Killing fish

[AddictedToScopex]

It was!

 

It should be the case that when someone writes something that it goes without saying that it is in their opinion. Why do we have all this IMHO. IMO nonsense, one can see whose opinion it is in by looking at the authors name.

my my we are a touchy bunch these days.

Edited August 23, 2012 by AddictedToScopex

[Andrew]

Interesting stuff.

Does anyone carry fish care products with them as do some dedicated carp anglers do. ? I believe there is some sort of medication dedicated carp anglers use on damaged fish, a sort of antibiotic i think it is. Anyone else heard of this.

[Sportsman]

my my we are a touchy bunch these days. (In opinion, but I may be mistaken, I often am)

 

OK, that's better

Edited August 23, 2012 by Sportsman

[robtherake]

Interesting stuff.

Does anyone carry fish care products with them as do some dedicated carp anglers do. ? I believe there is some sort of medication dedicated carp anglers use on damaged fish, a sort of antibiotic i think it is. Anyone else heard of this.

 

I have some (Klinik)and once used it regularly but without evidence of it's effectiveness (I don't fish waters where the fish have names, unless they give them to each other) it now lives in a big bag, creaking at the seams with stuff I don't use any more.

[AddictedToScopex]

I was going to carry on the whole IMO thing but it would get boring pretty quickly. In my opinion anyway.

 

*Diclaimer. All views and feelings expressed by this user are simple opinion. Nothing more, nothing less. This user's comments should not be used as citation to support fact nor be considered in any way factually accurate. Anglers net does not condone or support any view or opinion published by this user or in fact any other user where scientific evidence cannot be provided in support of their argument. This user would like to make it clear that no moral standpoint can ever be deemed correct including his own and as such users can only share their standpoints and have no right to attempt to force them on others by drawing support from those of a similar age/moral disposition. This user would also like to make it clear that his 'cojones' are normal by the typical human standard and do not effect his wading ability in any way although this may have an effect on his ability to push sharp objects through the heads of various animals. If you disagree with the thoughts and opinions of this user feel free to send an email of complaint to nobodycares@MyOpinionOnYours.org.uk.

Edited August 23, 2012 by AddictedToScopex

[Sportsman]

Interesting input from Nicepix.

It seems that by returning seriously injured fish you may not only be shirking your moral responsibility (in my opinion) but you may also be shirking your legal responsibility.

The grey area is how do you decide what injuries are serious enough to make it likely the fish won't survive.

 

There have been many studies done on fish survival following catch and release, on many different species in many different places. In almost all of them the greatest indicator of probable mortality is deep hooking, particularly if bleeding from the gills is involved. In some cases approaching 100% mortality over the next few days.

Other factors are time out of water (all that weighing and photographing) and bad or inappropriate handling (all that weighing and photographing)

 

(It should be noted that the weighing and photographing bit is my own opinion)

[robtherake]

I have always suspected that when small fish turn belly-up in a keep net, rather than the net being the cause of mortality, the angler is being confronted with something that would otherwise have happened anyway, out of sight and out of mind.

 

A good point, well made. Though I don't suppose the stress of being caged in a confined space with a solid mass of your finny brethren helps reduce panic and speed the recovery process overmuch.

[robtherake]

I was going to carry on the whole IMO thing but it would get boring pretty quickly. In my opinion anyway.

 

*Diclaimer. All views and feelings expressed by this user are simple opinion. Nothing more, nothing less. This user's comments should not be used as citation to support fact nor be considered in any way factually accurate. Anglers net does not condone or support any view or opinion published by this user or in fact any other user where scientific evidence cannot be provided in support of their argument. This user would like to make it clear that no moral standpoint can ever be deemed correct including his own and as such users can only share their standpoints and have no right to attempt to force them on others by drawing support from those of a similar age/moral disposition. This user would also like to make it clear that his 'cojones' are normal by the typical human standard and do not effect his wading ability in any way although this may have an effect on his ability to push sharp objects through the heads of various animals. If you disagree with the thoughts and opinions of this user feel free to send an email of complaint to nobodycares@MyOpinionOnYours.org.uk.

 

Swine! You beat me to the cheap shot.

[AddictedToScopex]

Interesting input from Nicepix.

It seems that by returning seriously injured fish you may not only be shirking your moral responsibility (in my opinion) but you may also be shirking your legal responsibility.

The grey area is how do you decide what injuries are serious enough to make it likely the fish won't survive.

 

There have been many studies done on fish survival following catch and release, on many different species in many different places. In almost all of them the greatest indicator of probable mortality is deep hooking, particularly if bleeding from the gills is involved. In some cases approaching 100% mortality over the next few days.

Other factors are time out of water (all that weighing and photographing) and bad or inappropriate handling (all that weighing and photographing)

 

(It should be noted that the weighing and photographing bit is my own opinion)

 

As you say, how can you define seriously injured accurately? I am sure if you deep hooked a salmon and bopped it on the head when you didnt have a license to do so you would be in pretty deep trouble but if it was an unintentional capture and an unfortunate deep hook then what choice do you have. The law would be fairly conflicted here I would have thought if you got dragged in front of a judge.

 

Do you know if any of the studies included deaths by simple stress of being caught? Serious question by the way, I am genuinely curious. How many fish (%) die as a result of just being caught? I would have thought the stress involved would be pretty high for the fish and a creature of that size surely doesnt cope well with the stresses it puts on their bodies.

Edited August 23, 2012 by AddictedToScopex

[Sportsman]

As you say, how can you define seriously injured accurately? I am sure if you deep hooked a salmon and bopped it on the head when you didnt have a license to do so you would be in pretty deep trouble but if it was an unintentional capture and an unfortunate deep hook then what choice do you have. The law would be fairly conflicted here I would have thought if you got dragged in front of a judge.

 

Do you know if any of the studies included deaths by simple stress of being caught? Serious question by the way, I am genuinely curious. How many fish (%) die as a result of just being caught? I would have thought the stress involved would be pretty high for the fish and a creature of that size surely doesnt cope well with the stresses it puts on their bodies.

 

It seems that most fish released in good condition will survive and a lot depends on variables such as water temp, dissolved oxygen and species of fish. By far and away the worst thing is where the fish is hooked. Lip hooked fish have a much greater chance of survival that deep hooked fish. The other problem with deep hooking is that the fish often spends longer out of the water whilst attempts continue to retrieve the hook.

This was an interesting snippet taken from an Alaskan fishing site.

 

" A recent study done at Queens University in Ontario, Canada which looked at physiological effects of brief air exposure in exhaustively exercised (played out) rainbow trout (oncorhynchus mykiss), is very revealing and educational toward showing just how precarious and detrimental, improper catch and releasing fishing can be. I will be the first to say that even as a professional fishing guide and well accomplished recreational sportfisherman, I did not know all the facts when it comes to releasing the quarry of my angling efforts.

 

I will attempt to share with you the most scientifically substantiated information I have seen on catch and release methods. The study looked at survival rates of played out rainbow trout that were also exposed to air for 60 seconds, 30 seconds, and 0 seconds. Additionally, the survival rates on non-exercised rainbow trout were used as a control for the study. Get ready, the results are surprising.

 

As you'd expect, the control group had a 100% survival rate. The rainbow trout that were exhaustively exercised and not exposed to air survived at an 88% rate. However, the rate of survival for fish exposed to air for 30 seconds was only 62%, and those that were held out of the water for 60 seconds had a mere 28% chance of living to fight another day. The researchers attributed the higher mortality among fish exposed to air to a significant reduction of oxygen content in the fish's blood.

 

If these statistics leave you wondering or unconvinced, consider the following analogy: Holding a fish out of the water for 60 seconds or even 30 seconds would be like a human running full speed for a half an hour and then immediately being submerged in water for up to one full minute. Many of us would not fare very well under those conditions and if we did survive, we'd surely carry some ill effects, some possibly permanent.

 

This study will change the pace of my Kodak moment and expedite the time it takes me to put my catch back into the water. Ideally, keeping the fish submerged in the water while you take pictures will help tremendously toward making sure the fish doesn't eventually go belly up.

 

Some other important methods for handling fish you intend to release include touching the fish as little as possible, not squeezing the fish, and never putting your fingers inside the fish's gills. The more you handle a fish and run your hand(s) along its sides, the more that fish is likely to be depleted of its protective slime layer, thus increasing its risk of fungal infection and decreasing its ability to gracefully cut through the water."

 

It seems to support my opinion on all of that weighing and photographing (which is why I selected it )