Leon Drouin Keith
Associated Press Writer

Devemer 7, 2001

From San Francisco Bay to the Sierra Nevada to Southern California, the Fish and Game Commission placed limits on sports fishing Friday.

The commission cut red abalone harvesting by more than 40 percent, shortened the season for rockfish and banned fishing in sections of some rivers.

California abalone populations have been decimated by over-harvesting, disease and predation. All species but red abalone are illegal to harvest, and even taking those is legal only north of San Francisco.

The commission reduced take limits for the mollusks from four-a-day and 100-a-year to three-a-day and 24-a-year. Department of Fish and Game staff had recommended allowing just two abalone a day and 30 per year, which they estimated would have cut take by 50 percent.

Senior marine biologist Konstantin Karpov said cuts are needed because few young abalone have appeared in the last decade. "We are basically fishing down the parent stock," Karpov said.

The commission also reduced the number of surf perch that sport fisherman can haul in from up to 20 fish of various species to just five. The only exception is shiner surf perch, which is primarily used for bait. Fisherman can still take up to 20 of those at a time.

The commission also decided to shut down sport fishing for rockfish and lingcod in central and Southern California for eight months and four months a year, respectively.

If fish populations do well on the central coast, the commission could decide to keep that fishery open in November and December.

Inland, the commission changed rules for a number of fishing areas, including a three-mile stretch of the Upper Owens River that relies on stocked fish.