So many opah came into the docks this past summer season that the it might be called "the year of the opah." The latest was a distressed fish picked up by a half-day boat from Islandia, which spotted the creature at the surface, an unusual place to find the deep-water species. A landing spokesman said the fish weighed about 100 pounds.

The best opah catch was the pair of 80-pounders picked up on Tady iron jigs aboard the Shogun. Those fish grace the photo page for the month of April 2008 in the new Sportfishing Calendar, available online at FishingVideos.com and at local tackle stores throughout the southland.