Calico Bass on Verge of Collapse?

According to a study by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, the populations of barred sand bass and calico bass have plummeted 90 percent since 1980. The two main culprits were identified as warmer ocean temperatures and overfishing.

"California may be the only place in the world that allows fishing on the spawning grounds," said Chris Lowe of Long Beach State University. "It's a sure recipe for disaster, as we have seen this type of behavior lead to the collapse of some fisheries in the past."

Don Ashley of Pierpoint Landing in Long Beach said, "We haven't had a good sand bass season for at least five years. I still think that the Humboldt squid have had a major impact on our local fisheries, too."

Ten years ago, it was common for sand bass to spawn in massive numbers on beaches stretching from the Mexican border to beyond the Channel Islands. Ensenada and Tijuana, San Clemente, Oceanside, Newport Beach, the Huntington Flats, the Santa Monica Bay and the Ventura Flats are just some of the areas where sand bass would show every spring to spawn. Thousands upon thousands could be caught daily by anglers during the best of times.

Now, the seasons are much shorter, and sometimes the aforementioned areas get just a trickle of the prized bass. Some anglers claim the ebb and flow of fish stocks are part of nature—a cyclical shift that can be explained by changing water temperatures and other factors.

Others disagree.

"We need to be proactive in this matter," said Tom Raftican, president of the Long Beach-based Sportfishing Conservancy. Raftican suggests reducing limits and tightening size limitations so smaller and larger fish would have to be released.

"Recreational anglers should be leading the fight for conservation and not letting other groups drag us into it," he said. "This is Biology 101: You don't fish a spawning biomass unless you want disastrous consequences. Conservation is in our best interest as fishermen."

Quick bites

• San Diego-based boats continue to fish 150 miles southwest of the city for 3- to 8-pound yellowtail on floating kelp paddies. The bite for these small jacks has been excellent on most trips, with a few dorado and tuna to add spice to the trip. The yellowtail can be taken on sardines and lures. Blue and white jigs have been hot. There has also been some yellowtail taken much closer to San Diego at the Coronado Islands. A mere 28 miles to an area called the Rockpile has produced some yellowtail in the 8- to 20-pound class.

• Humboldt squid continued to entertain anglers up and down the Southern California coast. These voracious mollusks have been here one day and gone the next, only to reappear later. The squid have been mostly in the 3- to 5-pound class and are great eating if consumed fresh. Nevertheless, many anglers worry about the detrimental effect the squid have on our local fisheries. They can grow to 6 feet in length and weigh 100 pounds in a year's time, and they consume everything in their path.

• Market squid are still available in the Santa Monica Bay just off Hermosa Beach. There has been some fair calico and sand bass fishing near Palos Verdes. Anglers are catching a few white sea bass too.

• Rockfishing has been the rule for most other areas. As water temperatures cool, surface fish tend not to bite as well, so many fishermen turn to rockfish. The bite has been good just about everywhere and, of course, nothing makes a better fish taco than fresh rockfish.