Ask the Folks Who Really Know What’s Being Caught Off the Malibu Coast

• Fish Survey Gets a Few Tall Tales Mixed in with Realistic Picture of Average Catches

BY SUZANNE GULDIMANN

It’s called the California Recreational Fisheries Survey, CRFS for short, and it’s one of the tools used by the California Department of Fish and Game and the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission to manage marine resources.
Instituted in 2004, CRFS collects data on California’s marine recreational fisheries, and estimates the catch and effort of anglers fishing for marine finfish.
That can be a daunting task. According to last year’s CRFS results, the geographic region from the Los Angeles County line to the Mexican border includes nearly two thirds of the states recreational fishing locations.
These include: 1,144,114 man made structures like piers and breakwaters, 611,388 beaches and banks, 201,947 commercial passenger fishing vessels and 215,826 private and rental boats. The survey is currently focusing on approximately 400 locations, according to the DFG website.
“We have 30 to 40 samplers out in the field [statewide] every day,” DFG senior biologist Connie Ryan told the Malibu Surfside News. “They interview anglers, check the size and type of fish caught, they also do telephone surveys, but it’s a lot of field work.”
In Malibu, CRFS field researchers are a frequent sight at the Malibu Pier, where they gather information with the help of the pier anglers and the passengers on the sportfishing half-day boat.
“The anglers are very cooperative, on the whole,” Ryan said. “The survey is voluntary, but about 99 pecent who are approached will respond. They’re very helpful.”
CRFS samplers interview anglers who have completed fishing trips on piers, jetties, beaches, public launch ramps, and commercial passenger fishing vessels, asking them questions about their fishing activities, examine their catch to determine the number and kinds of fish kept or discarded. They also weigh and measure the catch.
Field researchers are sometimes treated to fabulous fish stories, including Captain Ahab-like battles with six-foot sharks, or vast bat rays.
However, the Malibu Pier’s weekly online fish count gives a good idea of the types of species CRFS researchers most frequently catch in local waters. The most recent reports include sheepshead, calico bass, sand dabs, mackerel, bonito, white seabass, sculpin, and a variety of rockfish.
“There are hundreds of finfish, especially in Southern California,” Ryan said, explaining that the anglers’ input is vital to the program. “The goal of the CRFS is to provide the marine recreational fisheries data needed to manage California’s marine resources in a sustainable manner.”