISHERIES RESEARCH ...................................14 EXECUTIVE OFFICERS REPORT .......................17 FISHERIES MANAGEMENT UPDATE .................19 LEGASEA UPDATE .........................................22 FISH WELFARE .................................................24 ANGLER ARTICLE: NATHAN ADAMS .............26

EDITOR Dave Lockwood SUB-EDITING NZ Fishing Media ART DIRECTOR Lucy Davidson CONTENT ENQUIRIES Dave Lockwood

021 177 1705 secretary@nzsportfishing.org.nz ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES Scott Taylor 021 862 579 sales@nzfishingnews.co.nz

FROM THE NZFN TEAM .................................31 CLUB PROFILE: WSFC ....................................34 TOURNAMENT PROFILE .................................36 GO FUEL OFFER ...............................................38

www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

COVER SHOT: How’s this for a stunning photo of Guy Jacobsen’s latest pending record caught

at the ‘Garden Patch’? Weighing 269.0kg on 10kg line, it was history in the making - as was the 252.8kg broadbill on 15kg line caught the day before! Pictured: Guy, John (skipper), James and Bailey. A top crew and team!

3 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

EDITORIAL

BROADBILL CATCHES

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

I n a season where gamefish catch numbers are well down, there have been some significant fish taken over the last month.

in time to register his once-in-a-lifetime catch for the Nationals, but his blue is recorded as the heaviest for the season to date.

The broadbill season has now kicked into gear, and there have been several good catches reported from Northland through to the Bay of Plenty, as well as off Auckland’s west coast. Nicky Sinden, Ahipara Sport Fishing Club member and host of Ados Addicted to Fishing, landed the women’s 60kg-tackle world record and New Zealand national woman’s record, with her swordfish weighing an astonishing 361.0kg and being 4.2 metres in length. It is also the heaviest broadbill ever landed by a woman.

Even though striped marlin numbers are well down on last year, Mount Maunganui’s Carey Wilson 196.6kg stripy, caught at the Astrolabe Reef, rates as a significant catch for the season.

But the men featured, too, with one of New Zealand’s top anglers, Guy Jacobsen, achieving two pending world records for swordfish - on consecutive days! His first catch of 252.8kg was on 15kg line, and his second catch, weighing 269kg on 10kg line, was even more remarkable.

A significant number of blues have been caught over the season, with two notable catches coming from the Nationals. Donna Pascoe’s 420.0kg catch set the tone, being a pending NZ women’s all-tackle record, succeeding the previous best mark, already held by the angler. Then, on the last day of the Nationals, Wade Wilson from Muriwai Sport Fishing Club landed a whopping 466.0kg monster. Unfortunately for Wade, he couldn’t get back to the Ahipara weigh-station

4 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

The newly-adopted IGFA rule regarding line backing is a game changer for the sportfishing community. It is heartening to see the new rule proposed by the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council (after consultation with our member clubs) being adopted by the governing body. Those who use braid have waited a long time for this significant change.

As the season draws to a close, I would like to thank those who work so tirelessly to make our sport so well supported around the country. Fishing is now rated the fifth most popular sport and recreation activity in New Zealand, and our clubs contribute significantly to this popularity.

Phil Appleyard President

New Zealand Sport Fishing Council Inc Mobile: 027 273 0500

www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Broadbill have been in the spotlight this last month: Nicky Sinden with her world-recordclaim 361.0kg ladies 60kg tackle claim.

5 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

EXECUTIVE PROFILE

Brenda Saul Zone 1 Delegate

Straylining using light tackle for snapper is one of Zone One delegate Brenda Saul’s favourite fishing activities.

6 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Zone One’s Brenda Saul an experienced administrator

Z

one One delegate Brenda Saul has plenty of experience when it comes to sport fishing administration and loves nothing better than promoting the sport to juniors.

“Not only did I learn to bait my own hook and mostly, take the fish off myself, I also learned how to fish. Pete taught me to strayline for snapper, which is now my As a member of her home club – preferred style of fishing. He also taught Whangarei Deep Sea Anglers – she has seen me how to use light tackle and I now fish service on the committee and spent three on three or four kilo line. To me, it’s a fairer years as its president, standing down in fight.”

August, 2016.

“Being part of a fishing club and the Brenda’s interest in fishing dates back to council produces the kind of camaraderie when she moved to the Tutukaka Coast in and friendships that last for years. It’s also her early teens. Her father always had a boat good fun competing against other club and a dinghy in the earlier years, where along members and other clubs.” with her brother and sister, she spent many “However, there’s nothing that can beat hours rowing around on the Ngunguru river. listening to the juniors talking about the big One of the earliest fishing lessons she kingie they caught and the fight they had learned from her father was about ‘quantity with or it, or the one that got away, that versus quality’. grows exponentially with each telling of the story”.

“Looking back, he was actually quite cunning. He would bait my hook, I’d drop the line down, and he would take the fish off for me. I was quite happy because I was catching lots of fish. It never occurred to me that he was casting his line out with great big baits and a very small sinker and getting the bigger fish. I was catching lots, so I was quite happy,” Brenda recalls.

“When husband Pete (council records officer Pete Saul) and I got together, that all changed. I had to bait my own hook and take my own fish off - which I must admit, I still struggle with because I think I’m hurting them.”

To that end, Brenda helps organise and arrange fundraising activities, such as the hangis, for the WDSAC Junior team every year so they can compete in the International Light Tackle Yellow Tail Tournament held in the Bay of Islands in June.

“I love working with the juniors, they are our future.”

7 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

WEIGHMASTER ROUNDUP

SIX POP-UP

TAGS DEPLOYED FOR

GREAT MARLIN RACE

F

irst, a teaser to start the trip: I have been asked many times why I have spent so much time on committee, reading all that is sent my way on fisheries management, fisheries politics and all forms of digital and printed media about fishing, especially saltwater game fishing.

Troll forward to today, with the 2017 SIMRAD ITM NZ Sportfishing Nationals done and dusted until next season Saturday, February 17 through till Saturday, February 24, 2018 inclusive - mark these dates in your diary, now!

Why are striped marlin so big off New Zealand’s coast? Historically, New Zealand 8 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

An angler for the future.

Jamiro Wells was the junior striped marlin champion angler at this year’s Nationals with two fish caught.

has the largest striped marlin in the world, with 20 of the 22 documented IGFA lineclass records made in our waters. Now, for the very first time, the IGFA Great Marlin Race (IGMR) has joined with the Bay of Islands Swordfish Club (the oldest gamefishing club in New Zealand) to host the very first New Zealand IGMR as part of the Zane Grey Tournament on March 15-18, 2017. Six satellite tags were ready to be deployed on cooperating marlin.

Although marlin have been designated a non-commercial species in New Zealand for nearly 30 years, billfish stocks are still in bad shape from commercial exploitation on

a global level and need better management.

Right now, there is a lack of IGMR tag data in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. Tagging New Zealand marlin will help to develop a more comprehensive understanding of population connectivity, and add information on billfish habitat use and oceanographic conditions to the expanding IGMR dataset.

Four striped marlin have been tagged with pop-up satellite tags during the Zane Grey Tournament in the Bay of Islands. This is the first time tags have been deployed as part of the IGFA Great Marlin Race (IGMR) in New Zealand. Generous sponsors buy the tags at cost (US$4500) and get to tag their marlin themselves. The winner of the ‘race’ is the crew whose fish travels furthest (straight-line distance) when the tag pops up. All going well, the tags will start transmitting in mid-November, 240 days after being activated.

The team on Endeavor was the first to get a tag away on a lively 90kg striped marlin.

Two fish were tagged on March 17, one by the crew on Absolute after 26 minutes on the line, with a tag sponsored by Pacific Ford Whangarei. The other stripy, caught on Back in Black, was about 75kg and was tagged and released after just nine minutes on the line.

The next day the crew on Absolute were in again, getting a 130kg stripy to the boat in 30 minutes and deploying a tag sponsored

by Haines House Haulage.

Subsequent to the tournament, two further tags, one on Hook n Bull and one on Family Jewels, have been deployed.

Thanks to all the sponsors and the great job by Jeff Douglas and Bay of Islands Swordfish Club for organising the tournament and the Great Marlin Race.

Tag data generated from this program is open-access and provides valuable information that can be used to support better international conservation measures for marlin around the world.

For more information, check out the article in the latest IGFA Newsletter, April 6, 2017.

Longest tag recovery For anyone who thinks that tagged marlin don’t survive, here’s one recovered this season. The tag had been in for nearly four years and is the longest time between capture and recapture for a striped marlin in New Zealand. (Big thanks to the team at Blue Water Marine Research for the great work they do.)

Cam Rathe, from the vessel Brenda L, sent in the tag and received the following reply from the Blue Water Marine Research team: Hi Cam, I had a closer look at the tag you sent. I think it is G111630, you can see the pale imprint even if there is no ink. We will have to check this with Pete Saul. We have this tag card; a striped marlin was tagged at the Houhora One Base 14-02-2013, where it was was estimated to weigh 80kg. It was caught on a live bait, took 30 minutes to get boat side to tag and release, the angler being Les Coste on Real Screamer, fishing for the Manukau Sportfishing Club.

The fish was recaptured on March 3, 2017 on the Shallow Patch area off Houhora.

9 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Second tag recovery

You can follow the Nationals in real digital time on: facebook search for ‘New Zealand

On March 30, the Bay of Islands Swordfish Club advised Blue Water Marine Research of Sport Fishing Council Inc.’ the recapture of a tagged striped marlin (N Back to the future 155503) caught on March 22, 2017, aboard Back to the teaser at the start. I was up Alibaba at the Bird Rock Trench. It weighed at the Houhora Big Game & Sport Fishing 95kg.

Club’s annual One Base and got to meet Zachary Woolston tagged this fish at North one of their new up-and-coming anglers, Cape on February 21, 2017, fishing from Jamiro Wells, who became ‘New Zealand Family Jewels. He estimated its weight at Junior Champion Striped Marlin Billfish 70kg. The tag had been attached for 29 Angler’ (striped marlin). He was first and days and the fish was recaptured 75 nautical third in the Junior Striped Marlin section, miles southwest from where it was tagged. second in the junior skipjack tuna section and a notable third in the skipjack 8kg Good effort at the Nationals line-class category. Jamiro’s Nationals’ We had 1,551 anglers fish the Nationals, tally of two striped marlin weighed, two our third highest on record. Fishing was bronze whaler sharks tagged and three harder, with normal hot spots not looking skipjack tuna (two on 8kg and one on 6kg fishy, forcing teams to travel further and hunt line) helped his club come first in the region harder for winners. However, there were section and top club overall. Now I have had some notable big fish captures, including a glimpse of the future of fishing, a possible Donna Pascoe’s 420.4kg blue marlin caught future committee person, and maybe having on 37kg tackle and Michael Bertelsen’s a future in fisheries management process 297.1kg broadbill also caught on 37kg our fishing LegaSea in progress! tackle.

The results can be seen here: nzsportfishing.co.nz All our big catches and tag-and-releases find their way onto our Facebook site.

There was some fierce competition in some sections: in the albacore section teams from the New Plymouth Sport Fishing & Underwater Club fought tooth and nail with the Pegasus Bay Game Fishing Club and Southern Sport Fishing Club. Overall honours went to Pegasus Bay, winning with a margin of 422.13 points.

The biggest winning margin was in the shark section, while the smallest margin was in the mahimahi section - just 13.41 points.

In the inshore fisheries, the Wellington Surfcasting and Angling Club was superior in their efforts, winning the kahawai, trevally and yellowtail sections, as well as a notable second in the snapper section.

10 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Well travelled tag. This conventional tag stayed in place for over four years before it was recovered.

- By Paul Batten

The crew aboard the Cam Rathe skippered Brenda L with their recaptured striped marlin. It was first tagged four years ago.

11 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

IGFA NEWS International summit produces rule changes After many years of debate about braid and the complications it adds to fishing tournaments and line class records, representatives of NZSFC were invited to attend IGFA’s International Angling Rules Summit held in Florida.

All attendees were given ample time to raise any issues that affected their members. Many topics were covered, including potential ways forward with modern day fishing techniques.

The outcome from this summit has seen several International Angling Rule changes come into effect from April 1, 2017.

Assisting the angler The IGFA has added the following language to the section 3 of ‘Disqualifying Acts’:

angling achievements, the IGFA has established the following minimum ratio requirements for all new line class and tippet class world records: For line class categories up to and including 10kg (20lb) and all tippet class (fly rod) categories: • The weight of the catch must be at least ½ as much as the line class it is eligible for. For example, a fish entered for the 6kg (12lb) line class or tippet class category must weigh a minimum of 3kg.

For line class categories greater than 10kg (20lb): • The weight of the catch must be equal to, or greater than the line class it is eligible for. For example, a fish entered in the 24kg (50lb) line class category must weigh a minimum of 24kg.

Minimum ratios will not be retroactive and records “Holding or touching an that currently do not meet angler in a manner that the new minimum weight assists them in fighting the requirements will not be fish or takes pressure off the retired. Records listed in the angler. Touching or briefly 2017 World Record Book holding the angler to prevent and IGFA website will have them from falling does not a new column that instructs constitute a disqualification”. anglers what the minimum weight necessary is to Changes to world establish a record for each

record requirements Minimum Ratio Requirements

In an effort to have IGFA world records better recognize outstanding 12 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

line class.

Backing and top-shots Previously, IGFA’s International Angling Rules stated: “If the fishing line

is attached to backing, the catch shall be classified under the heavier of the lines.”

The IGFA has made the following alterations to Equipment Regulation A: • Title change from “LINE” to “LINE AND BACKING” • Adding a new subsection that reads: “3. The use of backing is permissible.”

• Adding a new subsection that reads: “4. The catch shall be classified under the breaking strength of the first five meters of line directly preceding the double line, leader or hook. This section must be comprised of a single, homogenous piece of line.”

Changes to recognised game fish species The IGFA maintains AllTackle world records for thousands of different species, however only certain game fish species are eligible for the additional line class, tippet class (fly rod), and Junior Angler world record categories.

In an effort to better recognize premier game fish species around the world that merit having line classes, the IGFA will no longer be accepting line class, tippet class (fly rod), and Junior Angler world records on the 45 species of freshwater and saltwater fish listed below:

Freshwater: rock bass, shoal bass, white bass, yellow bass, bluegill, black bullhead, brown bullhead, yellow bullhead, burbot, white catfish, black crappie, white crappie, freshwater drum, Florida gar, shortnose gar, spotted gar, oscar, European perch, white perch, yellow perch, chain pickerel, red piranha, shorthead redhorse, silver redhorse, sauger, American shad, hickory shad, splake, green sunfish, redbreast sunfish, redear sunfish, tench, warmouth, lake whitefish, mountain whitefish, round whitefish.

Saltwater: Pacific barracuda, black seabass, Japanese parrotperch, spotted parrotperch, Florida pompano,

doublespotted queenfish, black-blue rockfish, Atlantic spadefish, oxeye tarpon.

“Can I still use conventional braid without a tippet/ topshot line?”

The only two of these species known to be found in NZ waters are European Perch and tench, both freshwater species.

Answer: “Yes, you can, with the proviso that your club may have different rules to the NZSFC in this respect.

You have always been able to claim a NZ record on braid because the line will either test within the requirements or not. As far as tournaments go, most restrict the use of braid to its own section or ban its use altogether for the very well-advertised reason that its breaking strain usually exceeds the stated strength and unless you test every line there is not an even playing field.

Some questions to date that have been asked from NZSFC members include: “How much line needs to be submitted now for a record claim?”

Answer: “Anglers are still required to submit approximately 50ft (~16m) of the line immediately following their hook, leader, or double line. It is simply the first section of “clean line” (~first 5 metres) that will be tested to determine where the catch is classified.

IGFA has changed its rules as they pertain to braid line for competition and record claims.

If you have additional questions on this or any of the International Angling Rules, please get in touch with your NZSFC club delegate who can direct it to the correct person for an answer. – Mark Hemingway, NZ IGFA representative 13 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

FISHERIES RESEARCH

Monitoring yellowtail kingfish stocks Blue Water Marine Research

K

ingfish are a popular and challenging target species for many recreational fishers. They form a valuable component of the charterboat business, with clients coming from around New Zealand and the world to test their angling skills against these hard-fighting fish. Now there is growing demand for guided fly-fishing trips sight fishing for kingfish in shallow water.

In New Zealand, the most popular fish stocks are monitored using commercialcatch records and catch rates. However, most of the commercial catch of kingfish is taken as a small component of long-line and set-net fishing targeting other species.

Kingfish is in the unique position of having a higher documented recreational landed catch (around 660 tonnes a year nationwide) than commercial landed catch (around 250 tonnes). Only the recreational fishery targets kingfish and catches the full size range available. NIWA investigated the options for monitoring kingfish stocks and, as a result, the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) monitors the age structure of the charterboat kingfish catch in north-eastern New Zealand every five years.

In 2009–2010 a total of 2091 kingfish were measured aboard charter and selected private boats, and 460 were aged. All fish 14 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Figure 1: A pair of otoliths (balance bones) from a 146cm, 17-year-old kingfish speared

by Nat Davie at the Three Kings.

were assigned an age based on their length.

East Northland had a lot of five-year-old fish and very few teenagers. In the Bay of Plenty, six year olds formed the largest age class, and there were more older fish. The oldest fish aged was a 170cm fish caught at White Island, which was 24 years old. The oldest and largest fish sampled in East Northland was a 156cm fish (41.6kg) caught in Bream Bay aged at 22 years.

The estimates of fishing mortality that year lead MPI to conclude that kingfish in the Bay of Plenty were fully exploited and over-fishing was occurring in East Northland.

The 2010 NZSFC club records, however, showed increasing availability and catch of mid-sized kingfish from 80 to 105cm, probably from good spawning success in 2004 and 2005. This pulse of fish could be the start of the stock rebuild we were all hoping for after the management decisions in 2003.

Thanks to the cooperation of the Bay of Islands Swordfish Club and anglers in the Yellowtail International Tournament, we have been able to measure a good number of kingfish in July each year since 2010. There was clear evidence that the pulse of fish would turn up in subsequent years - a few kilos larger, but reducing in number.

Results from the 2014-2015 catch-at-age study The real test of whether the kingfish stock was rebuilding came when MPI funded a repeat aging study of charter-boat catch.

Again, this was a joint project by Blue Water Marine Research and NIWA, which got excellent support from many charter skippers.

The main change was the inclusion of additional offshore areas in the sample: the Three Kings area and Ranfurly Bank. These locations are part of the same habitat as other areas in Northland and Bay of Plenty contained within the East Auckland current and East Cape current.

Inshore Bay of Plenty 40

35

35

30

30

25

25

Percent

Percent

Inshore Northland 40

20 15

20 15

10

10

5

5

0

1

3

5

7

9

11

13

15

17

19

21

23

25

27

0

29

1

3

5

7

30

25

25

20

20

15 10

13

15

17

19

21

23

25

27

29

21

23

25

27

29

15 10

5 0

11

Offshore Bay of Plenty

30

Percent

Percent

Offshore Northland

9

5 1

3

5

7

9

11

13

15

17

Age (years)

19

21

23

25

27

29

0

1

3

5

7

9

11

13

15

17

19

Age (years)

Figure 2: Kingfish age composition by region for inshore (top) and offshore (bottom) samples in 2014–15.

All fish are over 75cm with few three year olds, but most four and five year olds of legal size.

15 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

During the 2014–2015 study, a total of 2833 kingfish were measured, including some undersized fish that were not part of the catch-at-age analysis. The kingfish sample from the Northland-Hauraki Gulf region achieved 1183 length measurements and 271 otolith pairs from fish over 75cm, while in the Bay of Plenty-East Cape region, 1039 fish were measured and 213 otolith pairs collected. Kingfish otoliths, or balance bones, are small and fragile for the size of the fish (Figure 1). The NIWA aging team fixes them in resin and slices them thinly to read the annual growth rings.

29kg was caught at Ranfurly Bank. These are new maximum age estimates recorded for this species in New Zealand and possibly worldwide.

Spatial differences in age composition were evident between inshore and offshore samples in each region, with fish older than 15 years poorly represented in inshore areas compared with the Three Kings area, White Island and Ranfurly Bank in the offshore sample.

Although movement has been recorded between inshore and offshore areas, the relationship between these areas Northland-Hauraki Gulf catches were is unquantified. The Northern Inshore largely dominated by young kingfish from Fisheries Working Group accepted that the the 2011 to 2008 year classes (four to inshore and offshore samples were from seven year olds), the 2010-year class (five the same population in each region, but year olds) singularly the most dominant, concluded that there was no valid approach accounting for more than one-third of for combining inshore and offshore age the total catch by number (figure 2). The frequencies by region for the purpose of catch from the Bay of Plenty-East Cape estimating regional total mortality. Both region comprised a slightly broader age inshore areas and the BoP offshore area composition, with the 2009 year class (six had lower total mortality estimates in 2014year olds) being the most dominant and 2015 than those obtained in 2009–2010. The making up about one-quarter of the total Northland offshore area was not sampled catch by number. The strong 2005 Northland in the first survey, but had the lowest total year class and a strong 2004 Bay of Plenty mortality estimate of any area in 2014–2015. year class, first seen in the 2009–2010 study, The bottom line is that kingfish stocks can be seen in 2014–2015 as 10 and 11 year have improved over the last five years. The olds (Figure 2). working group concluded that kingfish Kingfish growth rates can vary between populations in the Bay of Plenty and individuals, and we found that female Northland regions of KIN 1 were unlikely kingfish grow to a larger maximum size to have been in an over-exploited state in than males. A 29-year-old, 134cm female 2014–2015. kingfish was caught at the King Bank and a 28-year-old, 130cm male fish weighing - By John Holdsworth

16 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

EXECUTIVE OFFICER’S REPORT

Club membership continues to grow We have forwarded information to three clubs that are investigating joining the council as affiliated clubs: • Cape Egmont Boat Club – which is looking to rejoin the council (their rejoining the council was subject to ratification at a following club meeting).

• Glenora Fisho’s – a small club run out the Glenora Bears Rugby League Club • A collective of West Auckland Fishermen who are investigating forming a club and joining the council. I have spent time with them outlining the club formation process and costs.

The council is engaging Brendon O’Conner from the Institute of Directors to review our membership fees and structure.

Brendon has previous experience with other national sports organization reviewing membership structures and fees, and providing recommendations moving forward.

Finances

Website and other communications We are now at the stage of engaging a web designer to build the new website, and currently have an individual creating the new Nationals software. This will be presented at the 2017 AGM. Hooked Up E-zines are now produced

by NZ Fishing News, where we provide the content and they provide the production expertise. This has greatly increased our distribution as well, with NZ Fishing News circulating the E-Zine to their own network of readers.

Nationals We had 1,551 anglers fishing the Nationals, our third highest on record. Given the adverse weather conditions prior to and during the Nationals, it was pleasing to see so many registered anglers. We were down on the number of fish overall from the previous year, with 711 fish landed and 368 tagged and released. In 2016, there was 668 landed and 644 tagged and released.

It was pleasing to have 10 clubs loading the catch data, greatly assisting with the Cheque – 40.5k speed at which the results were circulated to anglers and clubs (the clubs involved Online Saver – 10.5k also found it reduced their workload, as Term investments – 388.5k they weren’t having to double handle The March Profit and Loss 2017 Report information). On average the daily results were out at least an hour earlier than highlights: previous years, so a big thank you to all A year to date operating surplus of those clubs who assisted here. The old 116.5k against budget of a 92.5k surplus. software was also updated and ineligible catches were not accepted by the updated Total income is 440.8k against a budget version. This also assisted with speeding-up of 432.4k. All affiliation fees are paid in results. full, excluding one club

• Bank accounts as at the March 31, 2017 • • • • • •

• Total operating expenses of 316.6k against a budget of 340.9k.

17 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Image - Gary Whitaker

Wellington Angling and Casting Club members did exceptionally well at the Nationals. WSAC’s Dave Pye with a 24kg kingfish taken on six-kilo line.

P

roposed changes for next year’s Nationals will include an online entry form and payment, and electronic catch and tag card recording.

It was tremendous to have two naming rights sponsors for this year’s event - a big thank you to both Simrad and ITM who supported the Nationals in 2017. It is also great to see a number of ITM outlets around the country supporting local club events as well.

The Simrad lucky-draw prizes were again very popular, with seven lucky anglers taking away sponsors prizes ranging from VHF radios to top-of-the-range Simrad navigation systems.

AGM The 2017 AGM is scheduled for Sept 15 - 16 at Tauranga SFC. A meeting between the council and Tauranga SFC is scheduled for this week to finalize details. This year the format for the AGM will be slightly different, with the LegaSea AGM being incorporated as part of the AGM on the Friday.

A proposal to the board to include an awards evening and MC on the Saturday night of the AGM will also be considered. It is proposed that our annual awards (which are normally sent by post) be incorporated into the evening presentation, along with new awards for ‘Overall Angler of the Year’ and ‘Club of the Year’.

Dave Lockwood Executive Officer New Zealand Sport Fishing Council

18 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

FISHERIES MANAGEMENT UPDATE

BEWARE THE TROJAN HORSE

19 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

S

ince the days of the Trojan horse we have been warned against accepting gifts and flattery from people who seemingly want to be on our side.

It seems we have forgotten those lessons though when the New Zealand Initiative emerged in 2016 espousing the need to ‘enhance the recreational fishing experience’. The fisheries team enthusiastically embraced Randall Bess’ approach as being genuine because we so wanted it to be true, sharing information and aspirations for the future of our inshore fisheries. Since then, a different, darker picture has emerged.

It is now obvious that the New Zealand Initiative conversation is directed towards policy that integrates recreational fishing into the Quota Management System (QMS).

Sadly, this is just more of the same. There is a long history of economic commentators laying down their elegant theories to resolve the recreational fishing ‘problem’. But is there a problem, and if so, what is it?

We hear of an ever-increasing recreational fishing effort in the Hauraki Gulf, increased tourism, the need for smaller bag limits and potentially seasonal closures - all fed by complacent management of recreational fishing.

From our perspective, the most immediate threat to successful recreational fishing is the ongoing depletion of inshore fish stocks. Policies to rebuild inshore fisheries would relieve much of the current tension in management and enable recreational fishers to get on with what we like to do best – go fishing.

The reality is that aside from our many club delegates, who would choose to spend all day at a meeting over having time out on the water?

Bess describes the potential value of 20 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

integrating recreational fishing into the QMS as, “much less time and effort could be expended in defending typically staunch sector-level positions, and instead attention turned towards collaboration that could improve fish stocks management and benefit all fishing sectors”.

Why integration?

What is the purpose of promoting the hypothesis of integration, of including recreational catch in the QMS? This is the first question to be asked.

There is no clear fishery benefit to accrue from such a theoretical response to the ‘problem’. And, more importantly, there is no real problem statement. So, policy settings to resolve purely theoretical models that have never existed (and likely never will) are not accidental and deliberately misleading.

The real purpose exposed

The real purpose of the New Zealand Initiative is unstated, yet it is obvious to everyone familiar with the topic, as it has been around for decades.

The purpose of promoting recreational catch into the QMS is to redefine, that is upgrade, the commercial fishing right – to give quota shareholders a defined share of a fish stock, in contrast to the status quo, which is a current right to a share of the Total Allowable Commercial Catch.

The difference may not be immediately obvious, but the crucial difference is the role played by the Minister for Primary Industries.

Presently the catch shares in each fish stock are determined by the minister, initially as a Total Allowable Catch (TAC). Allowances are then set aside for recreational and customary interests, and for other sources of mortality, such as black market, incidental mortality, dumping and other fishing-related reasons. The sum of these allowances is

deducted from the TAC and the balance is the Total Allowable Commercial Catch (TACC). Quota shareholders own shares in this TACC. The courts have confirmed that all of these settings - that is the TAC, allowances and TACC - can be altered by the minister as long as he acts in a reasonable manner.

Therefore, the minister decides how a fish stock is to be used and how Government policy will be expressed.

The changes promoted by the New Zealand Initiative, and those who have paraded before them, would remove the minister from the role of determining catch shares. Instead, the TACC and noncommercial shares would be expressed as a proportion of the TAC and be fixed.

Altering the ratio of shares between commercial and non-commercial interests would then require market mechanisms, a system of payment, on the assumption that catch rights would flow to those who are able to capture the most ‘value’.

However, the hypothesis that tradeable catch rights create value is not demonstrated from within New Zealand’s current QMS. Commercial rights, in the form of shares, are already freely tradeable, yet trading patterns exhibit monopolistic rentseeking investment, not value creation.

There is only one beneficiary

We also thought the notion of privatising public fishing had been buried. Clearly not. It again emerges as commercial beneficiaries glimpse a pathway to riches, and managers see a way out of their statutory responsibilities to allow for public fishing interests through abundance.

Thankfully, the public is largely aware that there is no benefit for them in this dialogue and zero for our mokopuna, with any political embrace of the notion of including recreational fishing in the QMS being suicidal.

Our challenge is not to embrace further neoliberal reforms that have crippled the country for 30 years; rather, we need to unravel some of the unnecessary consequences of hardship and inequality delivered by the trickle-down economic zealots since the 1980s.

New Zealand doesn’t want an imaginary market solution to an equally non-existent ‘problem’. Our country needs a minister to be responsible and accountable for the use and state of our fisheries resources that are, after all, a state asset to be utilised for the public good and conserved for future generations.

Related information at: Future of our Fisheries

Clearly there is only one beneficiary from integrating public fishing into the QMS and creating fixed shares in the TAC, and that is the existing owners of shares in the TACC, the quota shareholders.

- Fisheries Management System Review - What does “world leading” mean?

- Back to the future in fisheries.

There is no need to stage a carefully orchestrated process that pretends interest in public fishing while courting Ministry and commercial advocates. We recognise the signs and the language.

The NZ Sport Fishing Council believes bringing the recreational catch into the Quota Management System will only benefit commercial interests should be avoided at all costs.

21 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

LEGASEA UPDATE

THE LATEST FROM LEGASEA

Launch of FishCare The much-anticipated programme, FishCare – the school of best practice - will be launched in early May and presented at the biggest show in town, the Hutchwilco New Zealand Boat Show from May 18–21.

FishCare is an educational guide for recreational fishers offering simple tips on how to minimise our environmental impact while out doing what we love.

We are grateful for the LegaSea team’s effort, Scott Cushman in particular, as well as the in-kind help from a range of specialists as FishCare has evolved.

Hooks, lures, bait fishing, net choice, handling techniques, utilisation of the fish, safety and how to minimise impact on other sea creatures (seabirds and cetaceans for example) are all part of the programme.

FishCare is aimed at up-skilling recreational fishers, to make sure we are doing everything we can to protect our precious marine environment.

FishCare has debunked the myth that it is best to use a towel when handling fish you plan to release. In fact, it is better to use wet hands – ideally while still in the water. Another helpful tip is to file down or crush the hook’s barbs so you can more easily release the fish while it is still in the water.

22 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

There is a wide spectrum of users who fish in our marine waters, from people who lack a basic understanding of the rules to those who truly understand the importance of full utilisation and minimising human impact.

FishCare caters to a broad range of fishers and offers smart ways to conserve marine life. The programme will develop over time, and any feedback is most welcome.

The Kaika Project Until recently, many members of the Outboard Boating Club of Auckland (OBC) discarded their fish heads and frames, while others in the community prize these parts of the fish for their sweet flesh. Hence the creation of the Kaika Project.

The OBC members now collect their unwanted fish heads and frames and the Papatuanuku Kokiri Marae team collects them to share amongst an appreciative local community. The project has taken off, with over 4500kg of heads and frames collected so far.

A method to turn one man’s waste into another man’s treasure seems too good to be true. If unable to use your heads and frames, and you would like to do something similar, try downloading the Free Fish Heads app. This is a simple way to put you in touch with people who will value these underrated fish parts. Or, if you are interested in receiving some heads and frames, download the app and sign up to score some nutritious and delicious tucker.

Manukau Sport Fishing Club stepping up At the annual West Coaster Fishing Competition, the Manukau Sport Fishing Club (MSFC) chose the Kaika Project as its benefactor.

Representatives from Papatuanuku Kokiri Marae attended both days to collect the heads and frames the competitors didn’t want. These parts were packed in ice and sent back to the marae for preparation and distribution to the community.

But MSFCs member’s generosity didn’t stop there. Not only were they donating the heads and frames, many insisted on donating the whole fish to such a worthy cause. These fish included a 9.5kg snapper and the winning 14kg kingfish. All up, 300kg of fish were packed up and taken off to be enjoyed by some appreciative South Aucklanders.

Lionel Hotene, a marae representative, said, “Words cannot express how happy we are,” and, “It has given me a lot of confidence in the generosity of those who give, and give so well.”

Conservation is utilisation. To conserve our fisheries, we all need to strive for maximum respect and utilisation of the fish we land. Too often these heads and frames end up over the back of the boat or sitting at the bottom of our garden. The Kaika Project helps unlock their maximum value - as a food source for New Zealanders.

Political awareness As per the last election, LegaSea continues to meet with political party representatives and politicians as we build up to the September election. This hard work should help to ensure that sound fisheries policy, including statutory support for Moyle’s Promise, is enacted.

To find out more visit us here and subscribe for updates. Follow LegaSea’s community engagement by liking us on Facebook

23 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

NZMRF

Fish

welfare

Best practice guides with regard to fish welfare are available through NZSFC affiliated clubs.

24 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Fish welfare best practice advice available s fishers, we occasionally become embroiled in media frenzies fed by so-called animal-rights activists targeting our right to catch fish, whether we keep them or choose to let them go.

Often this is initiated by media reports of a significant capture. More laughable is the activists’ preferred notion of letting commercial fishers catch all the fish, while you and I stay at home and buy our fish from a fish shop.

As you would expect, the NZ Marine Research Foundation (NZMRF) has not shied away from this debate, instead proactively providing reference material and supporting documents that support the fact we take fish welfare seriously and are at the forefront of that source of information.

Early in our establishment years (2001) we prepared a fish welfare document that was later condensed down into a handout flyer for all anglers accessible through all NZ Sport Fishing Council clubs. This contained information on how to quickly kill your fish if keeping it and preserve it in good quality for consumption. Also, essential information about handling fish intended for release, whether it be an undersized snapper or a large pelagic, such as a marlin, that you have just tagged. More recently we provided funding for surveys and written reports for the NZSFC submission to the Primary Production Select Committee on the Animal Welfare Amendment Bill 2013.

The nationwide surveys carried out by Horizon Research looked at current fishing practice and attitudes to animal welfare when fishing. There was general acknowledgement of the importance of ensuring the welfare, wellbeing and protection of fish caught in New Zealand waters.

A small majority felt that what we currently do is better than other parts of the world.

Overall, 62% wanted to know more about welfare, with a surprising bias that so-called ‘expert’ fishers desire this more than the general population. Over half said their fish handling is influenced by possible stress or pain, with two thirds willing to accept a lower catch rate if this reduced damage to a fish that subsequently freed itself or is released.

In the NZSFC submission there was agreement that animal (fish) welfare matters.

However, it is important to rely more on science-based assessment rather than emotive or animal-rights-based assessment when developing strategy and legislative proposals.

Support was given to have clear and enforceable standards for welfare, but to only regulate where necessary.

Support was given to the government’s view that hunting and fishing are important and legitimate activities in New Zealand.

Fishing is the pastime of choice many of the NZSFC-affiliated clubs’ members, providing food for the table, being an activity they can share with family and friends, and occasionally involving a source of notable achievement when a large or special capture is made.

Currently there is provision within the Act that exempts killing fish for both commercial and recreational fishers, as there are instances where quick dispatch or release are impossible. This was supported, but the NZMRF and NZSFC-affiliated clubs remain committed to promoting high welfare outcomes for fish caught by recreational fishers using the best-practice guides, which are available through fishing club networks.

- By Jeff Romeril NZFMRF

25 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Nathan Adams - lure maker and angler of note

Nathan with his world record 335kgPacific bluefin tuna, a special fish for him.

26 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

ANGLER ARTICLE In this issue’s Angler Profile, Hooked Up talks with noted ‘big fish’ angler, luremaker and former commercial fisherman Nathan Adams, , questioning him about his involvement in sport fishing…

How did you get started in fishing?

My dad is a keen recreational fisherman.

He has always owned trailer boats and he took me fishing from the time I was old enough to hold a fishing rod. I caught my first hapuku (groper back then) in Cooks Strait when I was five years old. When I was a kid, if Dad couldn’t take me fishing I would fish off a wharf or find a creek and catch koura or eels. I have always been mad on fishing.

All anglers remember what to them are significant catches their first or perhaps biggest fish what is your most memorable fish and why?

I have caught lots of memorable fish but I guess my 335kg bluefin tuna would have to top them all for several reasons.

Firstly: because it was so unexpected.

We caught it live baiting for black marlin around a shallow reef in 40 metres of water in the Far North, in the middle of summer. We didn’t see the fish until we got it to the boat and if I had to guess what we were attached to before that, a giant bluefin tuna would not have been one of my guesses. Secondly: because it turned out to be the IGFA 37kg and all-tackle world record. Thirdly: When I first started game fishing I read all the old books. One of those books had accounts and photos of the only two giant Pacific bluefin tuna that had been caught by recreational game fishermen in New Zealand at the time.

Both were caught live baiting around reefs in the Bay of Plenty, many years earlier.

Probably because of their size and rarity I dreamed of maybe one day catching one of these awesome fish. Then years later the South Island bluefin tuna fishery opened up to recreational fishermen, it seemed like anyone could charter a boat

and easily catch one. After that they lost their mystique for me. But when I finally did catch my bluefin tuna, it was just as special as I had imagined because I caught it in the North Island from my own boat and in the same way as the two that I had read about were caught decades earlier; and it was the world record.

We understand you are a member of the Muriwai Sports Fishing Club. How actively are you involved in the club?

I have been a member of the Muriwai Sports Fishing Club for 25 years and spent a few of them as a committee member.

In that time, I have seen the club transition from what started out as predominantly a west coast snapper and surf casting club to become one of the top small boat game fishing clubs in New Zealand. I like to think I had a bit of a hand in that transition, along with several; other keen small boat game fishermen who have been long time members of the club. I moved to Mangawhai Heads over a year ago but Muriwai will always be my home club and I still have a little bit of input through the current committee members who are doing a great job.

As a former commercial fisherman, you must have had some unique experiences and learned a lot about the sea.

I didn’t come from a commercial fishing background. I was just such a keen fisherman that I thought it would be great to do it for a job, and at 21 I bought a boat and went commercial fishing.

It was a lot harder to make a living than I expected, both physically and mentally, but I stuck at it for 25 years. I didn’t get rich but over the thousands of hours spent on the ocean I have seen and experienced some amazing things that most people will never get to experience. I have also gained a deep knowledge of the ocean and fish 27 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

catching blue water species such as marlin and tuna. It is much easier to get into the sport these days due to the availability of good boats, tackle and knowledge. I was lucky I lived at Muriwai Beach and I had marlin and tuna on my doorstep during the summer months. Fifteen or twenty years ago I could often see the schools of yellowfin tuna jumping behind Oaia Island in the evening from the front deck of my house. When I caught my first marlin off the Kaipara 24 years ago in my own boat, I was hooked for life.

You have earned a reputation as being one of the most successful broadbill swordfish anglers in the country, how did this came about.

Nathan Adams has turned catching swordfish into something of an art form.

The Western Break team with the winning fish from this year’s Nationals.

Photo credit: Linda Mathews

habits. This has helped make me a much better and more successful recreational angler. I think it is partially all the ‘puka, bass and bluenose fishing I have done that’s helped me to do so well at catching swordfish during the daytime. Very few fishermen who don’t have deep-water commercial experience can set up and finetune a fish finder then correctly interpret what they are seeing on the screen.

How did you first get into targeting marlin?

I guess it was a natural progression from fishing for snapper and other easilyaccessible inshore fish to the challenge of 28 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

When It comes to experience and number of swords caught, John Gregory is king, but I might come a distant second.

We are both ex-commercial fishermen and I think that experience makes a really big difference when chasing swordfish.

Daytime sword fishing is a cross between marlin and ‘puka fishing which are both things I am good at. You must be able to look at the charts and recognise spots that are likely to hold good numbers of swords, then you should be good at using a fish finder to pinpoint where in that area they are and what depth they are holding at.

I have been doing a lot of sword fishing since daytime deep-dropping for them first started to take off in NZ and it didn’t take long for me to get the hang of it. Until this year’s Nationals when the fishing was quite hard for swordfish, it had been over two years since I did a day chasing swords without catching at least one. I don’t generally plaster photos and videos of my swordfish captures all over social media and brag about them though, because I hate getting harassed by other boats when I’m out on the water.

I try to stay ahead of the other guys by constantly looking for new grounds and improving my techniques.

Your Red Gill Custom Lures are proven fish catchers – what motivated you to get into the lure market?

When I first started making marlin lures close to 20 years ago I didn’t do it with the intention of turning it into a business.

It was because we couldn’t buy replacements of some of our favourite lures, so I made some for myself and some friends. Then I started playing with weights and ballast and modifying the lures to make them better.

Before long I was making my own lures from scratch to suit the NZ fishery and conditions, based on my own trolling experience. They were very successful and so many people wanted them that I was forced to register Red Gill Lures as a business. Because it was a secondary business to me I never had time to make enough lures to fill the demand and I never needed to advertise. Many of New Zealand’s top game fishermen and charter operators in NZ have been using Red Gill Lures for years but there will be a lot of people who don’t know me and have never heard of Red Gills; or only heard of them recently since I made them my full-time business. I still struggle to keep up with demand though and at this stage my only advertising is my Red Gill Lures Facebook page.

It doesn’t matter if it’s marlin or swordfish; kingfish or snapper. If you do well you get the NZSFC Certificates as a record of your success and your name engraved on the trophies; and you boost the profile of your club too. For me it’s a great challenge, but for some people it’s just an excuse to go away fishing for eight days. I also think the recent IGFA rule change relating to braid backing will encourage and allow a lot more people to fish the Nationals. Over the last couple of years, tackle stores have been pushing the latest technology such as the more compact game reels like Shimano’s Talicas, designed for use with braid so don’t have enough line capacity to use all mono or dacron/mono combos.

Anglers using these setups have been excluded from the Nationals until this rule change took effect on April 1. It is also going to allow the expert jig fishers and stick baiters to join in the Nationals if they want to.

Having fished the Nationals numerous times, how do you think we can encourage more anglers into the competition?

I think it is only the individual clubs themselves that can encourage their members to fish the Nationals. It is the only sport fishing comp where you, your team, and your club can compete against the best fishers and clubs from around the country at your chosen fish species.

29 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

GRANDER BLUE MARLIN JUST REWARD FOR PERSEVERANCE

Jed Radaly (centre) gives the Hot Lips crew a hand to drag the grander blue marlin aboard.

30 ◆30 www.nzsportfishing.co.nz ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Wade Wilson’s 466kg Ahipara blue marlin is only the fifth ‘grander’ (fish 453.6kg and over) to be caught on rod and reel in New Zealand waters. It was a first for the west coast, where blue marlin are something of a rarity.

It is the second heaviest to be caught on stand-up gear, that honour belonging to Alain Jorion with his 473.2kg black marlin caught out of Gisborne in February 2002.

The heaviest recorded marlin was Ross Jamieson’s 483.4kg (1067.1lb) blue caught aboard the John Douglas owned and skippered Harlequin off North Cape in April 2009. Like Wade, this monster was his first billfish.

Second skipper this day was Chris Ash, who was involved in the capture of the country’s second grander – Tony Harding’s 456.8kg (1008lb) blue marlin aboard the Bob Ash skippered Reel Passion in 1998.

The first New Zealand 1000 pounder was caught by Ron Greig in the Bay of Islands, March 1968. It tipped the scales at 461.3kgs (1018lb) and was landed aboard the charter boat Miss Sandra, skippered by Graham Clifford and run by Fullers.

The biggest off them all internationally was an 818kg (1805lb) blue caught on rod and reel in Hawaii in 1977. It was not eligible for a record as more than one angler – in fact five of them - fought the fish.

For the record, the world all-tackle Pacific blue marlin mark stands at 624.14kg (1376lb) and was caught out of Hawaii in 1982, while the black marlin record was caught in Peru in 1953, weighing 707.61kg (1560lb)

I

f ever there was a reward for perseverance, the Muriwai Sport Fishing Club crew aboard Hot Lips earned every gram of their 466kg ‘grander’ blue marlin caught off Ahipara the last day of the NZSFC Nationals.

For the last three years buddies – skipper John Gilford, Jeremy Rewi and angler Wade Wilson – have fished the Nationals without any success on the billfish front.

This year the last day of the Nationals was their 10th consecutive day on the water and they had had seven strikes, none of which stuck – until the big blue hoovered up the Red Gill RGII Kohe lure run on the shotgun.

Red Gill lures have accounted for some big fish this season. The RGII ‘Kohi’ did the business for Wade Wilson.

“On the Friday evening over a few beers we had discussed the possibility of not targeting a marlin in favour of some bottom fish, but decided to give it one last shot,” John says.

It was to be a day the fishing gods smiled down on them. After launching off the beach at Shipwreck Bay at the southern end of Ninety Mile Beach, they trolled their lures in near-glassy conditions when the ‘shotgun went off’ at around 1.30pm.

“We looked around on hearing the ratchet screaming but couldn’t work out immediately where it was coming from, forgetting about the Shimano Tiagra 80W set in the rocket launcher. I looked up to 31 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

see the spool emptying out very fast, and knew we had to start chasing the fish or we would be spooled,” Jeremy says.

transom and then as a platform to lift the head up so the body could be pulled aboard.

Backing the drag off to reduce the pressure to get the outfit down, Wade was on the rod and was soon harnessed up in the Black Magic Equaliser. Some of the gear was cleared before they began chasing the fish hard to regain some of the lost line.

With the marlin eventually secured, it was then a race to get the 25 nautical miles or so back to the weigh station by the 6.00pm Nationals’ deadline.

“While it was hard to do, backing the drag off reduced the water pressure being put on the line by the hard-running fish. It (the pressure) could have quite easily have popped the line.”

With the gear finally cleared the battle began, the unsighted fish making three massive runs, each one shorter than the others.

Using the swell to his advantage, Wade was soon making good line and after two hours the big fish popped up boat-side where it turned on its back, spent.

It was Wade’s first billfish, his previously biggest catch a four-kilo snapper!

The crew were fishing with four 24kg outfits and the one 37, and it was lucky the fish picked on the lure attached to the latter.

‘The crew’s next challenge was getting the fish back to the weigh station at the Ahipara Sport Fishing Club.

Appreciating they could not get the big fish on board John’s 5.8m McLay alone, the call was made for assistance.

Experienced anglers Jed Radaly and Josh Holmes were sword fishing in the area, cutting their lines and racing to Hot Lips’ assistance.

They used Jed’s boat initially as a ‘tug’ to get the fish part-way across Hot Lips’

32 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

John needed every bit of the Mercury 115 Four Stroke’s horsepower and a bit of assistance from the swells just to get up on the plane, eventually missing the National’s cut-off time by some 20 minutes.

While disappointed with that outcome, there can be no denying what is a great angling achievement.

The fish is now in the hands of noted big-fish taxidermist Kevin Flutey. It will eventually take pride-of-place in the clubrooms at Muriwai beach shared with the surf lifesavers. This will cost around $8000 and a Give A Little page has been set up to help cover it.

Skipper John Gilford says they appreciated the assistance they received from numerous people in dealing with the fish.

“Jed and Josh’s help was invaluable, Keiron Olson at Reel Rods went out of his way to supply a large amount of ice needed to keep the fish in good shape while it was transported to the taxidermist and the reception and hospitality we enjoyed during our stay up north from the Ahipara community was exceptional.”

“There was always plenty of friendly rivalry between us all – we couldn’t have hoped to have weighed it at a better club.”

- Grant Dixon

At the weigh station, the blue pulled the scales down to 466kg, much to the delight of the Hot Lips crew (from left) – angler Wade Wilson, leaderman Jeremy Rewi and skipper John Gilford.

33 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

CLUB PROFILE

Wellington Sports Fishing Club Wellington club has proud history 34 â—† www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

A

s a relatively new club to the NZSFC scene (six years), the Wellington Surfcasting and Angling Club (WSAC) is a well-established home for Capital City fishers as the club approaches its 60th Anniversary next year.

As a founding member and now proud patron of a club that caters for all angling interests, I am often in awe as to how far a group of basic surfcasters have made their mark in so many of the sports disciplines – some of it pioneering stuff.

When the club was formed in 1958 we were ready to settle on the name Wellington Surfcasting Club, when some wise head suggested that adding the word ‘Angling’ would be a good insurance, as the word’s connotations embraced most aspects of fishing. And how right that proved to be. That small group of surfcasters - by reason of interest, betterment and sometimes pioneering spirit - has now grown, and although the club still embraces surfcasters, landbased game fishers, and dry land-casting endeavours to an international level, members are also engaging in other aspects such as ultra-light-line expertise, trout and salt-fly fishing, and even coarse fishing to a national competitive level. As another indicator of our diversity, around the mid-1980s I did a small exercise that indicated 30 individuals from our modest group of surfcasters had already caught their first marlin – so big game fishing was always going to figure generously in our fishing pursuits. In fact, two members nearly did the unthinkable in the 1990s after hooking, but ultimately losing, a striped and a black marlin from the Karikari rocks.

While Wellington’s famous winds are well known and do inhibit the chances to go fishing, it is also a pretty good voluntary conservation tool. But this aside, we do have a world-class (albeit smaller) fishery, where snapper, trevally, kingfish and kahawai can be quite prolific at times, and our species mix is second to none. I’ve personally witnessed fifty-seven different species of fish from our harbour alone.

Joining the NZSFC was a natural progression for WSAC, providing an extra dimension for anglers to hone their skills by participating in the Council’s sport-fishing Nationals. What a great event this is. You can feel the competition, the honesty and the integrity of anglers from all over the country. It is hard to put into words, but there is definitely a certain kinship among the fishers and participating clubs, even though as individuals we may never have met before.

For WSAC’ers there are many positives in belonging to the NZSFC. Regionally we can participate (and do) in meetings through our two on-going reps in Gary Whitaker and Dave Pye. We receive firstclass administration services, formerly through Roz (what a treasure!) and now Dave Lockwood, who is always on hand for advice and guidance. But the crowning glory of our membership is being part of a body that at last has been able to find a way to provide effective and professional recreational fisher representation at the highest level. So well done Sport Fishing Council and well done LegaSea! - Jim O’Brien WSAC Patron

35 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

PRIZES:

«HEAVIEST FISH 1ST - 3RD «FIRST TAGGED FISH «LAST TAGGED FISH Entry $40 No briefing.

Prize Giving Tuesday 31st MAY All fish to be weighed through the TSFC. Species – Broadbill Swordfish ONLY For info and entry go to: Tauranga Sport Fishing Club 36 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz www.tsfc.co.nz E: office@tsfc.co.nz P: 07 578 6203

3 MAY

FIRST 1/4

11 MAY

FULL MOON

19 MAY

26 MAY

LAST 1/4

NEW MOON

TOURNAMENT PROFILE

THE 2017 TSFC BROADBILL CHALLENGE

I

t’s always a special occasion when an angler brings a swordfish to the weigh-station, and over the past three years this incidence has increased dramatically, with more teams effectively targeting swords during the daytime.

The new technique has rejuvenated the Tauranga Sport Fishing Club’s Broadbill Challenge, which used to be scheduled a week or so after the full moon in May. Back then, even with lots of boats on the water, there were very few (if any) fish caught over the years, so with patience wearing a little thin after many fruitless evenings spent drifting, the Broadbill Challenge event took a break.

The daytime technique in the Bay of Plenty had a bit of a wobbly start as we all adjusted to deploying deep baits and getting our head around what an actual ‘sword bite’ looks like. After a couple of seasons the results were telling, with many anglers experiencing bites, a fight or three, and with a bit of luck, even a sword to the boat.

With our tails up, the mood has changed - swords are no longer that mythical uncatchable beast on our back door-step.

Consequently, it didn’t take long for the jungle drums to start beating, calling for the Broadbill Challenge to be reinstated.

So, thanks to the generous sponsorship of Team Theo Harcourts and Decoro Fishing Supplies, a healthy prize table of swordfishing equipment was contributed, dates were set, and the Challenge reignited for those willing to sign up!

The month of May is now synonymous with the Broadbill Challenge once more. The event runs for over four weeks, giving teams plenty of opportunity to explore the potential that Chart 54 terrain offers. The challenge is open to any affiliated members, but all fish (at least for now) have to be weighed in at the Tauranga Sport Fishing Club. There are prizes for the three heaviest fish, and first and last tagged. It’s a simple format, yet this competition requires anglers to be at the top of their game.

- Roly Bagshaw, manager, TSFC

For more details and to enter :

www.tsfc.co.nzx

37 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Gofuel Preferred Customer Offer!

Sport Fishing members

• Mobil card can be used at participating Mobil Service Stations, Pak n Save and New World Fuel Outlets • BP or Z Cards work at participating Service Stations Nationwide • Mobil / BP cards work at Gofuel Marine sites – refer to map for locations and card use • Gofuel can issue as many cards as you would like on your account for you/your family/your business • Discounts are OFF PUMP PRICE and show on your account: – – – – – – • • • • • • •

Mobil Services Stations BP Service Stations Z Service Stations BP Truckstops Z Truckstops Marine

10c per litre 6c per litre 4.5 per litre 5c per litre 9c per litre 3c per litre

No Card Fees / No Annual Fees / No Transaction Fees Fuel available 24/7 Credit Terms – Direct Debit (refer to our terms and conditions) Invoices/Statements sent by email Discount offer includes GST Z card we offer flybuys Oils/Lubes at member prices – On request

Gofuel is powered by Petroleum Logistics

Now available at your app store 38 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz

Gofuel Auckland Office Phone 09 3770907 Email gofuel@plpl.co.nz www.gofuel.co.nz

SF/PCF/05

Gofuel Supporter Club Preferred agreement Rebate of 1c Mobil and .5c for BP & Z per litre of fuel purchased by the club and its members when using Gofuel Fuelcard’s.

The rebate will be paid to any participating Sport Fishing Club that signs up as a Gofuel Supporter Club!

To be eligible for this offer the club must: • Be a member club of the NZSFC

• Promote the Gofuel Offer on their club website –

Gofuel can provide you an embed code for your website

• Undertake at least 2 Gofuel promotions per annum –

Ie inclusion in newsletters

–

Inform/remind members of Gofuel offer on club nights

–

Display brochures at club

• Communicate with their members that if they are current Gofuel Sport Fishing card holders to advise Gofuel their preferred club by emailing gofuel@plpl.co.nz with their account name and/or account number.

• Rebates will be paid to the individual club once the rebate amount reaches $100 or more for your club.

Any assistance required please contact: Jo Warren Phone: 021506075 Or Email: gofuel@plpl.co.nz

39 ◆ www.nzsportfishing.co.nz