Lafourche Parish Sheriff Craig Webre walking tall
May 21, 2015Breaking: Platform fire in Gulf
May 22, 2015
Fisheries and seafood topics provide a real “gumbo” of interesting facts, myths, and misconceptions.
Add to this sauce some authentic Louisiana Cajun flavor and what you’ve got is a well-seasoned helping of “Fish & Seafood Trivia”.
Through the years, I’ve managed to compile quite a few bits and pieces of interesting fisheries facts… trivia if you will (yes, I’m an info pack rat too). Here are some of the more interesting items I’ve come across. See how many you can answer correctly.
Q. What is a “bouillabaisse”?
A. It is a highly seasoned (pepper and spices) stew of red snapper, redfish, or other seafood and various kinds of vegetables. In France, sturgeon and perch are used to prepare the dish. The name of this fish stew originates from Modern Provencal “bouliabaisso” which literally means boils and settles. “Bouli” is to boil and “abaisso” means to settle or subside.
Q. What fish is known as “Poisson Arme” (armed fish) by the Cajuns and what is the significance of this name?
A. This is an appropriate name given to the garfish that inhabit Louisiana waters. The gar has long narrow jaws full of sharp teeth and its body is armored by a covering of hard protective scales. The Choctaw Indians knew the gar as “strong fish” … “nani kallo” or “nani kamussa.” They made use of the gar’s sharp teeth to scratch or bleed themselves and their pointed scales to arm their arrows. Today gar meat is highly prized by central and north Louisiana residents, and the scales are fashioned by innovative Native American and other bayou dwellers into jewelry, decorative plaques, napkin rings, and other knickknacks.
Q. What common Louisiana fish’s name translates to “milk bag”?
A. Because of its slivery olive appearance and beautiful white flesh, French-speaking Cajuns call the White Crappie (Proxomis annularis) “sac-a-lait”, meaning “bag of milk” or “milk bag”.
Q. What is “Cajun Caviar” and from what fish does it come from?
A. “Cajun Caviar”, as it is known, is caviar made from the roe (eggs) of the bowfin (Ami calva). Cajuns know this fish as “choupique”. Choupique is a derivative of the Choctaw Indians’ “shupik”, which aptly means “mud fish.”
an unlimited class rod and fish from a good boat with a good rod holder. Use the power of the motor to pull the monster away from the entangling structure.”
Sometimes dubbed “reef donkeys,” amberjack prefer to stay in 70 to 400 feet of water around rock piles, shipwrecks, coral reefs or at the bottom or an oil platform. They look for hard cover where they can ambush prey. Voracious predators, amberjack feed heavily upon squid, crustaceans, reef fish or anything else they can gulp. Although smaller AJs may congregate in schools, bigger jacks rule their deep, dark domain alone-and that’s how most other reef species like it! Typically, when big amberjack cruise through an area, everything else moves out.
To find big amberjacks, look for good structure. The oldest petroleum platforms in the Gulf of Mexico make great places to start. Years of growth on steel platform legs builds artificial reefs from the surface to the bottom. In addition, anglers typically find more fish-holding debris around older platforms.
Search all around structure to find fish. Sometimes, amberjack hold on one side of a platform or reef, but not on the other side depending upon where currents hit the structure and other conditions. Sometimes, one spot might only hold small fish, but lunkers gather only a few feet away. Also search the bottom with electronics for additional objects away from the main platform. Sometimes, anglers find bigger fish 40 to 50 yards away from the rigs, reefs or wrecks.
To catch big amberjack, most anglers simply drop a hook baited with squid, fish chunks or Spanish sardines to the bottom on extremely heavy tackle. To make baits more tempting, some anglers “butterfly” a baitfish. Fillet both sides from the tail forward about halfway to the head, but leave the pieces attached to the body. When currents hit the bait, the two slabs undulate, making the bait appear alive.
Hardtail jacks, mullets, croakers and other live baitfish also tempt big AJs. Anglers can often catch fresh bait around structures by working a sabiki rig tipped with tiny flies on light spinning tackle. For monster AJs, use large baits. A 100-pound bruiser can engulf a hefty meal.
Anglers can also use artificial tackle. Heavy lead jigs mimic baitfish as they flutter down to the bottom. With jigs, anglers don’t need to worry about tiny nibblers stealing chunks as the lure descends. After hitting bottom, jig the lure up and down a few times. If nothing bites, keep moving it toward the surface in 20-foot intervals to find where the fish want to suspend and work that depth.
Big amberjack don’t always hang near the bottom. Sometimes, they rise in the water column or may even approach the surface to investigate activity. Chumming can entice amberjack near the top. Chop bait or trash fish into bite-sized morsels and toss them into the water. Then, rig a drift line with live bait. Don’t use any weight so the fish can swim freely. Besides amberjack, a drift line might also attract grouper, big red snapper, cobia, mackerel or wahoo-perhaps even tuna or sailfish.
Some anglers troll live bait or diving plugs around oil platforms and over reefs. Circle the platform several times and use various lures of diverse colors that dive to different depths to find out what works that day. Around reefs and natural bottom contours, run the baits just over the top of the structure. A hungry amberjack may rise off the bottom to grab a meal.
Louisiana law allows each angler to keep one greater amberjack per day, each with a fork length at least 30 inches long. The Louisiana season closes from June 1 to July 31 this year. E3
Editor’s Note:John N Felsher grew up hunting and fishing in south Louisiana. To contact him or to invite him on an adventure, visit his website at www.JohnNFelsher.com.
Rob Dupont and Capt. Tommy Pellegrin of Custom Charters show off an amberjack caught by Jen Carroll while fishing In the Gulf of Mexico south of Cocodrle. The fish are currently hot In local waters.
