After being caught on rod and reel by Division of Wildlife Resources employees and volunteers, the popular game fish were transported to Salt Lake City and released in the fishing pond behind the Wildlife Building at the State Fairpark.

Youth up to age 12 can fish for free at the ponds from 4 to 8 p.m. daily during the State Fair, which runs through Sept. 16, after going through a short, free Pathways to Fishing clinic at the Wildlife Building. Anglers aged 13 and 14 also can participate, but they need to have a fishing license.

For Deanna Dobbs, the project offered a chance to do a little fishing and much more.

"It's fun to help the division do something outside of the office - to do something different," said Dobbs, a financial analyst for the state wildlife agency. "It's also fun to think that kids will be catching these same fish."

Dobbs, who was helping for the second year, joined 20 volunteers on the crowded Labor Day holiday waters of Mantua to kick off a three-day fishing tournament. Fishing was slow on Monday, with 250 bluegill landed, but things picked up Tuesday, with volunteers landing more than 1,400. The goal of 2,000 for the pond was reached around noon Wednesday.

Rod and reel may seem slow compared to other methods available to fisheries biologists, but after some experimenting, it turned out to be the best choice.

"The fish are generally dead or in poor condition when a gill net is used. We tried using half electrofishing and half angling once, but the electro fish may not bite [for days] after being jolted," said Drew Cushing, warmwater sport fish program coordinator for the DWR, while reeling in a 10-inch bluegill. "Rod and reel proves to be the easiest way for us to get the fish to the fair in the best condition."

On Monday, volunteers included DWR employees and their families and members of Rocky Mountain Anglers and the Utah Bass Federation. Chris Dayton, 14, turned out to be the hot hand, contributing the largest portion of the catch.

The bluegill joined about 200 channel catfish, which the state wildlife agency held over from the community fishing program, and largemouth bass in the pond. Fish caught by the youth will be released back to the pond.

Cushing says the pond provides an important opportunity for the DWR.

"The kids at the state fair are not the typical small-town kids who probably get exposed to fishing at a young age. They are inner-city kids and this may be the only time they get a chance to fish," he said. "This is our opportunity to send our message that fishing is a fun and safe activity. That's important because we are seeing stagnant fishing license numbers. We need to do a better job of exposing youngsters to the resources Utah has to offer."

Division officials estimate 1,500 to 1,800 children fish the ponds during the state fair and Cushing estimates that each fish will be caught six to 10 times. The division provides all fishing equipment.

After nobly serving their home state at the fair, the bluegill will be sent to what must be considered fish retirement heaven - the aquarium at Cabela's, where they will never see another piece of food with a hook buried inside.

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* BRETT PRETTYMAN can be contacted at brettp@sltrib .com or 801-257-8902.

* Their native habitat was eastern and central North America. They are not native to Utah.

* The panfish are found in many of the state's community fishing waters, including Pelican Lake, Mantua Reservoir, Lake Powell, Steinaker Reservoir, Redfleet Reservoir, Wide Hollow Reservoir and Gunlock Reservoir.

* The state record bluegill was caught in 1993 at Mantua Reservoir and weighed 2 pounds 7 ounces.

Source: Utah Division of Wildlife Resources

On the kids pond

* Children younger than 12 are welcome to wet a line for free at the Division of Wildlife Resources' kids pond behind the Wildlife Building at the State Fairpark.

* The pond is open and staffed with volunteers from 4 to 8 p.m. daily through Sept. 16.

* Thirteen- and 14-year-olds also can participate, but they must have a fishing license.

* Participants will go through a Pathways to Fishing clinic, learning fishing basics and ethics, before getting a chance to catch a catfish, bluegill or largemouth bass from the pond.