Alaska Fishing

They're ugly, many sporting a piscatorial version of a beer belly and a gaping mouthful of 18 sharp teeth.

They're misnamed. Lingcod aren't cod at all but the largest member of the greenling family. Their scientific name, ophiodon elongatus, means "snake tooth."

They're relentless. Lingcod "ride alongs" or "hitchhikers" frequently grab a hooked fish and refuse to let go, all the way to the boat.

And beginning Wednesday, they're legal again outside of Resurrection Bay.

For bottom-fishing anglers who may be a little burned out on halibut, lingcod offer an intriguing alternative.

"They fight pretty good if you get a good-size one," said Fish and Game area sportfish biologist Dan Bosch. "I don't know how many times I've had a rockfish on and think I've caught the bottom, but it's a lingcod."

And some anglers consider them second to none as table fare.

"They're good eating, very good," Bosch said. "I know people who prefer lingcod over halibut, me included."

That combination -- and perhaps a touch of halibut fatigue -- has attracted a growing number of anglers to lingcod.

"As halibut have gotten smaller, people have spent more time targeting other ground fish like rockfish and lingcod," said Scott Meyer, a Fish and Game area research biologist for marine groundfish.

"Its popularity is increasing," he said. "They're also fairly aggressive and therefore easy to catch, and sometimes you can catch them in fairly shallow water, right next to shore."

Meyer's colleague, assistant area research biologist Mike Byerly, agrees.

"The trend seems to be toward catching these really large, huge lingcod. That's one of the selling points for charters. They're pretty fun to catch."

Lingcod prefer rough, rocky terrain at depths of 50 to 150 feet. Males aren't terribly big, ranging from 4 to 14 pounds. Females, by contrast, can go upwards of 70 pounds and produce as many as half a million eggs.

The northern Gulf of Alaska lingcod fishery based in Seward has historically been the most important recreational fishery for the species. Sixteen years ago, after the sport harvest peaked at 9,100 fish, biologists saw signs of problems. The Board of Fish responded by reducing bag limits, setting a minimum size (35 inches) and imposing closed seasons in the northern Gulf of Alaska to rebuild the population.

"Alaskan stocks ... appear to be rebounding due to timely management action after an initial decline," a Seafood Watch Seafood Report by Monterey Bay Aquarium said two years ago.

Sport harvests in the Seward fleet plummeted to 2,200 to 3,700 fish until 1997, but since then they've been growing.

"The harvest keeps going up," Bosch said. "It was the highest ever in 2007."

This August, biologists hope to collect information that will help them better manage the species.

Deploying a motorized underwater sled called a remote-operated vehicle in Resurrection Bay, scientists will use multi-beam sonar and three mounted cameras to help count deep-sea lingcod more accurately.

"We'll end up with a direct measure of the abundance of the fish," Byerly said.

For anglers, lead-headed jigs worked off the bottom often attract fish, with some anglers reporting that white, pink and chartreuse work best. Motion seems to attract lingcod, and the territorial behavior of a male guarding his territory in the hope of attracting a female often yields big hits.

Areas with strong tidal currents flowing over a reef can be productive, as lingcod lie in ambush for prey.

Once they latch on, lingcod seldom give up.

"Three years ago, while fishing in Alaska, I hooked a chicken-sized 12-pound halibut," writes John Beath, longtime Washington State lingcod angler who produced the video, "Underwater Secrets of Catching Halibut, Rockfish & Lingcod."

"After a few seconds of battle, my smallish halibut turned into a monster of a fish and fought hard from the bottom.

"Peering into the inky waters, a dark, toothy image emerged, with my halibut sideways in its mouth. The 55-pound female lingcod refused to let go, even with some gentle coaxing. We finally pried the ling's mouth open, held it up for a quick picture and lowered it back into the water. My halibut lay motionless and dead from multiple lacerations on both sides of its body."

Because lingcod have no air bladder, they can be pulled from the depths and released without harm. Many charters encourage clients to do just that to prevent overharvesting the species.

Reach reporter Mike Campbell at mcampbell@adn.com or 257-4329.

Lingcod angling

• Season: July 1-Dec. 31

• Limit: One or two per day, depending on location. Closed in Resurrection Bay. Beware that anglers cannot catch lingcod outside the bay and fish after returning to the bay.

• Size: At least 35 inches long with head attached, or 28 inches long from tip of tail to front of dorsal fin with head removed.

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