Dorset spearfishing 2014

[Wood3154]

Xtar D06 without a doubt.
Not sure if talking about night diving is going to upset anyone.

So let's say..the best torch fir looking into caves during the day without a boat and for only taking up to 5 bass that are not to big or to small is the xtar D06

Good stuff. Now to find some caves.....

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[Pointandhope]

Depressing that no one has posted for over a month, damn weather. If high pressure resumes is it still worthwhile looking for a bass upto christmas?

 

[foxfish]

I notice you said .. a bass ... http://www.independent.co.uk/enviro...a-day-to-combat-worrying-decline-9832949.html

 

[Pointandhope]

Let's hope that it was the newspaper that confused allis shad for bass and not the European Commission!

 

[artiz]

Might be a good idea to sign this petition... could also be counter-productive too tho... https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/save-our-sea-bass. Maybe read this first and decide for yourselves... http://www.ukbass.com/bass-press-release-sea-bass-dont-let-the-eu-off-the-hook/

Even better still would be our own organised, non-competitive, national representation?

As regards posting excessive catch reports... please be aware that everything that is posted up here and youtube etc is 'used' by marine and conservation research scientists, EU legislators, government fisheries departments, conservation charities and many, many others... and always has been...

 

[kkdavids]

good point, the big concern they have are the catches which are not recorded (comment made by the fisheries)

 

[Pinniped72]

Lets be honest, look at the commercial fishing fleets world wide, it seems obvious to me that there is no way that we can continue to hoover up the millions of tons of fish each year that we do and expect stocks to hold. Its the consumer that demands fish all year round even if they have never seen the sea before, its just not sustainable. With regards the UK and fishing, I have seen bags of mackerel binned, dog fish and whiting just left on the beach, such things are criminal in my opinion, not every fisherman has the same ethics and such acts do the reputation of recreational fishing long lasting and devastating damage. If by being restricted to one bass per day the species survive, that's fine with me however until the population as a whole stop thinking that they have the God given right to eat any species of fish at any time of year without having to catch it, dispatch it and clean it, the seas are going to be real empty, real quick. 7 billion people, with more of those billions becoming consumerist each year, I worry for our seas.

 

[marco78]

Any idea how is the vis around portland?? Anybody still diving??

 

[artiz]

12lb 3oz bass
And others around 5lb
Please do let me know if these pics offend anyone.

Personal offence has little to do with the underlying issues of posting large/numerous catches or night diving catches on DB... it's far more about Spearos understanding the morphology and habits of the sea life which they hunt... and conveying that sustainable/environmentally friendly knowledge on a publicly accessible forum... our continuing knowledge/care... together with future public/legislative perceptions are now key to the future of spearfishing in the UK.
The European Seabass is sexually dimorphic... which for our purposes means... the bigger the Bass the more likely it is to be a female. As we all know... females=spawn=fish stocks and consistently targeting/taking big 20-30 year old spawners out of a precarious Seabass reproduction cycle is therefore irrepairably damaging, counter-productive and extremely stupid. As spearos we need to show everyone that we are indeed responsible, thoughtful and sustainably respect our quarry as well as the ecosystem/environments in which they live... if we don't we're idiots... and 1 Bass per day legislation would be completely justified... by anyone's standards.

If you hunt in late winter/spring (Bass spawning period) avoid nursery areas and in particular large Bass with convex or concave stomach's... they are either about to spawn or they have recently spawned... easier still just consistently stick to average sized 3-5lb schoaling fish all year round... males very rarely get past the 5-6lb mark... and are more than a meal for the average 2.2 family. Based on 40 years of spearfishing... Bass 'queens' tend to have a small male entourage but rarely travel in groups larger than 5 or 6... resist the urge to take the 'big one' and pick off one of her more probable male companions.

Why would anyone bring further scrutiny to an already under-represented and beleaguered pastime which is currently heading for a European wide outright ban by 2020... c'mon blokes wise up... go hug an 'average' Bass!

 

[spearo Clark]

Very good advice, however not to sure if you are exact on all you have proclaimed! Have you ever taken large bass?

 

[artiz]

Very good advice, however not to sure if you are exact on all you have proclaimed! Have you ever taken large bass?

Of course I have... but I don't remember 'proclaiming' that I've never been an idiot... seeing all the roe when I gutted them helped me form my own personal/current hunting practices... does that exclude me from giving others relevent information regarding Seabass morphology, sustainability/selectivity and subsequent public/legislative perceptions of contemporary spearfishing then?

P.S. I might even still have a video of me gutting a female Bass I caught a few years back... I could always post it up here on DB/Youtube... I'm 'simply the best' at gutting fish so why not?

 

[spearo Clark]

Lol!

 

[artiz]

On a more serious note there's an organisation called the European Angler's Alliance who will be representing recreational fishing interests regarding the '1 Bass per day' EU legislation discussions later this month. I've attached a file with their response and solutions to this EU fisheries proposal. It's worth a quick flick through if your interested. The EAA is exactly the kind of organisation the British Spearfishing Association should be joining instead of running those silly comps!
After doing a bit of further reading about this proposal I'm pretty confident that it will not come into force... this time... but what do I know!
Nice to see 'likes' from other spearos on DB who agree.... thanks for the 'virtual' support blokes! If we take care of spearfishing... it'll care of us... and our apprentices... my boy is 17 and a total natural...

 

[speardaver]

Artiz,

i really try to bite my tongue and not rise to write a reply, but have you thought of discussing this situation with the newly elected BSA committe, rather than keep on about the 'silly little competitions' which actually have so little impact on any fish stocks in the UK that it seems crazy to keep raising the same point over and over again on each and every thread on this forum??????
You may well find them a lot more supportive than you think should you give them the chance???

 

[artiz]

Artiz,

i really try to bite my tongue and not rise to write a reply, but have you thought of discussing this situation with the newly elected BSA committe, rather than keep on about the 'silly little competitions' which actually have so little impact on any fish stocks in the UK that it seems crazy to keep raising the same point over and over again on each and every thread on this forum??????
You may well find them a lot more supportive than you think should you give them the chance???

speardaver

I did that 2 years ago by biting my tongue and joining the BSA so that I could warn you about this probable EU legislation... if you can't beat em... join em. You have a few powerful self-interested individuals who run the BSA like it's their own competition 'fiefdom'. Anything which may effect their control over the association is basically 'run out of town' (including your own Chairman)... I tried my best submitting research documents, information, solutions and hours & hours of work to be told that one of your management commitee members 'disagreed with everything I said'... worse still, he deliberately revealed my identity here on DB which lost me my place in a University Marine research dept... so no discussion, no support from other BSA members and not a 'chance' in sight... its therefore down to you and your fellow members to do something about your own damaging, extremely short-sighted and nepotic association. My new job is to keep reminding you of that until you become a national association which represents everyone's spearfishing interests in the UK!

P.S. You could make a start by joining the European Angling Alliance ASAP please... they're the only European level association/alliance which represents and defends the rights of recreational fishing in the UK and Europe's seas!

 

[speerolee]

Anyone speared any fish?

 

[Mr. X]

Please post responsibly on this *public* forum. If you want to debate ethics please create a dedicated discussion thread elsewhere (so folk can ignore it if they wish). This repeated childish taunting & name-calling reflects poorly on the members concerned and makes us wonder about their ability to defend their positions. Grow up.

This thread is for Dorset spearfishing specific posts. I've deleted 2 posts and issued warnings.

 

[speerolee]

So has anyone been out and actually speared any fish lately? It can't just be me?

There's plenty out there guys, and some good sized bass over 7lb.

 

[Wood3154]

Might head out on Saturday but still limited to Bournemouth at the moment. Hoping for some half decent vis

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[speerolee]

Personal offence has little to do with the underlying issues of posting large/numerous catches or night diving catches on DB... it's far more about Spearos understanding the morphology and habits of the sea life which they hunt... and conveying that sustainable/environmentally friendly knowledge on a publicly accessible forum... our continuing knowledge/care... together with future public/legislative perceptions are now key to the future of spearfishing in the UK.
The European Seabass is sexually dimorphic... which for our purposes means... the bigger the Bass the more likely it is to be a female. As we all know... females=spawn=fish stocks and consistently targeting/taking big 20-30 year old spawners out of a precarious Seabass reproduction cycle is therefore irrepairably damaging, counter-productive and extremely stupid. As spearos we need to show everyone that we are indeed responsible, thoughtful and sustainably respect our quarry as well as the ecosystem/environments in which they live... if we don't we're idiots... and 1 Bass per day legislation would be completely justified... by anyone's standards.

If you hunt in late winter/spring (Bass spawning period) avoid nursery areas and in particular large Bass with convex or concave stomach's... they are either about to spawn or they have recently spawned... easier still just consistently stick to average sized 3-5lb schoaling fish all year round... males very rarely get past the 5-6lb mark... and are more than a meal for the average 2.2 family. Based on 40 years of spearfishing... Bass 'queens' tend to have a small male entourage but rarely travel in groups larger than 5 or 6... resist the urge to take the 'big one' and pick off one of her more probable male companions.

Why would anyone bring further scrutiny to an already under-represented and beleaguered pastime which is currently heading for a European wide outright ban by 2020... c'mon blokes wise up... go hug an 'average' Bass!

Ok,so here's my equally rubbish self opinionated response....
I spearfish because I like to shoot fish with a speargun and put food on the table. I like a challenge and love keeping fit! For me I love the dangers of diving alone and at night and ultimately it is about shooting the 'biggest' mother of all bass! In my opinion that bass would have spawned on many occasions and would be near the end of its life and thus the most sustainable target.
But to be honest if rather just go out and do what I enjoy rather than sit at home moaning about conservation issues, but I live in Somerset and I've drank 6 pints of cheddar valley cider .

Let's just all go out and spear some fish instead of whining about our own much loved past time!

I'm all for conservation....that's why I spearfish.... Come on guys.... Promote our cause.