WSB Heads

[Dan]

Dropped my head off today at the Carlsbad WSB hatchery (Leon Raymond Hubbard, Jr. Hatchery (760) 434-9501) Got a great tour from Mike Burke. Highlight for me were the 50 or so spawners in the 30-35 lb class as well as the huge tanks of size selected jr WSB. What a great cause....if you live in SD county, it's worth it to bring your heads in just to have a look around.

[madscientist]

Can they still use the heads if you've split them in half to get the stones?

[SteveHman]

Brad,

Found this at charkbait.com. What happened to the post at BD? It just disappeared. I'm not a conspiracy theorist but it seems odd (does DFG have black helos?). Any way, this answers the question about stones and tags. But my question now is, what If I cut the cheeks out?

Steve

Seabass are tagged by inserting a very small stainless steel wire in the cheek of the fish. This wire is approximately 1/8” long and the diameter of a cat whisker. It is found by using a very specialized hand-held metal detecting wand, similar to those used at airports. Any just-legal seabass should be considered as a tagged fish. A few fish were marked externally as well, but that practice has been discontinued. The Hubbs Hatchery is requesting any angler catching a seabass to remove the head and send it to the hatchery to be checked for a tag. Please attach a tag to the head indicating when and where the fish was caught along with its length and weight. The information is invaluable for research. Several freezers have been designated at various landings to receive the heads for later transfer to the hatchery. A list of all locations accepting seabass heads for tag checks will soon be posted on the hatchery website at www.hswri.org. For those of you who remove the “stones” from the ear canals within the heads of the fish, this will not affect the checking of the tags. “Stones” are two small calcium growths found inside the heads of seabass and are collected by some as trophies. They can be made into jewelry as well as just being objects of curiosity and conversation.

[madscientist]

Cool. Got the heads in the freezer for now, but want to hack out the stones before I hand em in. Gonna get some jewelry made for the wife.

[Mr_PeaCH]

On a thread last year about taking heads to the research center I thought someone said that the guys there asked him if he wanted to stones and fished them out for him after checking for the tag; so I supposed you could just take it there first and ask them for the stones back if that's true. (My mind plays tricks on me though so you may want to call first... wish I had this dilemna personally; c'mon Sunday, c'mon!)

:wink:

[slotmachine]

The stones are kinda deep in there oun cavity. Follow the inner gill line up to top of head and start sawing or hack with a meat clever choping a wedge. About 2" deep finger a cavity with membrain and tooth feeling stones. Distorted interpidations will follow.

[Ryan The Sealion]

I want to check that place out... I just need to catch a damn c-bass 1st :x