Fishing is a multi-Billion dollar industry in North America alone, and with that many people out there dangling their rods over a boat or off a dock, standing by a river or lakeshore or hunting brook trout along a winding creek, the fish stocks started to get way too low to sustain a healthy sport fishing industry. Through stocking programs, moratoriums on the numbers of fish that people can keep, and the introduction of catch and release fishing, fish stocks have been on a steady incline. And through education, and watching educational fishing shows on television, most fishermen caught onto the idea that catch and release fishing is the best way to protect fish stocks and still enjoy their fishing trips.
There are a few different catch and release fishing methods. The fisherman can release all of the fish that they catch, or keep one of the nicer fish for a shore lunch. Whatever fish are cooked for shore lunches should be included in the number of fish caught towards the daily fish limits. With a limit of keeping 7 fish per day, the fisherman has to decide which fish to keep. When a fish is mortally wounded with the catch, that fish is a must-keep, since releasing it back to the wilds will just ensure a slow death.
Although catch and release fishing has been practiced for decades by sporting fishermen and conservationists, too many people were keeping too many fish, and throwing away the smaller fish, leaving them behind to die. Catch and release programs help the fish stocks grow so that future generations of fishermen will have the same thrills, and be able to enjoy the same shore lunches.
Under catch and release fishing protocols, the fishermen still get the same thrills and enjoyment from catching the fish, and they can take pictures of themselves holding their prized catches before releasing them back into the water. Limits for how many fish each fisherman can keep were lowered, therefore forcing the fishermen to choose which fish they were going to keep so as to not exceed their daily limits.
When fishing under catch and release rules, the fisherman has to use barbless hooks. The fishermen are not allowed to catch their limit, then keep fishing and replace smaller fish with bigger ones as the day goes by. They are allowed to keep their limit, and after that limit has been reached, the remainder of fish caught must be released back to the water. Smaller fish that were kept earlier can not be cut loose and replaced with bigger fish that are caught later on during the day under catch and release rules.
When releasing a fish, the utmost care must be taken to ensure that the released fish will be healthy, and thereby be able to contribute to future spawns. There is a good reason fishermen carry needle nose pliers, medical forceps or clamps on their fishing vests. They come in very handy when trying to take a lure or hook out of a fish’s mouth in order to follow catch and release protocols. If the fish has swallowed the hook or lure, the fisherman should cut the fishing line as close to the hook as possible using wire cutters or small, sharp scissors.
In order to take a hook out of a fish’s mouth so that you can release it, hold the fish firmly in one hand, and take a hold of the hook with the other hand using the pliers, forceps or clamp. Gently manoeuvre the hook so that it works it’s way out of the fish’s mouth. Hold the fish up so that a picture can be taken of you and your prize, then hold the fish still in the water, facing against the current so that the water flows trough the fish’s gills. The fish will swim to the depths once it gets it’s bearings back.
Practice catch and release fishing, and be considerate with the fish that you do keep. Throwing away a smaller fish so that you can keep a larger one caught later in the day is against the rules of catch and release fishing, and is also morally wrong, as the smaller fish is uselessly killed for no other reason than to have a nicer fish to show off when you get home.
Fish on! And practice catch and release fishing. It may just ensure that your future fishing trips are just as productive, or even more so.
Written by Marc Phillippe Babineau
Meet the fishing cat. This feline from Asia is a lesser cat that loves the water and will actually swim to catch its prey. Big Cat Rescue supports the “Way Kambas” park in Sumatra which saves habitat for the tiger, which also is where the fishing cat lives. For more info about BIG CAT RESCUE visit: www.bigcatrescue.org Find us on FACEBOOK www.facebook.com MYSPACE: www.myspace.com TWITTER: twitter.com DONATE: www.bigcatrescue.org THANK YOU!
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