And the winner is...........

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Some really amazing shots were submitted to the aquatic trophyshot contest last year. To quote one of the three judges who independently evaluated each valid submission: “I'm impressed with lots of these pictures. It's only the beginning. There is plenty of potential to see true fish behaviour.” Well said. These underwater images provide a wealth of information - being a very non-invasive way to observe animals in their natural surrounds. Every shared image of an aquatic trophyshot can support a good cause by adding geo-tagged records to biodiversity databases and making existing ID apps more accurate by improving digital image recognition. From chase to charity. I have held talks with the pioneers behind Fishial.ai and am planning to share and upload all submitted images to this global database. “Fishial.ai is building the largest open-source fish species photo library labeled for AI machine learning and spearheads the development of a highly accurate open-source AI model that can identify fish species world wide!” Adding the aquatic trophyshots from this contest to this database is going to be a neat project for a student or an intern. Additional information was collected from each submission which will be interesting to analyse as well. If you are interested or know someone, please message dr snapper.

The short bliss of camera angling....on a clear day

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It is always a surprise to inspect the catch of the day behind the PC when reviewing the footage. And it is fun to actually discover that there was more life than what the nibble count suggested. Hopefully, one day mobile capacity will allow automatic scene detection and already highlight the trophy shots without hours of tedious, square-eyed review, preferably with ID suggestions and reporting all ancillary sensor data in a common data standard - these are a couple of (simple) prerequisistes for making camera angling more user friendly and allow for both opportunistic as well as statistically sound data collection.

Be selfish with Dr Snapper

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Drsnapper will be participating in the ultimate citizen science festival at the Belgian coast: zeekerweten.be

A festival to celebrate biodiversity observation and conservation and to cheerish your very own enthusiasm for discovery.

Everyone is welcome on May 8 here in Oostende to try out and experience first hand the new thrill of camera angling. #catchinpeace #aquatictrophyshot

Al eens met een hengel een foto genomen van een vis? Met Dr Snapper’s onderwatercamera aan de haak maak je verrassende onderwaterbeelden. En dit zonder de vissen te storen of pijn te doen. (Voel je als een vis in het water zonder nat te worden!)

  • Inschrijven is niet nodig

  • Doorlopend

  • Vooraf: installeer de apps Spydro (Android // iOS) en GoFish Cam (Android // iOS)

  • Wie wil kan een stevige hengel (worpgewicht van 80-100 g) meenemen

Submit your trophyshot portal is now open

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To garner momentum and publicize the advent of the aquatic trophyshot contest, a short article was published the other day in a Dutch angling magazine (Visblad). The associated website portal is now open and ready to receive your submission(s). Feel free to spread the word.

Another science event to meet and mingle virtually: World Recreational Fisheries Conference

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Last year drsnapper’s presentation could not go through at the World Recreational Fisheries Conference, because it was postponed due to Covid. It is still not going to happen as a meet-and-greet event, but by now we are all well versed in virtual meeting rooms. Two exciting online events will take place June 28 and 30 - register for free.

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International recreational fisheries research in the spotlight

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Last week a working group of the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) met virtually to discuss the latest research results of recreational fisheries catches, population impacts, socioeconomic footprints and novel survey methods. Animal welfare issues of catch-and-release practices were also on the menu.

A new toy for my tech tackle box

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As a Christmas present to myself I ordered an animated lure. It worked a treat at my local (despite the limited field of view with the camera pointing straight down) - and not sure whether I will be able to trick my guinea pig pike for a second time though. Still - hookless fishing fun.

Triple pike strike on Boxing Day

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This keen fella came in close three times: first time when I was scouting the water for presence - it only felt the lure once; second time when I came back a few hours later - it took another lure on the second cast (the lock was pumping water and because of the water flow it is a little bubbly); the third time it went for the camera. You guessed correctly, it is not the Bahamas. Dutch brownie points.

Some sad news for big game trophy shooters.....

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….your giant monster catches are shrinking over time….Researchers from the University of Washington have found evidence of the shifting baseline syndrome in news items relating to fishing records. In an article published by PeerJ, the researchers provide evidence that over the last 140 years, relative lengths of newsworthy fish (reported length divided by max. length) have declined over time. But I am sure, a few cms do not matter, when looking into the beautiful eyes of such magnificent fish (yellowfin tuna and dolphinfish) shot in action by a colleague recently on a trip to the Indian Ocean.

Bammm!!!.....with a bait bonbon

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These underwater trophy shots were taken from yellowtail scad and a leatherjacket in Port Philip Bay using the wee ol bait bomb approach. Stuff a mesh sock with chicken and other meaty bits and let the odour plume do the rest - no need for mimicry to mimic shape and behaviour of bait fish. Been experimenting with other odoured lures lately. Have you got any recommendations for some smelly artificial baits that work a treat? Don’t be shy…

Autumn sun rays

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Enjoying a sun-drenched afternoon at one of my favourite fishing spots in Germany. A school of redfins came flying past.

Flat-faced in Denmark

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On a work-related visit to Bornholm, I found a nice harbour to deploy a bait bag which made it difficult for this one to keep a straight or shall we say flat face, and made for a nice aquatic trophy shot :)

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Blind spotting

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On a recent trip to France (Brittany), I managed to break up the road trippin for a quick dip of my camera rod into a roadside lake. Initially, I would have gone home thinking: “well, another day without a bite”, but luckily after some extra reviewing efforts of all footage, I spotted a pike investigating one of the lures I tried on that day. Camera angling has its merit - without a camera, I would have gone home without a trophy shot….

Have you ever tried camera angling for trophy shots ? What has been your experience with it? Feel free to leave a comment. Cheers

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