Bigjay73
Well-known member
I have no slant towards one or the other, but if you couldn't keep any fish, would you still fish?
Would you fish if you had to release all fish?
- Thread starter Bigjay73
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Sheltowee
Well-known member
Can't remember the last time I killed a freshwater fish to eat it. 9, 10 years?
No mercy on redfish or cobia, though.
No mercy on redfish or cobia, though.
100%. My recreational fishing is C&R for the most part, anyway. There are only select places, times, and species where I'm fishing to keep. Certain non-natives, specially stocked waters, outside of spawning seasons, stuff like that.
recon6036
Well-known member
For sure! I use to fish Bass tournaments and Musky and never kept any.
My wife always said “you have that boat but never bring any fish home to eat.”
My wife always said “you have that boat but never bring any fish home to eat.”
David58
Well-known member
I fish C&R for trout, even when not necessarily required. But much of the pleasure of fishing for me is dinner. Not a full freezer, but dinner. I would likely not fish much if I could not keep some here and there.
David
NM->ID
David
NM->ID
I generally fish places I can keep fish and smoke them. Have property on a perch lake and definitely don’t release them.
Never understood the whole catch and release thing. I have too little time on my hands to play with fish.
Would folks shoot big game with rubber bullets just to satisfy a need?
The studies on how many catch and release fish die after release are staggering.
I’m sure the hate will come pouring in.
Never understood the whole catch and release thing. I have too little time on my hands to play with fish.
Would folks shoot big game with rubber bullets just to satisfy a need?
The studies on how many catch and release fish die after release are staggering.
I’m sure the hate will come pouring in.
WildWill
Well-known member
The answer is yes but not near as much. In freshwater it's probably less then 50% of the time I'm fishing to keep anything. Saltwater I'm fishing to fill the freezer and my belly 100% of the time.
Arcola
Well-known member
I probably would because I’d long to relive past experiences. That would probably fade over time and become a “no”. My boys though, hard no. I’ve spent way too much time convincing them to throw back dinks and stuff I don’t want to clean.
Well the studies I've read never looked at anglers who use small-size barbless hooks and keep the fish in the water during handling, which is a growing habit (and becoming law in some places). The school of thought that a fish can have it's mouth destroyed and be out of the water for a full minute and "be just fine" is fading by the day.
Gellar
Well-known member
I voted yes. But I rarely am not fishing to catch a meal. I do try to be responsible and only catch enough for a meal or 2 for our family at a time.
Brittany Chukarman
Well-known member
No. I release a lot of fish but would never go if that was the goal. There has to be a harvest.
Where I live, it’s barbless single hooks. They claim a 1-5% mortality rate, higher when water temps are higher. Some might call me nitpicking, but there are 3 major guide services that put a chit load of people on the water mid June-September. A lot of vulnerable cutthroat are floating belly up down that river system.
CRJR45
Well-known member
I fished a lot of Tournaments on Erie and when you caught smallmouth deep , they had to be fizzed before they could descend . The mortality rate was pretty high on those . But I caught the same bass under the same tree all summer , every weekend almost . Catching them shallow doesn't seem to affect them as much .
Johnny Bravo
Well-known member
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I don’t keep any now…so no change for how I already fish.
