Kerry Hansen wrote:
Same in Washington. Now you might get to net a couple time a year. We also have the dang Sea Lions follow the schools up stream gourging on them like they do Salmon and Steelhead at all the barriers that stop the fish continuing on up stream to spawn. they get the big brood Sturgeon too. But some say they are so CUTE and won't allow anything done until forced to because the fish species becomes endangered then everyone pays. Sorry for the Rant.
We have the same "furbag" problem here in S. F. Offshore their numbers are pretty consistent with the past. They become a problem when salmon fishing as they will just swim along waiting for you to hook a salmon so they can steal it. Where their numbers have increased is inside the bay and into the delta. During the summer when fishing the bay with live bait they steal the bait off of your hooks. We would hook one or two a week but go through lots more bait. Where I have really seen their numbers increase is in the rivers of the delta. The delta is where I feel they do the most damage. They pick off returning salmon as they try to move up the rivers. When stripers spawn in the spring they are right there picking off lots of fish. As the salmon have dwindled over the last 20 years the furbags now catch catfish too. The big problem is man has screwed up the water system so bad that these opportunist seals now can chow down in any number of man made hot spots. We some how have to balance the needs of seals and the needs of fish. Doesn't seem that hard to do. But when no one is working on it, it sure won't happen.