Greg's Baitshack
01-18-2008, 12:47 PM
Saltwater Fishing Tournament
968 S. Oriole Drive
Virginia Beach, VA 23451
(757) 491-5160
vswft@mrc.virginia.gov
For Immediate Release
January 16, 2008
Anglers Top the 6000 mark for Citations in 2007
Anglers registered 6,164 trophy-size fish for Citation awards during the 50th Annual Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament, which ran from January 1st through December 31st. This was a substantial increase from the 2006 level of 5,308 and was the sixth highest total in Tournament history. Five of the top six years in Tournament history occurred from 2001-2007.
Striped bass accounted for the largest number of Citations among the 35 eligible species. A total of 1400 striped bass awards were issued in 2007 and represented 23% of all Citations for the year. The total was easily the highest in the program’s history, eclipsing the 1130 Citations registered in 2006 for striped bass. Just two months of 2007 produced the lion’s share of the striped bass Citations. Striper success was very good during January 2007, when 458 Citations, or 41% of all Citation striped bass, were registered. The January fishery was fueled by unseasonably mild winter and availability of large fish near the mouth of the Bay and within a short run from Rudee Inlet. As good as the January fishery was, December proved even more lucrative for trophy-sized striped bass, as the best concentrations of the largest fish were located conveniently in Chesapeake Bay off Cape Charles and around the High Level Bridge of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. December saw 736 Citation striped bass, 53% of the year’s total.
Anglers registered thirty-six striped bass weighing 55 pounds or more and ten of these weighed over 60 pounds! And the parade of 50-pound plus striped bass to the Citation Weigh Stations set a new standard in 2007, as 121 striped bass, weighing 50 pounds or more, were registered. This was easily the highest in Tournament history. The previous best occurred in 2006 with 74 fish weighing at least 50 pounds.
Red drum and summer flounder each accounted for 11% of the year’s total number of Citations. The 656 Citation red drum was the fifth highest number of Citations issued for the species in the program’s history and five of the six highest Citation numbers of red drum have occurred since 1998. The 667 Citations issued for summer flounder in 2007 represented a substantial decrease from the 2006 level of 860 but was well above the Tournament’s long-term average for summer flounder.
Black drum accounted for 10% of the year’s Citation total, as anglers registered 633 black drum for Citation recognition. Ninety-seven percent of the black drum registered were for releases. The 633 Citations was the second highest recorded since 1975.
Rounding out the top five in number of awards, anglers registered a record number of Citation speckled trout with 476 Citations. The previous record high was recorded in 1999. Trophy speckled trout catches were barely average through October but fish topping 5 pounds became abundant in November and December.
King mackerel deserves honorable mention for the year. Large fish greater than 20 pounds have never been abundant to Virginia anglers since the Tournament began in 1958 but the 56 Citation king mackerel registered in 2007 was second only to the 64 mackerel registered in 1980. Additionally, the existing State record was smashed by an eye-brow raising 63-pounder!
As the tide rose for several species in 2007, others saw their numbers ebb. Citations for sheepshead fell for the second straight year since 2006, when the Citation minimums were increased from 9 pounds to 10 pounds and from 22 inches to 24 inches for releases. Spot Citation numbers took an inexplicable nose-dive, as only 14 Citation fish were registered for the year. Only two gray trout Citations were recorded, as these once abundant fish continue their recent, but steep decline and their wake puzzles both scientists and fishermen alike.
Four existing State records were set or tied in 2007. Perhaps the most astounding was for one of the most abundant fish available to Virginia anglers, as an 8-pound, 11-ounce croaker was landed near New Point Light in mid-August by Norman Jenkins. Susan Smith set the new mark for king mackerel with a 63-pound, 1-ouncer in mid-July while trolling off Rudee Inlet. Mark Ottarson tied the existing State record spadefish of 14 pounds at Wolftrap Light in early June. Frederick “Bo” Haycox established a new State record for bluefin tuna by landing a 573-pounder in June after a nearly four-hour battle off the Virginia coast.
Three new species were added to the list for State record consideration in November of 2006 with minimum weight criteria and all three were set and broken in the course of 2007. Doug Deese set the initial State record mark for blueline tilefish at 18 pounds, 10 ounces in early March but his record was broken the last day of March by Rick Wineman with a tilefish of 19 pounds and 14 ounces. Jeffery Dail established the initial State record for golden tilefish with a 44-pounder in late April. His record lasted until late September, when Charles Maresh decked a 53-1/2-pound golden tilefish. Roger Burnley established the initial State record snowy grouper with a 49-pound, 9-ounce fish in late April. The record fish lasted barely six weeks until Robert Manus nailed a 65-1/2 pounder. That fish was also submitted and accepted by the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) as an All-Tackle World Record. It took just five months before this All-Tackle World Record fish was ousted by the current State record fish, as Chris Boyce landed a 66-pound grouper. Boyce’s catch has been submitted to the IGFA for All-Tackle record consideration but has yet to be approved. Interestingly, all three record grouper were caught in the vicinity of the Norfolk Canyon aboard the Healthy Grin, skippered by Ken Neill. And ironically, Manus was aboard all three trips and helped Boyce wrestle the current record fish aboard the boat.
The Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament is operated by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission with funding provided by the Virginia Saltwater Recreational Fishing License. Awards are made to anglers catching fish meeting established weight criteria in 25 species while an additional 10 species meeting established length criteria are only available for release awards for a total of 35 species eligible for Citation recognition.
Citation awards are full color certificates delivered at the recipient’s choice as a plaque or in a plastic album page. Special awards are presented to anglers meeting the eligibility requirements of the Master Angler and Expert Angler programs. The Program also administers the very popular Virginia Junior Angler award program, where any angler 15 years of age and younger can earn a special Virginia Junior Angler Award certificate by catching and releasing 6 different species of saltwater fish in Virginia during a calendar year.
For more information, contact Lewis Gillingham, Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament, 968 S. Oriole Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23451, (757) 491-5160, mrcswt@visi.net.
968 S. Oriole Drive
Virginia Beach, VA 23451
(757) 491-5160
vswft@mrc.virginia.gov
For Immediate Release
January 16, 2008
Anglers Top the 6000 mark for Citations in 2007
Anglers registered 6,164 trophy-size fish for Citation awards during the 50th Annual Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament, which ran from January 1st through December 31st. This was a substantial increase from the 2006 level of 5,308 and was the sixth highest total in Tournament history. Five of the top six years in Tournament history occurred from 2001-2007.
Striped bass accounted for the largest number of Citations among the 35 eligible species. A total of 1400 striped bass awards were issued in 2007 and represented 23% of all Citations for the year. The total was easily the highest in the program’s history, eclipsing the 1130 Citations registered in 2006 for striped bass. Just two months of 2007 produced the lion’s share of the striped bass Citations. Striper success was very good during January 2007, when 458 Citations, or 41% of all Citation striped bass, were registered. The January fishery was fueled by unseasonably mild winter and availability of large fish near the mouth of the Bay and within a short run from Rudee Inlet. As good as the January fishery was, December proved even more lucrative for trophy-sized striped bass, as the best concentrations of the largest fish were located conveniently in Chesapeake Bay off Cape Charles and around the High Level Bridge of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. December saw 736 Citation striped bass, 53% of the year’s total.
Anglers registered thirty-six striped bass weighing 55 pounds or more and ten of these weighed over 60 pounds! And the parade of 50-pound plus striped bass to the Citation Weigh Stations set a new standard in 2007, as 121 striped bass, weighing 50 pounds or more, were registered. This was easily the highest in Tournament history. The previous best occurred in 2006 with 74 fish weighing at least 50 pounds.
Red drum and summer flounder each accounted for 11% of the year’s total number of Citations. The 656 Citation red drum was the fifth highest number of Citations issued for the species in the program’s history and five of the six highest Citation numbers of red drum have occurred since 1998. The 667 Citations issued for summer flounder in 2007 represented a substantial decrease from the 2006 level of 860 but was well above the Tournament’s long-term average for summer flounder.
Black drum accounted for 10% of the year’s Citation total, as anglers registered 633 black drum for Citation recognition. Ninety-seven percent of the black drum registered were for releases. The 633 Citations was the second highest recorded since 1975.
Rounding out the top five in number of awards, anglers registered a record number of Citation speckled trout with 476 Citations. The previous record high was recorded in 1999. Trophy speckled trout catches were barely average through October but fish topping 5 pounds became abundant in November and December.
King mackerel deserves honorable mention for the year. Large fish greater than 20 pounds have never been abundant to Virginia anglers since the Tournament began in 1958 but the 56 Citation king mackerel registered in 2007 was second only to the 64 mackerel registered in 1980. Additionally, the existing State record was smashed by an eye-brow raising 63-pounder!
As the tide rose for several species in 2007, others saw their numbers ebb. Citations for sheepshead fell for the second straight year since 2006, when the Citation minimums were increased from 9 pounds to 10 pounds and from 22 inches to 24 inches for releases. Spot Citation numbers took an inexplicable nose-dive, as only 14 Citation fish were registered for the year. Only two gray trout Citations were recorded, as these once abundant fish continue their recent, but steep decline and their wake puzzles both scientists and fishermen alike.
Four existing State records were set or tied in 2007. Perhaps the most astounding was for one of the most abundant fish available to Virginia anglers, as an 8-pound, 11-ounce croaker was landed near New Point Light in mid-August by Norman Jenkins. Susan Smith set the new mark for king mackerel with a 63-pound, 1-ouncer in mid-July while trolling off Rudee Inlet. Mark Ottarson tied the existing State record spadefish of 14 pounds at Wolftrap Light in early June. Frederick “Bo” Haycox established a new State record for bluefin tuna by landing a 573-pounder in June after a nearly four-hour battle off the Virginia coast.
Three new species were added to the list for State record consideration in November of 2006 with minimum weight criteria and all three were set and broken in the course of 2007. Doug Deese set the initial State record mark for blueline tilefish at 18 pounds, 10 ounces in early March but his record was broken the last day of March by Rick Wineman with a tilefish of 19 pounds and 14 ounces. Jeffery Dail established the initial State record for golden tilefish with a 44-pounder in late April. His record lasted until late September, when Charles Maresh decked a 53-1/2-pound golden tilefish. Roger Burnley established the initial State record snowy grouper with a 49-pound, 9-ounce fish in late April. The record fish lasted barely six weeks until Robert Manus nailed a 65-1/2 pounder. That fish was also submitted and accepted by the International Game Fish Association (IGFA) as an All-Tackle World Record. It took just five months before this All-Tackle World Record fish was ousted by the current State record fish, as Chris Boyce landed a 66-pound grouper. Boyce’s catch has been submitted to the IGFA for All-Tackle record consideration but has yet to be approved. Interestingly, all three record grouper were caught in the vicinity of the Norfolk Canyon aboard the Healthy Grin, skippered by Ken Neill. And ironically, Manus was aboard all three trips and helped Boyce wrestle the current record fish aboard the boat.
The Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament is operated by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission with funding provided by the Virginia Saltwater Recreational Fishing License. Awards are made to anglers catching fish meeting established weight criteria in 25 species while an additional 10 species meeting established length criteria are only available for release awards for a total of 35 species eligible for Citation recognition.
Citation awards are full color certificates delivered at the recipient’s choice as a plaque or in a plastic album page. Special awards are presented to anglers meeting the eligibility requirements of the Master Angler and Expert Angler programs. The Program also administers the very popular Virginia Junior Angler award program, where any angler 15 years of age and younger can earn a special Virginia Junior Angler Award certificate by catching and releasing 6 different species of saltwater fish in Virginia during a calendar year.
For more information, contact Lewis Gillingham, Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament, 968 S. Oriole Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23451, (757) 491-5160, mrcswt@visi.net.