Tog question...

[RIROCKHOUND]

Jim;

More than once, especially in cold cold conditions (read Dec.) we'd get back to the dock, start filleting fish, and when you get to one that is flapping, with cold cramped hands, we didn't feel like cutting it. Put it in the crab car after sitting in the cooler for 6hours, Come back the next day and it is recovered and ready to go.
Amazing critters.

Other than deep hooked (solved by using large hooks) they have almost zero release mortality!

If the average person know how old they were, they would treat them with more respect, less waste etc.
they grow S-L-O-W. we were involved in a study w/ a biologist. He estimated a 13 fish we had a few years ago was 25-30years old (older than me at the time!)

FWIW; I heard my RISAA record (14+) fell yesterday to a 16.3lb moose tog. Damn.
quite a fish. we had a good day, but no size.

[Nebe]

As all of you know I am an expert on blackfish.

But seriously, what I do know about them is that they go into a dormant stage in the winter where it appears they are hibernating. Scuba divers have seen backfish wedged in rocks with layers of sediment on them, which means they had not moved in days if not weeks.

I figure that when they are out of the water, a survival mechanism kicks in and they go to their 'happy place' that they go to in the winter.. maybe its a self induced coma or something..

All I know for sure is they taste good