went seining

[ladyfsu]

OK I hijacked another thread but I'll start it over here. I just want to show pics of what we caught. We were seining at the beach in Indian Rocks Beach. I went to school to put them in their new homes and guess what...THE LOCKS HAVE BEEN CHANGED!!!! not just mine but all classes hope everything survives til Monday. Anyways, I didn't think I'd catch anything there really...I'm used to seining in grass flats. I'm googling these pics until my battery is charged.

First thing is a baby lookdown fish. When they get bigger, I see they sell for over $300!! Here's what he looks like...he's SOOO cute. We used to catch the big ones all the time on the other coast.

Another (thank you MrFerit) is a lizard fish. We caught many of these but I only kept 1 that was about 3-4". Now that I've read up on him, he will be in a "special" tank...voracious guy. My camera battery died at end of vacation so I'll post what I find on google or until my battery gets charged. I really don't like this guy at all...scary! But it's all about the learning at school I suppose.

I'll keep looking on google to see if I can identify these other things. I want to know what these angelfish guys are.

 

[Gimplar]

very nice, i used to catch 11inch lizard fish back in the day. nice "lookdown fish" never seen one of those guys, they're neat!

 

[ladyfsu]

ty on the lookdown...the adults are very silver and different than this baby.

OK battery is up enough to take a few pics...hope this works.

Until school opens on Monday, I put 4 larger fish in my son's 30 gallon tank. We usually put things from the ocean in there, but it mostly houses a bully rainbow wrasse and Monty (the mantis). The little whiting isn't pictured here, but here are the other 3.

Lizardfish

Jack and Pompano I think. I'm a little worried about these guys. I know they eat most anything based on the junk I've caught them on fishing poles; my concern is that they need more room/current.

OK here are two bowls with 4 fish (the poor lil guys). Notice the penny next to the bowls for size comparison.

These are the 2 angel-type fish. They are not juvenile triple tails I don't think based on what I surfed on the net. Also, the fins look beat up but they aren't. Just some of the tail is translucent. Please let me know if you know what they are.

And lastly, my puffers.
My favorite

...and the other cutie but I couldn't ever get him in focus

Also, lots of tiny whiting, pompano, jack, pipefish, hermits, snails. I have also found out that our mantis LOVES coquinas and something in my other tank is eating them as well. I think snails are actually eating them. The 50 or so we have won't last long, lol.

 

[mrferrit]

awsome pics looks like you had a great day out there hope everything survives till monday . tell ya something about those lizard fish they are some mean little guys i had one hit a bait the size of him trowling at like 8 MPH and he was only like 5 inches long. nasty lil guys .
awsome puffer though is it a puffer or a box fish or cow fish ?
could the angels possibly be a spade fish?

 

[ladyfsu]

it looks like a puffer...both of them puffed up. Pretty sure not a cow but still so tiny.


spadefish...I knew there was another shaped fella out there I was forgetting. I'm not sure. Let's see if ol' Meleev can identify THIS! hehe!

 

[stevemc]

The angelfish looking ones are spadefish. The jack is a leatherjacket-they sting, and if the pompano has black fins as it looks in photo its a permit. If yellow a pompano. The lookdown will be a good eater, I have had them and they are very good fish for an aquarium. Definately a lizard fish. Baby spiny boxfish and a southern puffer. Good luck. I helped several teachers when I was in elementary school, junior high and high school set up marine aquariums and set them up with fish. They have had baby bonnethead sharks, electric stargazers, queen angels, morays, atlantic longnosed butterflies, mantis shrimp and many other unusual fish over the years that I caught for them. I take it you are an instructor for FSU. See ya, Steve.

 

[ladyfsu]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7749983#post7749983 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by stevemc
I take it you are an instructor for FSU.

:rollface: HAHAHHAHA no no no ... I teach high school marine bio. I've taught bio for a few years, but this past year was my first year teaching marine. I've learned more in the last 5 months than in the last 5 years. I hope I'm teaching marine for the next 25 years.

I can't believe you identified all that...THX!!

The jack stings? Never heard of that.

Pretty sure the other one is a pompano but I'm not sure. Actually it's fin is orange.

I totally think your call on the puffer and box is correct.

Looking forward to reading up on all that info you just gave me. Thank you very much!

edit: looking stuff up. A boxfish is the same as a cow? Mine doesn't have any little "horns" but it is SOOO tiny I'm not sure. Someone else said that too. I don't want to handle him anymore for a while, but I'll be checking him out. ty

 

[ladyfsu]

lol, right again...it is a permit according to Mote marine pics. You rock!

 

[stevemc]

Yes, the leatherjacket has 2 stingers next to its vent that sting like a bee! Dont get stung! I took Marine biology from Dr Carl Keeler, years ago, New college in Sarasota, actually where the planetarium is now. Snooty the manatee was in a room with a concrete tank, with a window view. I am sure hes been out of teaching for a while. I helped him with macro algaes and some fish and invert IDs too. I was in 6th grade but was in a gifted class and the teachers at my school thought I should take a college class in MB. I already knew him before I took the class. I was telling him stuff he never knew about. He told me the same thing. I had already read every marine biology book in all the college campus libraries and anything fish, invert or algae related that had been put out, right down to the intracellular level. Even African fish books, old books that had been out of print for years. And had worked as a marine tropical fish collector, shipping them back from Hawaii to Florida. And catching them here too. I realized after high school that most marine biologists didnt make much-back then anyway. Oh well-If the fins are orange its a common pompano. The permit and pompano look identical except for the slightly different forehead shape and of course the black fins/yellow-orange fins thing. Steve.

 

[stevemc]

If you're still up, a spiny boxfish is a puffer or porcipine fish with semi erect spines -Chylomycterus schoepfi. I had one for years in a tank and it was about 4 inches long when we seined it at a field trip that my daughters class went on, of course I brought nets and stuff, and we caught all kinds of critters. We had him for maybe 7 years and let him go, as he got quite large about 8 inches or so, and a hog.

 

[stevemc]

opps, Thats probably wrong I think its Chylomycterus antillarum.

 

[h2joe]

hey i live in Largo right down be IRB and was wondering what beach access number you caught the lookdown, pompano, and puffers at as i would love to go seining for them sometime since they are such cool fish. very nice pics btw and i hope they live well and eat for you.

Mark

 

[ladyfsu]

We were staying at a place called "The Reef Club." The address is 1000 Gulf Blvd and there is a public beach entrance just on the south side of it.

g/l and let me know if you catch anything.

 

[GROSSR]

You did all this without a saltwater fishing license?

rich

 

[stevemc]

You need a saltwater fishing lic. Get a brochure to show what the laws are too. They have an area that shows what are known as "Ornamentals"-trpoical fish and inverts". Good luck, Steve.

 

[ladyfsu]

You'll need to see what you need with the license if you go by yourself. I'm not sure.

I have an educator's collector's license. For the most part, I can keep most anything, anything size, any time. Bag limit and size restrictions are different for me, as well as seasons. I can also keep some things that others can't ever. I need to make sure I re-read it all. I'm allowed to have up to 100 people with me. I had to take a special course. I'm a good one to have around

It is all "supposed" to go to the classroom. Everything I catch ends up there. You always have to worry about various illnesses/parasites if you take it from the wild. I am not sure, but I don't think anyone cares if you take 1 or 2 of something that you know is not endangered. But coming to the beach to clean up on sand dollars or threatened juvenile fish, or keeping undersized lobster or lobstering wrong time of year, fishing for certain types of fish during baby time...those things are more serious IMO.

g/l and HAVE FUN Head south for 5 miles to get away from the crowds if you want.

 

[GROSSR]

Thanks for the info, I am sure some folks see $$$. I am looking for something that I can take care of in my own reef. 1 or 2 of something, that is all. A story to tell how I got this in the Clearwater area, that all.

I don't mind getting a license for collecting with restrictions.
I don't want to deal with a 200.00 fine to collect a 20.00 fish.

rich

 

[Agu]

Here are the collecting rules,

Recreational Harvesting

 

[ladyfsu]

Thx Agu, I was curious about that too.

 

[myakkareef]

Very cool finds Laine...You would like Stevemc tanks. They are very local setups. I know he does alot of diving collecting..Hope everything made it to the classrooms after you got the right keys.