Volunteer angler Alisha Gard, right, holds a black rockfish in a measuring stand while Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist Wolfe Wagman prepares to inject a Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag under its skin. After the fish is tagged, Gard will pass it in front of the yellow scanner loop to make sure the tag is working before releasing the fish. (Photo by Larry Coonrod)

No one had to twist the arms of the 10 anglers aboard the charter boat Misty to take a free eight-hour fishing trip with the chance to catch an unlimited number of fish. In fact, half of them were making $11 an hour to fish.

Every year since 2002, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Marine Resources Program in Newport asks volunteers to help catch between 3,000 and 4,000 black rockfish for tagging.

ODFW contracts with a local charter boat captain for 20 trips starting in March and running through late May or early June. The Misty left port on June 3 for the 19th outing this year. The 194 black rockfish tagged that day brought the total number of marked fish to about 3,850.

“Some of our anglers have been out 19 times in a row,” said Taylor Frierson, ODFW experimental biology aide. “On a good day, each angler can catch up to 25 fish.”

Anglers had their best day this year on May 8, tagging 457 black rockfish.

The tagging procedure is quick and efficient. Anglers first check to see if the fish already has a tag by passing it in front of a scanner. They then place it belly up in a stand where the length and sex is recorded before a biologist uses a syringe to inject a Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag. Then, it’s another quick pass in front of the scanner to ensure the tag is working before the fish is dropped overboard into a small open-bottom pen. Most of the fish quickly recover and dive for the bottom.

The whole procedure takes less than a minute. A local food bank receives the few fish that don’t recover (on the June 3 trip, three of the 197 black rockfish caught didn’t survive). Biologists chose black rockfish for the study because they make up the bulk of the recreational catch.

Each PIT tag is about the size of a grain of rice and carries a 15-digit serial number linked to a database showing the date, time, GPS location and water depth where the fish was tagged. ODFW personnel scan the catch of charter boats and private fishing vessels returning to port.

Biologists use a formula that incorporates the number of tagged fish showing up in the catch to determine the rockfish population. Data from the tagging program showed a larger rockfish population than scientists thought and was one factor in the decision to raise the daily limit from six to seven fish this year.

Rockfish spend their life in a very small area, making them ideal candidates for this type of population study. Fish that migrate or have large home ranges make it difficult to know the number of tagged individuals still in the study area.

“We find these guys are very loyal to their reefs,” said Wolfe Wagman, the ODFW biologist coordinating the fieldwork.

A day of free charter boat fishing is a good enticement, but making $11 an hour just makes the deal that much sweeter. Wagman said catching and tagging 4,000 fish without the paid anglers, who for the most part are retired ODFW employees and very experienced fisherman, would be difficult.

“There’s been days we’re out and it’s rough seas, and the volunteers have problems,” Wagman said. “These guys are rock steady.”

The paid anglers account for about 85 percent of the tagged fish and lose very little gear, Wagman said. During the June 3 trip, that ratio proved accurate, although the News-Times reporter on the trip did land the largest fish of the day.

Even if the volunteers don’t catch as many fish as the pros, they still have a good time.

Although Gallen Gard and his daughter, Alisha, had never been bottom fishing, they quickly got the hang of it, with Alisha hooking two fish at once a couple of times.

“It’s something I’ve never done before. It’s more fun than I thought it would be,” said Alisha, 21, who was in Newport from North Carolina visiting her parents. “It felt like we were doing something productive.”

Anglers interested in volunteering for next year’s fish tagging trips should contact ODFW’s Newport office at 541-867-4741.



Larry Coonrod can be reached at 265-8571 ext 211 or larry@newportnewstimes.com

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