Journal archives for October 2024

October 3, 2024

Observation fields I like for fishing observations

Here is a list of Observation Fields I try to use on my fish observations, where applicable. I am always looking for relatively easy and preexisting fields to use. Hopefully others will find some of these fields interesting or useful for their observations!


Bait by @cammie - I use this for fish I caught in traps or by angling with live bait. Sometimes I get goofy with it; for example, sliced lunchmeat ham = domestic pig!

Fish Observation Method by @mkvam - this is a beefed-up version of this field. Both are great for specifying how a certain fish was observed, but I'm slowly switching over to this one as I noticed it has many more specific choices for observation method.

Harvested? by @deving - this field is great because it can be applied to more than fish and is relatively simple. I use this for when I keep fish to eat, or I catch and keep fish for bait.

Possible hybrid? by @andrew_tbc_taylor - this is extremely useful for indexing organisms (not just fish!) that still fall under Needs ID by querying the observation field.

Describe what bait or lure was used by @stevewoods99 - just for fun. I usually put really basic descriptions of artificial lures here, but will occasionally add oddities like dog or cat food if a fish was baited into a trap.

Fin clip? by me - I like to keep track of salmonines from the Great Lakes Basin with clipped fins and try to add this field when I remember. I have occasionally added it to other species when I notice a marking either for a genetic sample or population estimate.

Tagged? by @chauncey - I once used a fish-specific tagging field, but I think this broader one has better application for other users. If I encounter a tagged fish, I mark it here and then record the tag number if possible.

Eaten by by @jakob - I like posting the stomach contents of harvested fish as long as they aren't too digested and I have the time to take photos while cleaning.

Parasite Species by @smpbiologist-rcurtis - this observation field is mostly useful for tagging fish covered in Neascus.

If I find more I'll try and add them to this thread.

Posted on October 3, 2024 01:43 AM by operculum_ben operculum_ben | 3 observations | 0 comments | Leave a comment