Logic vs Instinct
RG Schmidt is the former Tight Lines fishing columnist for our local paper, the Citrus County Chronicle. He was instrumental in helping get the Nature Coast Lady Anglers fishing club off the ground in 2013 and has been one of our strongest supporters since we began. Even though he was very busy with his weekly column, he always made himself available to any of us who's needed guidance or have had 'silly' questions. He is our official mentor, in a way, and we continue to be grateful for his willingness to share his knowledge.
Now - allow me to step up on my soapbox for a moment. I was surprised one Thursday morning, several months ago, to access my on-line subscription to The Citrus Chronicle in order to read RG's Tight Lines column for the week before heading out to work, only to find the space had been given to a local guide. As I read the words in print I expected to learn that RG was on vacation or some other temporary hiatus that necessitated a short-term replacement. Instead I read a vague fishing report that sounded more like a column sized advertisement for his guide service. I contacted RG for an explanation and I was shocked to hear his news. Those who make the decisions for the Chronicle content felt they could cut costs and save a buck by cutting RG out of the picture and replacing his long standing and informative column with some free guide advertising and a sentence or two disguised as a "report". The loyal readers of RG's column aren't stupid. It didn't take us long to figure out what was going on and we revolted. I personally cancelled my subscription and I know many followed suite. I know this site doesn't get a great deal of exposure, but for those who are reading it now - you need to know why his column was replaced. So....there you have it - my personal opinion - and I will now step down from my soapbox!
After all of this - RG still possesses his desire to teach anyone willing to learn. He agreed to be our guest speaker for the June topic of Setting the Reel Drag and Boating a Fish...
He gave us a brief and humorous self-introduction that started with his upbringing. We enjoyed listening to the story he told us about being raised in Tennessee by his aunt and uncle and how they managed to keep an eye on him when they went fishing together. Seems they would tie one end of a light-weight rope to a nearby tree and the other end would be tied to him (sort of a make-shift leash, if you will) giving him just enough slack to reach the water's edge...cane pole in hand. Not sure if a parent would get away with that in this day and age, but it served its purpose back then. He recalled spending his childhood fishing and its been a passion of his ever since.
He's been writing about the outdoors in general (recreation, fishing, hunting, environment, ecology etc.) for the past 35 years. He also taught an Ecology course at Indian River Community College in St. Lucie County back when it was a two-year community college. It has since turned into a four-year university.
At one point in his life, he was writing three columns per week for the same newspaper. One column focusing on the outdoors, a second more politically focused column, and a third on Ecology where he attempted to educate the public on a frequently misused term called "the chain of life". He wanted people to understand that the term is really not a accurate analogy for what it's supposed to represent. All that our ecology encompasses would be best described in terms of a 'web'...not a 'chain'.
Now - allow me to step up on my soapbox for a moment. I was surprised one Thursday morning, several months ago, to access my on-line subscription to The Citrus Chronicle in order to read RG's Tight Lines column for the week before heading out to work, only to find the space had been given to a local guide. As I read the words in print I expected to learn that RG was on vacation or some other temporary hiatus that necessitated a short-term replacement. Instead I read a vague fishing report that sounded more like a column sized advertisement for his guide service. I contacted RG for an explanation and I was shocked to hear his news. Those who make the decisions for the Chronicle content felt they could cut costs and save a buck by cutting RG out of the picture and replacing his long standing and informative column with some free guide advertising and a sentence or two disguised as a "report". The loyal readers of RG's column aren't stupid. It didn't take us long to figure out what was going on and we revolted. I personally cancelled my subscription and I know many followed suite. I know this site doesn't get a great deal of exposure, but for those who are reading it now - you need to know why his column was replaced. So....there you have it - my personal opinion - and I will now step down from my soapbox!
After all of this - RG still possesses his desire to teach anyone willing to learn. He agreed to be our guest speaker for the June topic of Setting the Reel Drag and Boating a Fish...
He gave us a brief and humorous self-introduction that started with his upbringing. We enjoyed listening to the story he told us about being raised in Tennessee by his aunt and uncle and how they managed to keep an eye on him when they went fishing together. Seems they would tie one end of a light-weight rope to a nearby tree and the other end would be tied to him (sort of a make-shift leash, if you will) giving him just enough slack to reach the water's edge...cane pole in hand. Not sure if a parent would get away with that in this day and age, but it served its purpose back then. He recalled spending his childhood fishing and its been a passion of his ever since.
He's been writing about the outdoors in general (recreation, fishing, hunting, environment, ecology etc.) for the past 35 years. He also taught an Ecology course at Indian River Community College in St. Lucie County back when it was a two-year community college. It has since turned into a four-year university.
At one point in his life, he was writing three columns per week for the same newspaper. One column focusing on the outdoors, a second more politically focused column, and a third on Ecology where he attempted to educate the public on a frequently misused term called "the chain of life". He wanted people to understand that the term is really not a accurate analogy for what it's supposed to represent. All that our ecology encompasses would be best described in terms of a 'web'...not a 'chain'.
In 1995 he wrote a book, Good Luck and Tight Lines, on inshore Florida fishing, which is his specialty and the following year, 1996, that book was voted one of the three best outdoor related books of the year. He is currently working to get a revised edition of it approved for publication that will include kayak fishing and inshore grouper fishing. Grouper, of course, are generally considered offshore species, but Citrus Co. is one of the few places in Florida where they can be caught in 8-10 ft. of water. Click on the link above for more info on the book and how to order it.
Tuning into Televised Fishing Shows
As a prelude to our topic of discussion for the evening, RG told those of us who tune into televised fishing shows that much of the information presented through this medium is not accurate. As a matter of fact, he became so aggravated after viewing so many misguided episodes that he refuses to watch them anymore. He recalled one episode in particular where the host had caught a spotted seatrout that just happened to be missing one of its two large canine teeth. He held the trout's mouth to the camera and began to inform the viewers that a lost tooth, such as this trout had, was a sign of spawning activity. RG was ready to throw a bottle at his television in an attempt to knock some sense into that guy! RG explained that all pre-spawn fish activity has a purpose, coloration changes that can attract a mate, for instance. Loosing a tooth has no purpose. This happened to be the same host that confused the trout with snook when he told his viewers that trout have the ability to change from male to female. Now we know why he doesn't watch them anymore.
Anthropomorphizing
Anthropo - what??? Anthropomorphizing - Something most women have a tendency to do. It basically means to attribute human qualities (like emotions, feelings, and logic) to animals and plants. Just watch any Disney animated film and you'll get the picture. This is why many females get a little squeamish when we watch others put a live shrimp on a hook or pull a fish out of the water by just the hook. RG warned us to avoid this emotional pit-fall when fishing.
He actually gave us a great example to emphasize his point. If you know anything at all about crabs in general, you know to avoid them because they have pinchers, for starters, but their outer shell is hard and scattered with sharp edges for defense. If you break a blue crab shell, what do you have? More sharp edges with an increased chance of cutting your hands and causing injury. Now, imagine how it would feel if you tried to crush a crab's shell in your mouth. Would it hurt? You Betcha !! Now, think about red drum, black drum and sheepshead.....they all eat crab. If crushing crab shells were as painful to them, as it would be for us, they certainly would avoid it, too, right? So it just stands to reason that a fish's mouth is not very sensitive to pain. Redfish in particular even have specially designed 'crushers' in the back of their throat that help with the grinding of crab and oyster shells. A fishing hook in the side of the lip is probably more aggravating than painful.
The same holds true for fish that supposedly uses 'logic' to escape from danger after being hooked, "That snook was smart, he headed straight for the mangroves." Fish don't take action like this in an attempt to outsmart an angler. The mangroves act as a nursery and are where most of these inshore, and some offshore fish were born. It's where they find food and shelter from larger predators, including birds, so the mangrove root system is a familiar safe zone for them and it's only their natural instinct that leads them back in that direction. If the fishing line is cut in the process, that's just coincidence.
Trout, on another note, migrate from the mangrove nursery to the sea grass meadows. That's their safety zone. Their instinct is to try and hide in the grass and 'fight-it-out' doing everything within its power to shake that aggravating hook out of it's mouth. They're pretty successful at it, too.
Redfish don't have a specific 'safety zone' really. Although they will dash into a mangrove root system to take cover if it's within reach. Their primary reaction to being hooked, however, is to run....run, run, run as far and as fast as they can. The first run of a redfish will usually be the most powerful.
So don't think all of these fish-fighting strategies are a conscience decision on the part of the fish. It's their instinct and their natural defense mechanisms taking over.
Trout, on another note, migrate from the mangrove nursery to the sea grass meadows. That's their safety zone. Their instinct is to try and hide in the grass and 'fight-it-out' doing everything within its power to shake that aggravating hook out of it's mouth. They're pretty successful at it, too.
Redfish don't have a specific 'safety zone' really. Although they will dash into a mangrove root system to take cover if it's within reach. Their primary reaction to being hooked, however, is to run....run, run, run as far and as fast as they can. The first run of a redfish will usually be the most powerful.
So don't think all of these fish-fighting strategies are a conscience decision on the part of the fish. It's their instinct and their natural defense mechanisms taking over.
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