Times Have Changed ...
Likely the most famous words ever spoken
on a charter boat are, “That is the biggest
fish that we’ve ever seen ....you ought
to have that one mounted!” This phrase
has been repeatedly exclaimed to clients
fishing on charter boats around the world
since the early 1920’s.
Raymond Douglas, President of King SailfishMounts recalls his first experience
with taxidermy: “On my first “Deep Sea”
fishing trip as a child, after several hours of
trolling we finally hooked up and I was put
in the fighting chair. No sooner than I was
handed the rod, the mate soon began yelling
from the tower, “We haven’t seen one
like that for over 10 years....do you want to
mount it”? We were so excited by the level
of enthusiasm that my father and I choose
to mount our catch…only to learn sometime
later that there really wasn’t anything
that special about a 12 pound kingfish.”
with taxidermy: “On my first “Deep Sea”
fishing trip as a child, after several hours of
trolling we finally hooked up and I was put
in the fighting chair. No sooner than I was
handed the rod, the mate soon began yelling
from the tower, “We haven’t seen one
like that for over 10 years....do you want to
mount it”? We were so excited by the level
of enthusiasm that my father and I choose
to mount our catch…only to learn sometime
later that there really wasn’t anything
that special about a 12 pound kingfish.”
Years later after moving to South Florida,Douglas took a job as lifeguard and each
day on the way to work he would pass by
the local charter fleet. Seeing the carcasses
of sailfish and other gamefish killed only
for mounting purposes inspired Douglas
to look for a better way to help anglers
capture the memory of the exciting catch
without the need to kill these valuable fish.
In those early days, Pflueger Marine
Taxidermy was the largest in the world,
under the direction of the legendary Al
Pflueger, Sr. Pflueger mounted many of the
noteworthy game fish of that era, including
Alfred Glassell, Jr.’s 1,560-pound Black
Marlin and Louis E. Marron’s 1,182-pound
Broadbill Swordfish. Some anglers may
still remember their studio in Miami (pronounced
Miama). Pflueger’s close competitor,
J. T. Reese, Taxidermist was located in
Fort Lauderdale and was known for extreme
quality and perfection, and remained
the only major taxidermist to mount actual
fish skins well into the 1980’s.
Times change and so did the marine taxidermy
industry. Manufacturing processes
were very labor intensive and production
materials were being labeled as hazardous,
which dramatically increased costs. At
the same time, sportsmen were becoming
aware of the importance of marine conservation
and the ever increasing pressure on
fish populations. It was these things that
prompted taxidermists to experiment with
new methods for producing fish mounts
without the need for the actual fish.
It seems that many marine taxidermy
companies claim to have produced the
first fiberglass fish mount. However, the
first company to successfully introduce and
promote the release mount concept was
King Sailfish Mounts of Fort Lauderdale.
KSM’s collection of anatomically perfect
molds made from carefully selected game
fish specimens have proven to satisfy the
demands of the most discriminating world
class sportsman. Combined with the airbrushing
talent of Marine Artist Raymond
Douglas, KSM has been credited with being
the most influential company in the marine
taxidermy industry today.
Should you be lucky enough to hook that
once-in-a-lifetime catch, or your first trophy
fish (even a 12-pound kingfish), you can
release it alive and still commemorate the
event with a release mount. All you need
to do is provide the species and length (or
weight). Photos which can be used during
the final painting are optional. When measuring,
be careful not to put yourself or the
fish at risk for injury. In some cases it may
be best to estimate. Your custom mount
can be delivered to your home or office in
just a few short weeks, and it will surely be
the envy of friends and family alike, while
the fish lives to fight another day.
King Sailfish Mounts is the official release
mount provider of CCA Florida.
mount provider of CCA Florida.
Visit the CCA Click here
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