WITH the onset of the 2005 sport fishing season virtually upon us, slowly but surely more and more boats are taking to the water. Obviously, first to the briny will be the commercial operators and soon behind them, some of the part-timers who want to make sure that they get their share of the action before the spring activities come to an abrupt halt.

Trolling is the name of the game and one thing that is really special about early season trolling is that you can never be quite certain what is going to latch on to one of your rigs. The main target and that for which most baits are intended is wahoo but, other species can make pretty liberal with whatever you may have on offer. Yellowfin tuna, blackfin tuna and rainbow runners have all been known to inhale trolls. Although the water is still a mite on the cool side, dolphin have been known to show up and white marlin, rest assured, often run with wahoo during the early season. Blue marlin, although undoubtedly present, are not so often encountered simply because the effort concentrates on Bermuda's Edge with little time spent working the deep water.

Apart from those species which can be expected to show up on a pretty regular basis during the course of the season, there are a few more unlikely suspects who can provide a welcome diversion.

Capt. David Soares had an interesting experience late last week. While trolling he noted a number of large blips on the depth sounder. Almost like submarines, they moved around just beneath the boat and it was not long before there was an almighty explosion on one of his outriggers, everything came taut, real taut and the battle with a leviathan was on. Despite the fact that the fish proved to be the victor, there was no doubt that the fish in question was a large bluefin tuna and, equally, that the blips were a school of this species that was cruising through the local area.

Whether or not they will stick around is anyone's guess, but all wisdom would have them moving on in search of richer feeding grounds where they can plunder tons of bait fish a day. The truth is that local waters are not particularly rich in bait, at least not in comparison to the continental shelf waters barely 600 miles to our east.

The bluefin tuna is real quite an amazing species. It has a rather noble history, having figured in both written and drawn literature dating back to before the time of Christ. It was a fish well known to the Romans and other early civilisations in and around the Mediterranean.

In fact, this fish was the subject of traps in the Mediterranean that go back thousands of years and which are still in use today. These traps which extended to places like Spain and Libya amongst others, essentially consisted of bays into which schools of tuna were herded. They were then held for the summer months during which they put on weight, feeding on the bait fish that came into the bay. Nets, etc. kept the larger fish in but allowed smaller fish through.

Anytime small fish ventured into the area where the tuna were held, not too many ever returned to the outside world. At the end of the season, nets were dragged through the trap area and the tuna butchered for food, often as part of a festival.

Many of these traps remain in use today. The facility at Nova Scotia's St. Margaret's Bay is essentially a tuna trap with the fish being harvested as required by means of a shotgun.

Although one might think that a fish that has been followed with interest for so long would been known to the scientists, this is not the case. What is known is that the fish are easily capable of trans-Atlantic migrations. This has been verified from tag recaptures. It has variously been believed that the fish migrate around the Atlantic travelling south from Norway down around the Iberian peninsula until travelling west across the Atlantic, turning northward at the Bahamas. They then follow the Gulf Stream up the USA's east coast on into Canadian waters before setting off on an eastward migration back across the Atlantic toward Europe. Unfortunately there is a lack of consistency the fish's movements and other theories on their migratory patterns have been put forward without anything definite having been arrived at. That they occurred in local waters, certainly into the 20th century is well documented. In fact, given the numbers present because they were not the target of a directed fishery until into the 1950's, up until that time, they were probably not uncommon in local waters. Catching these giants would have been a bit of a different matter as the tackle employed back then would have left something to be desired. Over the years, though, a few fish have been caught and quite a few seen, so the bluefin is probably a regular visitor to the local scene.

While the bluefin grows large throughout its range, the real giants are fish thought to be over 14 years old and these are usually encountered in the Gulf of the St. Lawrence. Thus it is Prince Edward Island, north of Nova Scotia that continuously figures in the record books. Newfoundland also sees its share of large fish. The fish in the Med although large tend to be significantly smaller, often in the 200 to 400 pound range. The fish along the US east coast run from "football" size (50 to 100 pounds) all the way up to fish of several hundred pounds.

While they are large fish, most of the bluefin caught or seen around here seem to be mid-size fish, ranging up to about 800 or 900 pounds.

The Mediterranean is home to large numbers of bluefin and there are several areas there that have been identified as spawning areas. The Gulf of Mexico is also believed to be a spawning area in the western Atlantic although, current information shows little activity. The jury is still out on whether there is a central Atlantic (maybe around here) location where they might also breed.

Perhaps the fish that happen here are part of that mid-ocean spawning group or they are in the process of travelling to the other side of the Atlantic.

In any event, should you happen to latch on to one then you can be pretty sure of some very Tight lines!!!