Fishing Pier Angler Intercept Survey

THIS IS A VOLUNTARY SURVEY

Recreational Angler Survey of Sea Turtle Interactions

Shore-Based Angler Intercept Survey

Date:_____/_____/_____ Time:____________(use 24 h) Survey ID:_________________ Survey #________________

Location Name:__________________________________________ Data Collector: _______________________________

Residential State:_________ Residential Zip Code:__________ # of People:________ # of Lines in Water_________

Where was angler fishing? F) Pier: First 1/3, near land M) Pier: Middle 1/3 E) Pier: End 1/3, over water S) Shore B) Boat O) Other ___________________________________________________________

Is the angler: A) Active (i.e. artificial/casting and reeling) I) Inactive (i.e. not moving rod & reel)

1. How long have you been fishing today? ________________hours (record in decimals, i.e. 0.5 h)
   
   

2. What time of day do you usually fish at this location? (Circle all that apply)

M) Morning A) Afternoon E) Evening N) Night AD) All day V) Varies

3. During what seasons do you fish at this location? (Circle all that apply) J- Just started (1^st or 2^nd time fishing)

Sp) Spring (Mar-May) Su) Summer (Jun-Aug) F) Fall (Sep-Nov) W) Winter (Dec-Feb)

4. During each season mentioned above, how many days per season do you fish at this location?

a) Just started (1^st or 2^nd time fishing) b) Infrequent (1-5 days/season) c) Moderate (6-15 days/season)

d) Often (16-30 days/season) d) Frequent (30+ days/season)

Sp) Spring (Mar-May):_____ Su) Summer (Jun-Aug):_____ F) Fall (Sep-Nov):_____ W) Winter (Dec-Feb):_____

5. What are you fishing for today? (If more than 2, circle Anything)

A) Anything B) Catfish C) Croaker D) Drum (Red/Redfish/Black) E) Flounder

F) Ground mullet/Whiting G) Mackerel (King/Spanish) H) Trout I) Shark

J) Other:___________________________________________________________

6. How many lines are you fishing? 1 2 3 4 >4

7. Are all of your fishing poles rigged the same way? YES NO (if no, record Q10-16 for each pole)

8. What type of line connects to your hook? M) Monofilament B) Braid D) Dacron W) Wire (single or multi strand)

Other:_________________________________________________________________________________________

a) Line 1:_______ b) Line2:______ c) Line3:______ d) Line 4:______ e) same on all poles

9. What connects the line to your hook? K- Knot S – Snap C - Crimp

Other:_________________________________________________________________________________________

a) Line 1:_______ b) Line2:______ c) Line3:______ d) Line 4:______ e) same on all poles

10. What type of terminal tackle are you using today? S) Sliding sinker F) Fixed sinker C) Croaker P) Poppin’ cork

Other:_________________________________________________________________________________________

a) Line 1:_______ b) Line2:______ c) Line3:______ d) Line 4:______ e) same on all poles

11. What type of hook are you using? J) J-hook C) Circle, offset N) Circle, non-offset K) Kahle G) Jig T) Treble

Other:________________________________________________________________________________________

a) Line 1:_______ b) Line2:______ c) Line3:______ d) Line 4:______ e) same on all poles

12. How big is the hook? (record length for all hook types). Length = top of the hook to the bottom

S) < 40 mm - Small M) 40-55 mm - Medium L) >55 mm - Large

a) Line 1:_______ b) Line2:______ c) Line3:______ d) Line 4:______ e) same on all poles

13. If the hook is a circle hook, the gape should be recorded. (Gape = tip of the point to the inside of the shaft)

S) ≦ 10 mm - small L) > 10 mm – large N) N/A

a) Line 1:_______ b) Line2:______ c) Line3:______ d) Line 4:______ e) same on all poles

14. What bait are you using today? DS) Dead shrimp LS) Live shrimp S) Squid C) Crab A) Artificial

W) Whole fish (live/dead? what kind?): _________________ CB) Cut bait/fish (what kind?):_____________________

O) Other (what kind?):_______________________________________________________________________________

a) Line 1:_______ b) Line2:______ c) Line3:______ d) Line 4:______ e) same on all poles

15. What do you do with your unused bait?

T) Throw in water G) Give to other angler H) Take home D) Discard elsewhere N) Never have unused bait

16. Where do you usually clean your fish? D) Do not clean fish S) on site H) at home O) Other _________________

17. If on site, where do you discard fish remains? W) Water T) Trash can O) Other________________

The next several questions all deal with what you have observed in the last 6 months while fishing at this location:

18. Have you observed sea turtles in the water around this location? NO YES

19. Have you observed sea turtles eating discarded bait OR remains from cleaned fish near this location? NO YES

20. Have you observed anyone catch a sea turtle at this location? NO YES

21. Have YOU caught a sea turtle at this location? NO YES

22. If YES, How many? A) ______ within last 30 days B) ______2-3 months ago C) ______4-6 months ago

23. Have you caught or hooked a sea turtle today? NO YES

END OF SURVEY IF PARTICIPANT DID NOT CATCH ANY SEA TURTLES OR ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT MOST RECENT CAPTURE

24. Was the sea turtle: H) Hooked E) Entangled HE) Hooked & entangled U) Unknown O) Other:________________________________________________

25. If hooked, could you tell where the sea turtle was hooked? External is anywhere on the body, flippers or head.

E) External M) Inside mouth S) Swallowed NS) Not sure

26. If hooked, was the hook removed? NO YES Not sure

27. Was all the line removed? NO YES Not sure

28. If NO: amount of line remaining _______ (feet/inches)

29. What happened to the turtle?

A. Turtle released on site with ALL gear removed B) Turtle released on site with some gear attached C. Turtle collected by rehab facility staff

30. How was the turtle landed? A) Used a net B) Pulled up by line C) Walked to shore D) Not landed

31. Were there were any tags/markings on turtle? NO YES (circle all that apply): F) Flipper S) Satellite P) Paint

32. Did you notify anyone about the capture? (Rehab facility, state or federal agency) YES NO

33. If YES, who did you call? R) Rehab facility S) State agency F) Federal agency O) Other:__________________

34. If NO, why was the turtle capture not reported? A) Did not know B) No phone C) Afraid to get in trouble

D) Did not want to wait/unable to wait for rehab staff E) Too time consuming

35. What would you do if you caught/hooked a sea turtle?

A) Report incident to _____________ B) Cut line C) Take to wildlife rehab D) Other ___________________

(Regionally specific species)

Additional questions on other protected species.

Sturgeon

36. Would you recognize a sturgeon if caught? NO YES

37. If yes, have you caught a sturgeon in the last 6 months while fishing at this location? NO YES

Sawfish

38. Would you recognize a sawfish if caught? NO YES

39. If yes, have you caught a sawfish in the last 6 months while fishing at this location? NO YES

Marine Mammals

40. In the last 6 months, have you observed a marine mammal while fishing at this location? NO YES

41. If yes, what kind of marine mammal? A) Seal B) Dolphin C) Porpoise D) Whale E) Unknown

42. Have you caught a marine mammal in the last 6 months while fishing at this location? NO YES

43. If yes, what kind of marine mammal? A) Seal B) Dolphin C) Porpoise D) Whale E) Unknown

44. In the last 6 months, how many dolphins have tried to take bait or catch off of your gear?

___________ [Record number 0 or greater]

45. In the last 6 months, how many dolphins have become hooked or entangled in your gear?

___________ [Record number 0 or greater}

PRA STATEMENT
Recreational Angler Survey of Sea Turtle Interactions
OMB CONTROL NO. 0648-xxxx

1. SURVEY JUSTIFICATION

Collection of these data on sea turtle interactions in the pier-based recreational fishing sector is necessary to fulfill statutory requirements of the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et. seq.) Section 7 analyses, and will provide necessary data for the conservation and recovery of endangered and threatened sea turtle populations.

B. SURVEY PURPOSE

The sea turtle interaction data that will be collected via this survey collection will be used by NOAA Fisheries protected species managers to evaluate the impacts of recreational fishing on sea turtle populations. Analysis of data collected from this survey will be used in agency documents, such as ESA Section 7 Biological Opinions and other regulatory documents. These documents are disseminated to the public, but the raw survey results will not be disseminated to the public. NOAA Fisheries will retain control over the information and safeguard it from improper access, modification, and destruction, consistent with NOAA standards for confidentiality, privacy, and electronic information.

C. PUBLIC BURDEN

Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 10 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other suggestions for reducing this burden to Sara Wissmann, NOAA Fisheries, Office of Protected Resources, [email protected].

D. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

Participation in this survey is voluntary. The information collected will be protected and kept anonymous if released. Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law, no person is required to respond to, nor shall any person be subjected to a penalty for failure to comply with, a collection of information subject to the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act, unless that collection of information displays a currently valid OMB Control Number.