TPWD, CCA rounding up Sabine flounder

By Chester Moore, Jr
The Port Arthur News

May 14, 2008 11:59 pm

— Officials with the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) and Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) will be coming to Sabine Lake May 22 to round up southern flounder and speckled trout.
    The goal is to catch fish to serve as broodstock at TPWD’s hatchery facility, Sea Center Texas in Lake Jackson. Both trout and flounder must be stocked in the bay system their parents hailed from, so the event will give Sabine Lake, a boost at the hatchery.
    There are currently two flounder and two trout tanks at the state of the art facility with the trout being stocked here as they are spawned and the flounder part of an experimental program. Both are monitored closely for maximum efficiency and “bang for the buck” for saltwater license holders.
    TPWD coastal fisheries officials hope to find a cost-effective way to stock the flounder in Texas bays in the future and this is a crucial step.
    “We’re working hard to try and get a flounder stocking program going and this is a part of that process. Our special Sabine trips last year and the Coastal Fisheries Bay Teams were crucial to filling our tanks at Sea Center and allowing us to try and take our hatchery production to a new level,” said TPWD’s Shane Bonnot.
    Bonnot who has worked diligently with getting fish from the Sabine area said he appreciates the conservation ethic of people in the region.
    “We get a lot of response from Southeast Texas anglers. It’s good to know people care so much about the fishery and to get the help of the volunteers who participate in these special roundups and also at the Bay Teams tournaments every year. They are all invaluable.”
    CCA’s Texas director Robby Byers is looking forward to working with CCA members in the Sabine area who are donating their time to help send the hatchery trucks back to Lake Jackson full of fish.
    “This is a direct line of conservation and we as CCA are proud to be a part of it. We want Sabine Lake to have its representation of trout at Sea Center for stocking and hope to do what we can to forward the cause of flounder production,” Byers said.
    The next Bay Teams event will be held at the S.A.L.T. Clubhouse on Pleasure Island Oct. 25. We will have full coverage of next week’s special roundup and further information on the Bay Team’s effort in the next few months.