Amazing Giant Halibut Fishing Longline On The Sea - Fastest Halibut Fillet Processing Skills #2

The Atlantic halibut is the world's largest flatfish. The record was apparently broken off the waters of Norway in July 2013 by a 234 kilogram, 2.62 meter. Halibut are dark brown on the top side with a white to off-white underbelly and have very small scales invisible to the naked eye embedded in their skin. Halibut are symmetrical at birth with one eye on each side of the head. Then, about six months later, during larval metamorphosis one eye migrates to the other side of the head. The eyes are permanently set once the skull is fully ossified. At the same time, the stationary eyed side darkens to match the top side while the other side remains white. This color scheme disguises halibut from above, blending with the ocean floor and from below, blending into the light from the sky and is known as countershading. Halibut feed on almost any fish or animal they can fit into their mouths. Animals found in their stomachs include sand lance, octopus, crab, salmon, hermit crabs, lamprey, sculpin, cod, pollock, herring, and flounder, as well as other halibut. The North Pacific commercial halibut fishery dates to the late 19th century and today is one of the region's largest and most lucrative. In Canadian and U.S. waters, longline fishing predominates using chunks of octopus or other bait on circle hooks attached at regular intervals to a weighted line that can extend for several miles across the bottom. The fishing vessel retrieves the line after several hours to a day. A significant sport fishery in Alaska has emerged where halibut are prized game and food fish. Sport fishermen use large rods and reels with 35 to 70 kilograms line and often bait with herring, large jigs, or whole salmon heads. Halibut are strong and fight strenuously when exposed to air. Smaller fish will usually be pulled on board with a gaff and may be clubbed or even punched in the head to prevent them from thrashing around on the deck. Be patient, halibut strikes can take some time. Allow a moment for the fish to eat some of the bait before trying to set the hook. Circle hooks are key for halibut fishing because once hooked, you'll rarely if ever, lose the fish. Lower the bait to the bottom, reel in a few cranks, and then set the rod and wait for a fish to strike. Don't jump to action as soon as you see the rod start jumping up and down. Wait until the tip is bent over and the fish is almost taking the line. Lift up to finish driving the hook into place. If you jerk or lift up too soon, the hook has a chance of being pulled away from the fish's mouth. Halibut love herring and it's one of the most popular baits but if you're not having great luck or if you're only getting small fish, it can be common practice to replace smaller bait with whole salmon heads. Big halibut love big bait. Don't forget to let the halibut take the head completely so you can get a solid hook up. Smaller halibut will leave a salmon head alone, so if you get one on a whole head, it will likely be big. But using salmon heads and baiting bigger fish requires patience since bigger fish are usually the last to approach your scent In 2021, commercial landings of pacific halibut totaled 25 million pounds and were valued at 120 million dollars, according to the no fisheries commercial fishing landings database. Approximately 95 percent of this harvest was landed in Alaska. Pacific halibut is one of the most valuable commercial and recreational fishery resources in the north pacific ocean. Pacific halibut is an important source of spiritual and physical sustenance for western indian tribes and alaska natives and is caught in ceremonial and subsistence fisheries. Raw pacific or atlantic halibut meat is 80% water and 19% protein with negligible fat. Halibut yield large fillets from both sides of the fish with the small round cheeks providing an additional source of meat. The halibut cheek cut is performed by locating the bone behind the eye and tracing or grilled while fresh. Smoking is more difficult with halibut meat than it is with salmon due to its ultra-low fat content. Eaten fresh, the meat has a clean taste and requires little seasoning. Halibut is noted for its dense and firm texture. According to the 2020 stock assessment, pacific halibut is not overfished and is fished at the recommended level that is set by the international pacific halibut commission. In general, the commercial pacific halibut fishery is fairly selective in the fish it catches because of the size of hook needed to harvest such a large fish. Using a large hook generally reduces bycatch of smaller fish.