15 Tight Lines Bulletin - Spring 2016 Longtime WPBFC member Gary York has once again proved his prowess offshore by being the top individual tagger in the Dolphin ResearchProgram. TheCharleston,SouthCarolina,basedprogram recruits recreational anglers and charter captains from throughout the Southeastern U.S. and Caribbean to tag Mahi Mahi. The data captured by tag returns helps scientists better understand the age & growth history and migratory patterns of these commercially and recreationally important fish. York tagged and released 152 Mahi in 2014. He upped his game in 2015 by tagging 193 dolphin, which was the most dolphin tagged by an individual angler. Gary catches, tags and releases all of the fish himself. “I’ve gotten pretty good at handling and tagging the small fish. They can be somewhat hard to control when they are green,” commented York who also caught prize winning dolphin last year in the Big Dog & Fat Cat Tournament and the Downtown Showdown. “I have really learned a lotfrommydolphintagginglogbook. Typically, my dolphin tagging season begins in early May. That’s when I start seeing a lot of the smaller fish begin showing up. In my opinion any- thingabove20poundsfromthesewaters is a trophy fish these days.” Congratula- tions Gary! The WPBFC wishes to thank other club members like Bob Frevert, Ryan McMahon and Bouncer Smith for their continued support and com- mitment to this program. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) marine field lab in Tequesta has started a cobia study and is looking for interested WPBFC members to get involved. The multi-state project between South Carolina, Georgia and Florida is designed to determine the stock boundary between Atlantic and Gulf managed stocks of Cobia through the use of acoustic telemetry and population ge- netics.  Recent re- search determined that these stocks exhibit different life history characteris- tics, such as growth rates and maxi- mum age.  Tagging data suggested that mixingbetweenthe two stocks was oc- curring along the east coast of Flor- ida and research recommendations specifically called for increased tagging efforts (acoustic in particular) to improve data on movement and popula- tiondynamics.TheFloridaAcousticCooperativeTelemetry(FACT) Array is a network of submerged acoustic receivers deployed along the Florida east coast while the Atlantic Cooperative Telemetry (ACT) Array includes coastal arrays in the South Atlantic bight off the coast of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia. This existing infrastructure offers a unique collaborative research opportunity to answer a specific management question. The FWC’s research effort will use charter boat captains and recreational fish- ermen to assist with cobia capture and acoustic tag implantation (50 per state) and genetic sample collection. This is where the West Palm Beach Fishing Club and its members can provide research- ers with assistance in the form of fin clips from Cobia, from either harvested fish or sublegal sized fish that are released. A limited supply of cobia fin clip kits are available at the Fishing Club, (561) 832-6780. WPBFC members who wish to get more involved in the study may have the op- portunity to capture cobia to be fitted with an acoustic transmitter and monitor its track through communica- tions with biologists. If you have a knack for catching cobia and would like to take FWC biologists out to do some tagging contact FWC Assistant Research Scien- tist Jim Whittington at the Tequesta Field Laboratory, (561) 882-5975. The WPBFC is proud to continue it’s long tradition of aiding marine scientists through coopera- tive tagging efforts. Cobia Anglers Wanted The Dolphinfish Research Program (DRP) is always looking for more taggers. “The West Palm Beach Fishing Club has been one of the DRP’s most committed support- ers. Club members are active in tagging fish and collecting important biological information on the docks during tournaments, as well as providing financial support,” said Don Hammond, DRP Director. To learn more about this cooperative tagging program visit www. dolphintagging.com. Help Tag Dolphin For Veteran dolphin angler Gary York with his prize winning fish at the 2015 Downtown Showdown tournament. York Repeats as Top Tagger Jim Whittington of the FWC's Tequesta Field Lab releases a cobia that was tagged off Stuart in March. FWC biologists Beau Yeiser & JJ Brodbeck hold a cobia they tagged & released off Stuart. Research