Tagging Bonefish for the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust
by Richard French, 24 November 2010

In mid November I had the opportunity to tag bonefish in Southern Cuba for the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust. I had never participated in a tagging program before so I did not know what to expect. The entire experience was as rewarding as an outdoor enthusiast can hope for and I loved every second of it. I spent the day with old friend Lazaro Vinola, who is the head guide and in charge of sport fishing regulations and enforcement in the Zapata National Park, Southern Cuba. I have known Lazaro for 10 years and have spent countless days on the water with him, although we have not fished together in some time.

When my office told him what I wanted to do, he mapped out the day and took me to one of his very special spots—one that he only manages to visit 3 or 4 times a year. It was a 2 hour boat ride to the spot he wanted to show me and after fishing the Zapata for over 100 days it was wonderful to see a part of the park that I had never visited before. It was a glorious high sky with no clouds and an easy breeze. We were into tailing fish within 2 minutes of getting out of the skiff. The process was simple enough. Cast to, hook and land a bonefish. Then load the specially built tagger, remove a scale near the dorsal fin and push the tag into the back of the bonefish in one quick motion. It was fascinating to watch and Lazaro was clearly an old hand at doing this. 

The last fish of the day and it was my responsibility to tag the fish. After measuring the length of the bonefish and getting over the initial apprehension and concern for hurting the fish, I grabbed the tagger, scraped off the scale and inserted the tag. The fish scarcely seemed to notice and swam off as though it had never been touched. It was an amazing site to witness and a real thrill to be involved in such a worthwhile study. The next time this fish is caught, the information collected from the tagging program will tell scientists how much the fish has grown and how far it has traveled since last caught. I enjoyed the experience so much that I’m going to put together a couple of weeks in 2011 for interested guests to participate in a tagging program at 2 or 3 locations around the world. 

Back to the main page