Trout Tagging Texas

Editor’s Note and Introduction: I had the pleasure of meeting Chris McKinley during the Houston Fishing Show this past March. He introduced me to a program he was launching that he has dubbed; Trout Tagging Texas. Naturally, with spotted seatrout fisheries management right at the top of my own conservation agenda, my interest was piqued immediately. I promised to follow the launch of Chris’ efforts and, hopefully, lend the support of this publication to assist its growth.

While I am fully supportive of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s efforts in managing this popular fishery, and believe they have done an excellent job, I have long encouraged that anglers practice conservation above and beyond daily bag limits, etc., to help insure the sustainability of the resource through self-imposed practices, such as catch and release. And not just trophy-class fish, but all sizes, especially the vitally important mid-slot spawning age females.

It will be very interesting to learn how Trout Tagging Texas is received by the fishing community, especially the impact on individual anglers lucky enough to land one of the tagged specimens. Yes, the growth data of tagged specimens could prove be of value to fisheries managers, and certainly how far and what direction the recaptured fish may have roamed after tagging. But, in my view, there’s an aspect of even greater value.

Landing a tagged fish could be a tipping point for anglers who question whether catch and release is a valid strategy toward achieving future sustainability of the fishery. The proof will be in their hands!

So, I say mega-conservation kudos to Chris McKinley and all the fishing guides and private anglers who have joined his tagging team...Keep up the good work! And to the lucky anglers who land one of their tagged fish…please record the tag number, measure it, report the recapture, and then let it go!

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Cynoscion Nebulosus (A.K.A. speckled trout) is what we at Trout Tagging Texas are all about. We are dedicated to tracking growth rates, migration patterns, and the population of speckled trout, along all the bays of the Texas coast.

Not very long ago, Texas fishermen began noticing a decline in the numbers of speckled trout, and especially the upper-size class of fish in our bays. Although our fishing success has been growing tougher on average, we are still having those days where we can catch them really good. And so it crossed my mind one day; “How many times has this fish been caught?”

By tagging and releasing these fish, we will be able to monitor how often a fish might be recaptured, by giving each tag an individual identification number and a phone number to report the information. With that, we will be able to track how much the fish has grown, and moved since being tagged, by entering the information provided by anglers into our database.

Our plan is to use color-coded tags to better track movement. Orange tags for Upper Coast, yellow tags on Middle Coast, and green tags for Lower Coast fish. Fish captured in the surf will receive red tags.

Our initial plan was to target fish of at least 20-inches. However, we have since revised that to any fish longer than 15-inches. The original thought was that upper-class trout needed more protection to continue their spawning activities. But with the current “emergency regulations” of three per day between 17- to 23-inches enacted after the Freeze of 2021 along the Middle and Lower coasts scheduled to expire at the end of August 2023, we decided to make the change. Beginning in June, we began tagging any trout of 15-inches and greater length.

The reasoning in this is very basic: We want to encourage anglers to release legal length trout, not toss them in an ice chest simply because it’s legal.

When catching one of these tagged fish, it is highly encouraged to report the information to the number provided on the tag, along with a few quick photos. As an incentive; anglers who provide a video of a tagged fish being released will be rewarded with a $25 gift card and swag bag donated by Waterloo Rod Company, along with lures from Speckled Truth and Coastal Swimbaits.

We have teamed with some really great fishermen and outfitters along the coast, and with their help, we have now tagged and released more than 200 fish, with more being reported weekly from bay systems all along the coast. It is very exciting to receive news of tagged fish being recaptured, a total of three since the program began, which fishery biologists say is an excellent recapture percentage this early in the program. Of note thus far in our recapture data; one fish travelled 25 miles from bay to surf near Matagorda, and another grew nearly half an inch in less than three months.

With summer weather patterns developing and more anglers on the water, we are hopeful to see more recaptures being reported. Please remember that our mission is to spread the awareness that catch and release practiced in even greater measure can be a viable tool toward improving our speckled trout resource. Let’s all do our part and make it better for anglers to enjoy for generations to come.

Thank You for taking the time to read about our program and we ask everyone to think back on how awesome the trout fishery used to be. Practicing more conservative methods on the water can help bring it back.

Chris McKinley – Trout Tagging Texas – [email protected]