NATURAL HISTORY OF REDFISH, ETC., OF TEXAS 193 



The spotted trout is the most valuable marine food fish of Texas. Its popularity, 

 both as a game and a market species, has lead to many controversies as to the best 

 method for protecting the fish against overfishing. 



The commercial catch is made principally with hook and line in and about the 

 passes and channels (which are closed to net fishing) and with drag seines in the more 

 remote open bays and lagoons. A small amount of gill-net and trammel-net fishing 

 is done during the winter, principally along the northern Texas coast, while a few 

 fish are taken at times with light surf seines along the beaches in the Gulf of Mexico. 

 The drag seines, because of their superior efficiency, account for the greater part of 

 the commercial catch. 



Besides by the closing of extensive areas to net fishing, the spotted trout are 

 protected by a minimum legal size limit of 12 inches (30.5 centimeters). This limit, 

 in general, allows the species to reach maturity unmolested, as well as to attain an 

 adequate market length. 



While the imposition of a minimum legal size limit appears to be justified, both 

 from an economic and a biologic standpoint, there is some question as to the actual 

 value to be derived from closing extensive marine areas to net fishermen while per- 

 mitting commercial hook-and-line men to operate anywhere at all times of the year. 

 The closure of most of the inland bays (excepting Oso and Nueces) was prompted by 

 a desire to allow the spotted trout to spawn unmolested. Line fishermen assert 

 that when drag seines are allowed to operate in the bays they destroy young trout 

 as well as other food fishes. No concrete evidence in support of this supposition 

 exists, however, since few impartial observers have witnessed extensive seining 

 operations. The usual method of fishing with drag seines within the Texas bays and 

 lagoons allows the entire net to be in the water until all fish are removed. The 

 gradual hauling of the seine permits most of the illegal fish to escape through the 

 meshes, while any illegal-sized fish that may have gilled are removed and thrown 

 back into the water. Extensive fishing operations conducted by the writer in favor- 

 able spotted-trout localities failed to reveal the destruction of any appreciable 

 quantity of young fish (the net used was a standard Texas drag seine, such as is 

 employed in the commercial fisheries). While some young fish (not food species in 

 particular) may be dragged along in the detached bottom vegetation, there is little 

 reason for supposing that these fish die when they come into contact with small 

 quantities of this vegetation. By law, as well as from the needs of the fishery, 

 seines full of fish can not be dragged upon dry land. Since such a practice does not 

 exist, to the writer's knowledge, no great destruction of young, unmarketable trout 

 can be possible. 



The small, natural passes should be closed to all fishing operations, whether sport 

 or commercial, for extended movements of trout as well as other food fish necessitate 

 the use of these passes. Commercial and sport hook-and-line fishermen congregate 

 in large numbers about the shallower passes, such as Corpus Christi, to take toll of 

 the ripening or migrating trout on their way to or from the bays and lagoons. Such a 

 condition is not favorable to the fish and consequently is detrimental to the fisheries 

 as a whole. 



Higgins and Lord (192G, p. 180) pointed out that no evidence could be found that 

 would indicate that the stock of spotted trout along the Texas coast is undergoing 



