Fishing Articles
Flossing Fish?
It isn't dental hygiene for fish that's for sure.
It's a widespread problem that all honest anglers should know.
Timothy Kusherets
Forget that this salmon is so dark that you'd be better
off eating a boot. Snaggers don't care. They'll keep anything they can.
Note the hook is on the underbelly of the fish. The direction
of the hook had to be perfectly dragged across the body of this fish
to snag it this way. A fish hooked in this manner is said to be “flossed”
and the angler who employs this technisque is labled a poacher.
Any angler who fishes long enough is going to snag a fish. It’s
an inevitable fact of fishing life. There are some fishermen who have
perfected the craft of snagging under the guise of fishing with no intention
of garnering stimulated strikes from fish. This kind of dubious fisherman
is called a “flosser”.
Did you know that how a fish pulls on the end of the line communicates
if it’s hooked in the mouth or on the body? Fish hooked anywhere
on the body that isn’t in the mouth is considered to be a “foul”
fish. There are many locations where it’s illegal to keep fish
that have been landed that were hooked on the dorsal area, in the fins,
or tail. There are steps to take to ensure that your catch is a “fair”,
one that has bitten the hook, hooked fish by understanding the way it
fights. There are some locations where not only is it legal to snag
fish but anglers prefer to catch them foul-hooked since fish tend to
put up better fights.
Fair fish are those that actually bite the hook on their own accord
and are easily kept under control much the same way a dog is controlled
on a leash. As a fair fish makes the primary run after the hit it does
so with its mouth shut and will swim as hard as it can, usually with
current so they can cover more ground in a shorter time. Because they’re
hooked in the mouth they experience resistance that prevents them from
going very far fast and as a consequence turn around to bolt in the
opposite direction. Once a fish has turned around he will seek out the
deepest and fastest water and will try to hold there, but again, because
it’s hooked in the mouth they are easily coaxed away from them.
Fair fish can be absolutely huge in comparison to the size test of fishing
line. Six pound test can resist the pressure of a sixty-pound salmon
in raging fast water. Most fish will let you know they’re hooked
fairly with head shakes and jumping out of the water. These fish, known
as “head shakers” will put up fierce battles and can be
landed within a few minutes. On rare occasions, larger species of fish
can actually feel like they’re hooked in the back or on the tail
and still be hooked in the mouth, but those fish are truly rare and
are not likely to happen so it’s important to know these differences.
You don’t want to break off a giant fish because you think it
might be snagged.
Snagged, or foul, fish are very hard to control. They can bolt too and
fro seemingly at whims of the fish. Most foul-hooked fish have to be
chased in order to have even the slightest modicum of control. There
are two kinds of fish that bolt downriver on the line of a seasoned
angler: one that has been foul hooked and one that is a giant amongst
the species.
There are a few signs to watch for that indicates foul fish is on the
end of the line. The tip of the rod will bounce rapidly up and down
for the duration of the run; this is a strong indicator that it has
been hooked in the tail, which is commonly referred to as “hooked
in the motor”.
A fish that runs deep and holds in one spot that seemingly cannot be
moved is one that has been hooked in the dorsal fin. Small species of
fish can put of fierce battles that are hooked in the back. As the fighting
fish mills around it will seem to gain weight in the line as it heads
downriver.
There are some, not many, anglers who actually snag fish on purpose
with a technique called “flossing”. Fishermen with exceptionally
long leaders cast out with heavy weights, usually more than two ounces,
and cast to drift holds they think fish are crowded into. As the mainline
suddenly stops the angler feels the rubbing vibration of the fish’s
body and begins to pull the rod upstream at a perpendicular angle from
the surface. This allows the fisherman to drag the mainline above the
fish so the leader can dangle on the outside of the mouth. When the
fisherman feels the change in drag he makes a “loping” hook
set more like a lasso then hard strike; hook setting like this foul
hooks the fish on the outside of the mouth or gill-plate. Nick Amato,
Editor of Salmon Trout Steelheader magazine and I were talking about
it one day at a sportsman’s show. We both agreed that the kind
of fisherman that “flosses” can be spotted by the typical
length of the leader far exceeding that of six feet. The International
Game and Fish Association recognizes all world class catches on the
basis that the leader “must” be six feet or shorter, which
means that flossing to snag a fish will not work if the angler is looking
for a world record fish.
Using braided line of eighty-pound test and a 4/0
hook this snagger yards a fish in backwards and beaches it. In almost
all cases, a fish that is pulled in backwards has been snagged anywhere
on the body other than the mouth. This particular area has in place
angling regulations forbidding large hooks, heavy weights, and braided-fishing
line; it is the arsenal of typical snagging known as flossing. There
is laundry list of problems here: though this person knew he was being
photographed he continued to fight and land the salmon; the large hook
was sunk so deeply that he could not be removed; the condition of this
fish was so poor that even properly cooked the nutritional value would
be non-existent (the above photograph of fish with hook in the under-belly);
all of these negatives don’t even broach the premise of illegal
fishing, which is what he was doing.
It is not essential to confront flossing anglers; however,
there are some things that can be done to discourage future offenses
without placing human lives at risk.
Click for Poaching
Hotlines:
Flossing is illegal. If you see flossing anglers
take down all necessary information and report the incident.
You can remain anonymous.
Physical Details:
Report the number of offenders, Height, Weight, Age, Ethnicity, Gender,
Clothing, Gear, Species of fish, Vehicle, Boat, and Time-of-day.
The best weapon for reporting poachers is taking a
picture of them in the act. Once there is a logged-entry of poaching
game wardens and fisheries officers can confiscate offenders tackle,
suspend their fishing privileges, levy a heavy fine, and if necessary,
incarcerate them.
In almost every case, once flossers find out that responsible anglers
will report them all poaching in the area stops.
The International
Game & Fish Association (I.G.F.A.) does not recogniz(s)e
potential record size catches using flossing technique (poaching). They
have instituted methods of determining how fish are caught, landed,
and recorded using the strictest guidelines.
© Timothy Kusherets 2008/09 Copyrighted
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