Scranton Times-Tribune

04/09/2006

Trout season tips to live by Trout are safe, healthy meal Rules and restrictions for all anglers

BY ALEX ZIDOCK-SPECIAL TO THE SUNDAY TIMES

If you are going to be fishing from a boat, remember that you probably will run into a Waterways Conservation Officer at the boat launch area. You will not be able to launch your boat if you do not meet the minimum requirements for boating safety.

You must have a Coast Guard approved wearable personal flotation device (PFD) for each person on board on all types of watercraft on all waters. Those torn, worn out cushions won’t do. PFDs that are torn or shabby, have broken or unusable straps, or that don’t fit are not legal.

In addition to the life jackets for everyone on board all boats 16-feet and longer must carry a Type 4 throwable device (cushion with straps). Canoes and kayaks are exempt from carrying the throwable device.

Life jackets must be readily accessible and the throwable device must be ìmmediately available..

Children 12 years of age and younger must wear an approved Type 1, 2, 3, or 5 PFD while on commonwealth waters in any boat 20 feet or less in length and in all canoes and kayaks. It must be a child size and fit properly.

If you are going to use a motorboat (including boats powered by electric motors), it must be registered with the state and display the sticker. All motorboats using any Fish & Boat Commission lake, access area or launch ramp must be registered.

If you have an unregistered, unpowered boat like a canoe, kayak or small rowboat and you want to launch it at a Game Commission lake or state park access area, you must display the commission’s use permit or state parks launching and mooring decal.

A new law this year says that a person who was born on or after Jan. 1, 1982 may not operate a powerboat with more than a 25 horsepower motor unless he or she has obtained and has in their possession a Boating Safety Education Certificate.

Transporting your catch

Most wait until they get home or to their fishing cabin to clean their fish. You should know that if you field dress your fish, you must leave the heads and tails on until you get to the place of consumption so Wildlife Conservation Officers (WCO) can make sure the fish you caught are of legal minimum size.

Also, if you catch fish, like perch or sunfish, that have no minimum size and you want to clean the fish and also to fillet them in the field, you must leave the skin on one side so, if checked, the WCO can tell what species the fish are.

The trout you’ll catch

The majority of trout stocked in local waters are brook, brown and rainbow trout. Mixed in are some trophy golden rainbow trout — sometimes mistaken as palomino trout.

Several years ago, the commission crossed a golden rainbow trout with a normal rainbow trout and came up with a light-yellow fish they called the palomino trout. They stocked that fish for several years until, through several generations of selective breeding, they came up with the brighter, deeper orange-colored trout that they now stock called the golden rainbow trout. The Pennsylvania record for the golden rainbow trout is heavier than 11 pounds.

Brook trout, the state fish and one of two native Pennsylvania species, have red spots with bluish halos on their sides and a worm-like pattern on their backs. Also look for white edges on the front of their fins. The state record for the brook trout is seven pounds.

The other Pennsylvania native is the lake trout. You’ll know the brown trout because it has dark spots all over its sides and back. Some reddish or orange spots are also on it’s side, but it has few or no spots on its tail. The brown, also known as the German brown trout, is a native of Eurasia. The larger ones are more difficult to catch than other trout because they feed at night. The state record is almost 18 pounds.

The pink lateral lines on the rainbow trout give its identity away. It has dark spots on its body and on its tail. The rainbow trout is a native of the northwest and is closely related to the Pacific salmons and the cutthroat trout of the West. The state record is more than 19 pounds.

This year in lakes and streams the PFBC will stock 799,290 brook trout; 1,556,910 brown trout and 1,792,900 rainbow trout. They’ll stock 40,000 trophy fish that average 14-inches and weigh an average of 1.5 pounds. About 15,000 trout will be 18 to 20 inches and weigh between two and four pounds.

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission says trout caught in Pennsylvania are safe to handle and eat.

However, the commission offers its advice that you eat no more than one meal (one-half pound) per week of any sport fish caught in the state’s waterways, including trout. Many other states are now offering this blanket consumption advisory to recreational fishermen.

The problem is the PCBs or polychlorinated biphenyls and mercury, contaminants that are found in most fish. But don’t shy away from eating fish because of those findings. Everyone is already exposed to some PCBs and mercury since these contaminants are found everywhere, including in drinking water and the air.

The most common sources of these pollutants include fish, eggs, red meat, poultry, milk and cheese.

PCBs and methyl mercury build up or accumulate over time in fish and meat and so the concern is that if we already have a level of PCBs and mercury in our system, eating fish with even low concentrations could increase our chances of being affected by the chemicals.

The real problem with the PCBs and mercury rests with women of childbearing age and with young children. Nearly all fish and shellfish contain traces of methyl mercury — a compound known to be harmful in high doses to the nervous systems of the unborn and children.

On the other hand, fish is loaded with vitamin D, protein and omega-3 fatty acids that the doctors say are good for everyone, especially women trying to conceive, pregnant women, nursing mothers and young, developing children. The idea is to eat fish that have lower amounts of contaminants.

Larger fish, older fish and predator fish have more concentrations of the contaminants. For example, canned white or albacore tuna comes from larger fish and has a higher concentration of mercury than the canned light variety, which is processed from smaller fish with relatively less mercury contamination.

If you are concerned with mercury pollution, you should completely avoid eating shark, swordfish, king mackerel, tilefish, tuna steak, orange roughy, Spanish mackerel, marlin, and grouper because they contain the highest levels of mercury.

Wild pacific salmon, summer flounder, canned mackerel, sardines, haddock, farm raised catfish and farm raised (hatchery) trout are among some species suggested to have lower concentrations of methyl mercury and PCBs. Almost all of the fishermen on Saturday will be catching hatchery-raised trout.

While mercury is a natural occurring element it is also dumped into the environment by burning fossil fuels and garbage. Coal burning in power plants accounts for 40 tons of mercury released in our atmosphere as an element in smoke every year.

Mercury builds up in the muscle tissue of fish and animals, and cannot be removed by trimming or by cooking.

PCBs are a group of chemicals consisting of 209 individual compounds. PCBs, banned by the EPA in 1979, were used as an insulator in transformers and capacitors. Unlike mercury, PCBs build up in the skin of fish, fins and tail and in the fatty areas such as the lateral line and the belly area.

Cooking or soaking the fish will not remove all of the contaminants, but cleaning the fish properly and cooking it on a rack allows the fat to drip away, thereby getting rid of a lot of the PCBs. You can broil, grill or bake the trimmed skinless fish, just don’t let it cook in its own juices. Also, don’t use the drippings that contain the contaminants for sauces or gravy.


Nearly 900,000 fishing licenses are sold in Pennsylvania every year and the majority of anglers also purchase a trout/salmon stamp.

Come rain or shine, most will be out Saturday when the regular trout season gets under way statewide at 8 a.m. The regular season runs until Sept. 4.

If you plan to fish for trout and you are 16 years old or older, you must posses a current Pennsylvania fishing license and a trout/salmon stamp. The license must be signed in ink and the stamp must also be signed across the face and must be affixed to its proper place on the license.

If you are going to catch baitfish (all forms of minnows, chubs) or fishbait (crayfish, crabs, mussels, nymphs, pupae, etc.), you also need a fishing license. If you are casting and/or retrieving whether by rod, reel and line or by handline for yourself or for another, you are required to have a license, unless you are specifically exempted by law (certain military or disabled situations) or if you are helping a child.

Adults who want to help a youngster fish can do so without purchasing a fishing license, as long as the child remains within an arm’s reach of the assisting adult and the child is actively involved in the fishing activity.

The fishing license must be on display at all times and must be attached to an outer garment. You must also carry proper identification, other than the license, while fishing.

A resident fishing license costs $22. A resident trout/salmon stamp costs $9. If you are 65 and older, you can get a resident license for $11, or you can purchase a one-time senior resident lifetime license for $51. If you are in the National Guard or Armed Forces Reserve, you can get a resident license for $2. All fees include a $1 agents fee.

There are several other license categories for non-residents including 1-day tourist, 3-day tourist and 7-day tourist.

If you fish in Lake Erie, you will need to buy a special Lake Erie Permit for $9, or a Lake Erie Permit Combination Trout Stamp for $15.

If you are considering buying a fishing license for another person, you may do so by going to any of the 1,300 fishing license issuing agents and provide the proper personal information; or by going on-line to the Fish and Boat Commission web site (www.fish.state.pa.us) and The Outdoor Shop, where you can pay by credit card and print a license on from your computer.

Fishermen are allowed to keep five trout of combined species per day that are seven inches in length or longer taken from lakes or streams.

Anglers must keep their own fish in an individual container or on an individual stringer. More than one day’s limit of fish may not be kept in a container or on a stringer, even though different individuals caught the fish.

An angler may fish using two lines (rods and reels), whether he or she is fishing for game fish or baitfish or both. No more than two hooks may be attached to one line (one hook having two or three points is considered one hook) and all rods and lines must be under the immediate control of the person using them.

To become familiar with the many fishing laws anglers should refer to and read is the Pennsylvania Fishing Summary of Fishing Regulations and Laws that is provided free with the purchase or a fishing license.

Contact the writer: azidock@timesshamrock.com