OK...so I am surf fishing yesterday and I take a break from the 20 knot easterly beating I was taking and have a seat in the truck for a few minutes. The cell phone rings and I look at the number....Burlington VT ? I don't know anyone there. I let it ring. It rings again so I figure they have a bad number and I answer it to inform them. Nope, it is a contractor for the HMS fisheries group who has inrolled me in a pilot tagging program for blue fin tuna. First I think...cool, I do quite a bit of C&R for tuna so I figure I will help them out. No, they are "not interested in the fish I release" They want me to "tag the fish I keep" and report those. Huh? I say I don't get what the point is... Why would I put a tag on a captured fish that I plan to take home and consume, one that will not be sold or set free in the ocean? She says, They want to know how many I catch and what the size is. But I typically report the fish taken and I tend to only take a few each season for recreational use. Most are released. They are actually sending me tags! I still don't understand why I would put a tag on a dead fish that not going anyplace except the grill?
Well you have to send in the stub after you tag the fish. Is this a joke? No, you will receive your tags in late June. Is this mandatory?, not yet, she said it is a pilot program. If you have any questions please contact us...I will, goodbye.
I think this idea was probably dreamed up of by the same guy who is dishing out hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars to buy back rec fishing licenses. WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?