Southern California marine sport fishing from privately owned boats: catch and effort for April - June 1982

Abstract

The catch landed and effort expended by private-boat sport fishermen in southern California were studied between April and June 1982, in order to determine the impact of this segment of the sport fishery on local marine resources. Fishermen returning from fishing trips were interviewed at launch ramps, hoists, and boat-rental facilities. This report contains quantitative data and statistical estimates of total effort, total catch, catch of preferred species, and length frequencies for those species whose catches are regulated by minimum size limits. An estimated 213,000 organisms were landed by 102,000 anglers and 3,300 divers. The major components of the catch were white croaker, Genyonemus lineatus (56,000 landed); and Pacific mackerel, Scomber japonicus (43,000 landed). Together these two species made up almost one half of the estimated southern California sport catch. Anglers' compliance with size limit regulations was variable. Approximately 91% of all basses, Paralabrax spp., measured were legal size. Only 10% of the white seabass, Stractoscion nobilis, were larger than the minimum size limit imposed on March 1, 1982. Divers' compliance with size limit regulations on abalone, averaged 94%. (33pp.)