Ya Sal, I hear you. All we have to offer is anecdotal evidence, we aint biologists. But even using common sense, if there are say 100 or so 14”+ fish in a mile of stream, and 1 or 2 fish are harvested a week, would the number of larger fish be diminished? Ahh.....ya!
Further, I will add in some science. Removing the prime specimens can diminish the entire population of trout in both size and numbers. If the largest fish, the ones that first, have the propensity for growing large, second, are the hardiest and the most wary since they have beat the odds and lived the longest, all remained in the stream, they would naturally take the prime spawning habitat. Being the prime specimens in the stream and utilizing the best spawning habitat, the chances for survival of their offspring from egg to alevin to fry would increase, producing more fish. Further, the offspring of these superior fish would enhance the gene pool of the stream population, and help the overall trout population to grow larger in both size and number, by living longer, being more hardy, and having a propensity to grow larger.
It would be interesting to see the results.