Oregon_OwlII
Well-known member
About a 15-minute video on the best and the worst practices for fish mortality after release.
Fish handling and mortality. A review of the studies. Wet hands myth-busting.
- Thread starter Oregon_OwlII
- Start date
wildtrout2
Well-known member
I just learned a few things. Thanks for sharing that. I'll continue to wet my hands though. 😉
Mikey2006
Well-known member
I’ll keep wetting my hands just because I don’t like the feeling of having fish slime on them
Dr.J 1952
Active member
I watched that video on YouTube last night. It reiterates the things I’ve known for years. I read about the same issues in Fly Fisherman magazine many years ago. I get regular emails from Fly Fish Food. They are in Utah and Lance Egan is associated with them.
wildtrout2
Well-known member
The fish mortality rate he mentions between barbless and barbed hooks does differ from what I've heard/read in the past.
TroutHunter814
Active member
That’s very good
Thanks for sharing this!
Thanks for sharing this!
rustbeltwilds
Well-known member
Trout are tough if you only knew how we handled them at the hatchery you would think different
CRB
Well-known member
Good video
It's different than what Mike has shared....
The Rodfather
Well-known member
Meanwhile...they literally drop them from planes into the rivers.
wildtrout2
Well-known member
You're right.
Kms
Well-known member
Same. And I’ll keep using barbless hooks because they’re easier to remove from my fingers.
Studies about things such as fish mortality are often flawed and/or can be skewed or manipulated to bring about a desired result.
Rather than on relying on studies alone, why not combine common sense and science together to determine an outcome.
Barbless hooks are easier and faster to remove (I can't see how anyone that has fished with both can say this is not true) and less handling and faster release of a fish is one the keys to increasing its chance of survival.
Therefore using barbless hooks will increase the survival rate of fish. Take both facts, speed of removal with barbless hooks and faster release time and less handling increases survival and one can confidently conclude barbless hooks decrease fish mortality.
Here's another one........a big one. No need to study this:
Stocking over wild trout harms the wild trout population.
Adding hundreds or thousands of hatchery raised fish over a population of wild trout in a stream at its carrying capacity will stress and cause harm to the resident wild trout.
Hatchery fish can can carry and introduce disease and/or invasive species in a stream and decimate a wild trout population.
Concentrating fishing pressure in certain sections and during certain times can harm and/or deplete the wild trout population.
The above points about carrying capacity, disease and concentrated fishing pressure are facts.
With common sense and science together, one can only conclude, without a study, that stocking over wild trout is harmful to wild trout.
Rather than on relying on studies alone, why not combine common sense and science together to determine an outcome.
Barbless hooks are easier and faster to remove (I can't see how anyone that has fished with both can say this is not true) and less handling and faster release of a fish is one the keys to increasing its chance of survival.
Therefore using barbless hooks will increase the survival rate of fish. Take both facts, speed of removal with barbless hooks and faster release time and less handling increases survival and one can confidently conclude barbless hooks decrease fish mortality.
Here's another one........a big one. No need to study this:
Stocking over wild trout harms the wild trout population.
Adding hundreds or thousands of hatchery raised fish over a population of wild trout in a stream at its carrying capacity will stress and cause harm to the resident wild trout.
Hatchery fish can can carry and introduce disease and/or invasive species in a stream and decimate a wild trout population.
Concentrating fishing pressure in certain sections and during certain times can harm and/or deplete the wild trout population.
The above points about carrying capacity, disease and concentrated fishing pressure are facts.
With common sense and science together, one can only conclude, without a study, that stocking over wild trout is harmful to wild trout.
Bamboozle
Well-known member
I think nets & cameras kill more fish than barbed hooks and dry hands because they add more time to the landing process than folks think, as the net is only deployed to ensure landing the fish for the photo op...
I don't take fish pictures any more because no matter how much I denied it, I knew that the process added WAY more time between hookset and release. Because I release everything I catch, don't take pictures and I'm inclined to lie 😉, I also don't fret long about fish that get away for one reason or the other.
In regards to nets, I rarely use or carry one when wading. I prefer to reach back with the rod and grab my line past the tip top like I do when I use Tenkara gear. Then I pull the fish in, grasp it by its lower lip and remove the hook with the fish IN the water. Even with a barbed hook, this process takes a few seconds.
Yea, I get a ragged thumb in the process, but it beats fumbling for a net, trying to guide the fish into the opening and lifting the fish OUT of the water to remove the fly. MAYBE sometimes a net would save a little time, but excluding a few bruisers, in my experience and in all honestly that isn't often.
As an example, I fish a couple of places for trout where wading is impossible so I employ a long handled net to avoid dragging them up a bank and throwing them back in the water. Even though I horse-in those fish, the whole release process takes WAY longer than just grabbing them by the lip.
In regards to tippet size and I've said this more than a few times; take a rod rigged up with 6X or 7X, tie on a fly and jab firmly it into a spot low on a tree trunk, hold the fly line and pull against the fly with your rod until it breaks. Do it a couple of times then think about whether you are landing trout that are capable of exerting that much pressure on your tippet...
I fish a LOT of fine tippets because of the tiny sized flies I like to use. If you watched the way I yank in fish on 7X, you would think I was using 3X. Even 8X is a LOT stronger than you think. Bottom line, if you have confidence in your tippet and/or your fishing line, you will land your fish a LOT faster.
I couldn't imagine fishing midges or Tricos with regularity on a super fast rod so I'll add that the moderate action rods I prefer are helpful with lunges on light tippets. But because of my experience with Tenkara, I am in the habit of playing a fish only as long as it takes me to be able to grab my line past the tip top and pull in the fish.
This "style" of landing fish really cuts down on the amount of time it takes me to unhook a fish and negates any overplaying of fish, even on rods with less backbone.
My $ .02
I don't take fish pictures any more because no matter how much I denied it, I knew that the process added WAY more time between hookset and release. Because I release everything I catch, don't take pictures and I'm inclined to lie 😉, I also don't fret long about fish that get away for one reason or the other.
In regards to nets, I rarely use or carry one when wading. I prefer to reach back with the rod and grab my line past the tip top like I do when I use Tenkara gear. Then I pull the fish in, grasp it by its lower lip and remove the hook with the fish IN the water. Even with a barbed hook, this process takes a few seconds.
Yea, I get a ragged thumb in the process, but it beats fumbling for a net, trying to guide the fish into the opening and lifting the fish OUT of the water to remove the fly. MAYBE sometimes a net would save a little time, but excluding a few bruisers, in my experience and in all honestly that isn't often.
As an example, I fish a couple of places for trout where wading is impossible so I employ a long handled net to avoid dragging them up a bank and throwing them back in the water. Even though I horse-in those fish, the whole release process takes WAY longer than just grabbing them by the lip.
In regards to tippet size and I've said this more than a few times; take a rod rigged up with 6X or 7X, tie on a fly and jab firmly it into a spot low on a tree trunk, hold the fly line and pull against the fly with your rod until it breaks. Do it a couple of times then think about whether you are landing trout that are capable of exerting that much pressure on your tippet...
I fish a LOT of fine tippets because of the tiny sized flies I like to use. If you watched the way I yank in fish on 7X, you would think I was using 3X. Even 8X is a LOT stronger than you think. Bottom line, if you have confidence in your tippet and/or your fishing line, you will land your fish a LOT faster.
I couldn't imagine fishing midges or Tricos with regularity on a super fast rod so I'll add that the moderate action rods I prefer are helpful with lunges on light tippets. But because of my experience with Tenkara, I am in the habit of playing a fish only as long as it takes me to be able to grab my line past the tip top and pull in the fish.
This "style" of landing fish really cuts down on the amount of time it takes me to unhook a fish and negates any overplaying of fish, even on rods with less backbone.
My $ .02
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nativebrownie
Member
- Joined
- Mar 1, 2009
- Messages
- 75
Seems like centuries ago in time and mind set, but I worked with a conservation stream watcher group and we posted discrete signs to "use barbless and then release with a simple twist." In catch & release waters, everyone that we met just agreed - made sense.
Times and mind sets have changed, greatly...
Lee Wulff argued that the spinning outfit was a major threat to the Battenkill as there were now far fewer deep water sanctuaries for large trout.
The camera ( and a mind set) is now a major threat to any endangered population of wild trout...
Times and mind sets have changed, greatly...
Lee Wulff argued that the spinning outfit was a major threat to the Battenkill as there were now far fewer deep water sanctuaries for large trout.
The camera ( and a mind set) is now a major threat to any endangered population of wild trout...
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Bamboozle
Well-known member
Just wondering...
Based on all of these studies, I would venture to guess we all should be seeing a LOT of dead fish.
I can only speak for myself, but I ain't seeing it and that's across both stocked and wild trout streams with and without a lot of pressure.
Yea, I know there are critters that eat the dead fish, but I've come across a few that were far from recent deaths which leads me to believe at those places there were less scavengers but I'm still not seeing a lot of dead fish.
Another thing, without any hard statistics to prove it, but I've seen more dead fish at C&R Special Regulation sections than anywhere and I'm not just talking about C&R Artificials sections. I've seen my share on FFO sections too.
Based on all of these studies, I would venture to guess we all should be seeing a LOT of dead fish.
I can only speak for myself, but I ain't seeing it and that's across both stocked and wild trout streams with and without a lot of pressure.
Yea, I know there are critters that eat the dead fish, but I've come across a few that were far from recent deaths which leads me to believe at those places there were less scavengers but I'm still not seeing a lot of dead fish.
Another thing, without any hard statistics to prove it, but I've seen more dead fish at C&R Special Regulation sections than anywhere and I'm not just talking about C&R Artificials sections. I've seen my share on FFO sections too.
rustbeltwilds
Well-known member
The new to sport younger you tubers are killing alot of spots that were pretty under the radar. Its a narcissisitic generation that dont think fully the ramifactions of exploiting frafile populations of wild fish. Smh🧐
sandflyx
Well-known member
fishing below 32 degrees in winter is killing a lot of fish. gill filliments freeze and fish swim away only to suffacate after people move on. have seen this on some of the local creeks.
rustbeltwilds
Well-known member
Its the you tubers seeking fame n glory its a rash
