Some Myths about Catch and Release

[Anday1981]

I know many people struggle with proper catch and release when fishing. There are also lots of myths about this practice and myths are mostly not true. Here are some myths that people believe about catch and release;

Before that, here is the government's recommendations on proper catch and release.

• The fish is okay if it swims off

This is not true. many people have released fish and two hours later the fish turns up belly up dead. The only way to prevent things like this is to put in the best catch and release practices all the time. Failure to do that, even if the fish swims off, it is possible it might not survive.

• Placing the fish on the rock for a short time does no harm

When you take a fish out of the water, try as much as possible not to set it on anything. Whether it is rocks, grass or anything else. Even if the fish is wet, every second it spends out of the water reduces its chances of surviving.

• Not catching and releasing properly makes you a bad person

This is not true. As much as the goal of catch and release is to release fish so it can grow, if you fail to do that, nobody will call PETA on you and neither with the gods of trouts prevent you from catching fish. We all should just make sure we put in good practice as often as possible. There are some other myths but if you are ever going to practice a really good catch and release, it makes sense to have a good fly reel. You can get some ideas here.

 

[Brian in OR.]

Here's another myth....

There are some other myths but if you are ever going to practice a really good catch and release, it makes sense to have a good fly reel. You can get some ideas here.

 

[Rob Allen]

catch and release the way we have been doing it since the 1970s works just fine. If it didn't Montana trout streams would be empty

 

[Buzzy]

@Anday1981 - Welcome to the forum. What fish do you find most enjoyable to catch and release in a sensible and responsible way? Where's home?

Here's something that isn't a myth - despite best practices of catch and release fishing, there will be mortality. It happens. The only way to ensure no mortality is to cease fishing.

 

[NRC]

When you get your fish to the beach, make sure to coat it in sand so the sun doesn’t damage its scales. The fish will often do this for you by flopping around.

 

[Stonefish]

When you get your fish to the beach, make sure to coat it in sand so the sun doesn’t damage its scales. The fish will often do this for you by flopping around.

Or kill it, then post on the internet asking people to identify what type of fish you caught.....
SF

 

[Nogz]

Let it be known that I do practice proper catch and release techniques but am still a bad person.

 

[Rocking Chair Fan]

@Anday1981 - Welcome to the forum. What fish do you find most enjoyable to catch and release in a sensible and responsible way? Where's home?

Here's something that isn't a myth - despite best practices of catch and release fishing, there will be mortality. It happens. The only way to ensure no mortality is no fish exist.

FIFY

 

[gt]

when i was actively fishing the strait for salmon, unclipped to clipped ration was probably in the range of 20-1. if the fish was bleeding, into the fish box irregardless. i knew it would not survive so why release. getting a citation is not a big deal and with one WDFW officer for 2 counties, i never even saw the guy working anywhere. oh, and the fish always stayed in the knotless release net, in the water, until i could identify clipped or not.

 

[Irafly]

when i was actively fishing the strait for salmon, unclipped to clipped ration was probably in the range of 20-1. if the fish was bleeding, into the fish box irregardless. i knew it would not survive so why release. getting a citation is not a big deal and with one WDFW officer for 2 counties, i never even saw the guy working anywhere. oh, and the fish always stayed in the knotless release net, in the water, until i could identify clipped or not.

Would you like me to tell you some other reason besides the fear of a fine as to the reason you should have released those fish?

 

[Dr. Magill]

I think barbless hooks are a must

 

[Dr. Magill]

Would you like me to tell you some other reason besides the fear of a fine as to the reason you should have released those fish?

I would!!

 

[gt]

Would you like me to tell you some other reason besides the fear of a fine as to the reason you should have released those fish?

SURE

 

[Irafly]

SURE

First, posting this on the internet literally communicates to others that the rules don't matter, that they can simply excuse the action because the fish is bleeding. You just gave them an excuse to also be a poacher. And yes, you did admit to being a poacher.

Next, a fish that is bleeding does not mean that it will die. This has been proven, time and time again. So your ultimate argument is moot.

If the fish does die, which they will do regardless of how careful we are, the fish is not wasted by being returned to the water. All sorts of critters that are ultimately beneficial to the environment will gladly make a meal out of it.

You literally have no idea where that fish is heading. You claim that it is an "unclipped" fish, but you don't know that, you just suspect that it is. It could also be from a truly depleted stock of fish that is just holding on. Not cool man.

Oh, and I already mentioned this, but it also makes you a poacher. You ok with that label?

 

[Bowbonehead]

If we eliminated cameras and phones we would save a lot of fish ......... social media may be the biggest issue they face ........