Boccacio strong odor

Recently we are fishing deeper, in 200 feet range out of Monterey Bay.  I caught some boccacio and notice they have a strong fishy odor.  It's on the stringer and to the ice chest when landed, but the odor from these fish is pretty strong.  Is there a special way to handle these fish?  Should I bleed and gut them on the spot?

Is there a special way to handle these fish? 

I haven’t landed one off the kayak but this is what works for me when I come across one on a sport boat.  When you see em at color and recognize it’s a bocacio, gently lift it over the rail and step back to unhook them.  Once everyone is done laughing at you and returns to fishing, toss them in your buddy’s gunny sack and vehemently deny culpability. 

Don’t recall where I read it but the smell is reportedly the result of bacteria in the slime, best bet for processing is to keep whole and fillet at the launch (skin off fillet) and don’t let the slime taint the meat…..allegedly. 

First time catching these, so not familiar with it.  The meat is flaky like other rockfish, but it have a stronger odor to it.  Not sure if I want to keep these in the future.

... Should I bleed and gut them on the spot?

If you're concerned about meat quality, yeah you should bleed, gut, and ice most any fish right after you catch them.

I've read bad stuff about boccacio, but I've also read plenty of bad stuff about bluefish and pink salmon... if you treat them right they're quite tasty.

Just had some charcoal grilled Boccacio with basil vinaigrette before reading this comment. They definitely do have an odor even when cleaned and iced. You could bag them in a separate bag and store them along with your other catch.  Surprisingly still my favorite rockfish to eat

I can’t handle the smell. I’ll pass them along every time
Aloha,

Isao