08-06-2006, 01:04 AM
[cool][#0000ff]Hey Doc, entertaining post. Birds can be a pain in the bass. I have had more trouble with the grebes (diving birds) than with gulls or terns. However, when the latter are working a boil they are as wacko as the wipers and sometimes hit anything that gets in the way. They are opportunists.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I doubt that anyone who has spent time in Southern California, and who has fished the party boats, has not had some run-ins with seagulls. Seems like you spend a long time finding the perfect anchovy in the bait tank, then you pin it on the hook just right, make a long perfect cast right in front of a breezing yellowtail...and, you guessed it, a gull grabs it just as the yellow boils on it.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]We used to have a little trick to get some relief when the gulls were making it impossible to flyline live bait. If someone brought a hooked gull to the boat, we would tie a partially filled pink balloon to one of its legs and turn it loose. All of the other birds would follow...trying to steal whatever goodies the ballooned bird was flying off with.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]By the way, BFTers should be aware that gulls and other water birds can be dangerous. They can chomp holes in your flesh and if they get close enough they will go for your eyes. Handle with care. I recommend a 12 guage. But that's just me.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I doubt that anyone who has spent time in Southern California, and who has fished the party boats, has not had some run-ins with seagulls. Seems like you spend a long time finding the perfect anchovy in the bait tank, then you pin it on the hook just right, make a long perfect cast right in front of a breezing yellowtail...and, you guessed it, a gull grabs it just as the yellow boils on it.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]We used to have a little trick to get some relief when the gulls were making it impossible to flyline live bait. If someone brought a hooked gull to the boat, we would tie a partially filled pink balloon to one of its legs and turn it loose. All of the other birds would follow...trying to steal whatever goodies the ballooned bird was flying off with.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]By the way, BFTers should be aware that gulls and other water birds can be dangerous. They can chomp holes in your flesh and if they get close enough they will go for your eyes. Handle with care. I recommend a 12 guage. But that's just me.[/#0000ff]
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