I was out today doing some carp fishing and I noticed a fish tailing just off shore near me. I went to look and thought at first it was a trout, but when it didn't run at my approach I looked closer and realized it was a sucker, and it was mangled, alive but damaged.
I thought to myself, I dunno how this happened but It is a good opportunity for me to get a few shots and use them when I host clinic/workshops/derbies to show how important it is to handle fish carefully and with respect and care.
I know many people say it's just a sucker...sure but its a hard fighting fish and part of the ecosystem. Today it's just a sucker, tomorrow a carp, then just a pickerel, just a pike a bass a trout etc etc. I know this is preaching in a way but I feel strongly about this as I love to fish and all too many times I have seen people throw fish off bridges, into the woods, hit em with rock etc for no real reason. These are fish that I could have caught later and now they are dead.
Anyway, it isn't always for no reason. Sometimes, the person really does care, but they are misguided about fish care. Maybe a fish swallowed a hook, and instead of letting the hook rust out by cutting the line close and returning the fish to water, the person digs into the throat, pulls out some of the fishes insides while blood pours out the gills. They may have gotten the hook, but the fish will more then likely die.
I won't ramble on and on but I just wanted to remind people when we are out there, please take care of the fish so that all of us can enjoy the sport we love. Don't let it come to this:
I thought to myself, I dunno how this happened but It is a good opportunity for me to get a few shots and use them when I host clinic/workshops/derbies to show how important it is to handle fish carefully and with respect and care.
I know many people say it's just a sucker...sure but its a hard fighting fish and part of the ecosystem. Today it's just a sucker, tomorrow a carp, then just a pickerel, just a pike a bass a trout etc etc. I know this is preaching in a way but I feel strongly about this as I love to fish and all too many times I have seen people throw fish off bridges, into the woods, hit em with rock etc for no real reason. These are fish that I could have caught later and now they are dead.
Anyway, it isn't always for no reason. Sometimes, the person really does care, but they are misguided about fish care. Maybe a fish swallowed a hook, and instead of letting the hook rust out by cutting the line close and returning the fish to water, the person digs into the throat, pulls out some of the fishes insides while blood pours out the gills. They may have gotten the hook, but the fish will more then likely die.
I won't ramble on and on but I just wanted to remind people when we are out there, please take care of the fish so that all of us can enjoy the sport we love. Don't let it come to this:
I was going to post again but remembered that I had a long time ago.
I wanted to bump this because I notice a great deal of mishandling through-out the angling community. Sometimes people don't understand, or sometimes they were just taught a previous generations bad habits.
Through my years of fishing I have dealt with hundreds of mangled, injured, and worse dead fish. Just recently this year I had to clean up a few 8-10 pound carp out of a local favorite spot of mine, possibly due to human conduct.
When fishing catch and release. Please use barbless hooks when possible. If you use barbed, at the very least use some common sense and care when removing the hook from the mouths. Minimize tearing and ripping, fish with broken, torn or missing mouths will not eat and will suffer in the end.
Use a net. These are easily come by and if your unwilling to spend the amount it costs then perhaps you need to rethink your priorities in the first place. Dragging a fish on the ground, over docks, through the air etc will do nothing but cause harm to a fish. When a fish, regardless of size, has a hook in them and they dangle through the air the hook inevitable rips and tears where it is in. Fish were designed to handle their weight in water, not in the air or on the ground.
Keep your hands and the fish wet when handling them. Fish are covered in a slime coat that protects them from sickness, bacteria, infection and the like. Anytime that coat is damaged the fish is susceptible to all of the above. This can lead to minor illness, rot, death or even contagious sickness that could kill dozens of fish. Having a small bucket of water and some sort of unhooking mat, even a plastic bag to lay the fish on can help a lot.
When you release a fish, regardless of size, place it in the water and support it till it swims off. DO NOT just throw them in from shore, off a bridge, dock etc. Again fish are meant to support their weight in water not falling from heights. Many times they are stressed and tired and though they may look like they swim away the shock could result in death later. They have organs as well and a hard splash could cause a bone to rupture an air bladder or other vital part resulting in maiming or death.
This may seem like nothing to some, but these few steps can go a long way toward ensuring the future of our fisheries. By learning to care for the fish, the water, the banks and each other the sport of fishing can have a bright future full of large trophy fish and happy anglers. All it takes is a little effort on every anglers part to make sure they fish responsibly, treat the fish, the banks and others with respect. One day I would like to enjoy a trip where I don't see trash/fishing line/lures/hooks/weights/mangled or dead fish or have someone tell me I can't eat fish because of pollution. It may be a dream I never see, but I do believe we can continue to make differences by implementing small changes in our own behaviors.
I wanted to bump this because I notice a great deal of mishandling through-out the angling community. Sometimes people don't understand, or sometimes they were just taught a previous generations bad habits.
Through my years of fishing I have dealt with hundreds of mangled, injured, and worse dead fish. Just recently this year I had to clean up a few 8-10 pound carp out of a local favorite spot of mine, possibly due to human conduct.
When fishing catch and release. Please use barbless hooks when possible. If you use barbed, at the very least use some common sense and care when removing the hook from the mouths. Minimize tearing and ripping, fish with broken, torn or missing mouths will not eat and will suffer in the end.
Use a net. These are easily come by and if your unwilling to spend the amount it costs then perhaps you need to rethink your priorities in the first place. Dragging a fish on the ground, over docks, through the air etc will do nothing but cause harm to a fish. When a fish, regardless of size, has a hook in them and they dangle through the air the hook inevitable rips and tears where it is in. Fish were designed to handle their weight in water, not in the air or on the ground.
Keep your hands and the fish wet when handling them. Fish are covered in a slime coat that protects them from sickness, bacteria, infection and the like. Anytime that coat is damaged the fish is susceptible to all of the above. This can lead to minor illness, rot, death or even contagious sickness that could kill dozens of fish. Having a small bucket of water and some sort of unhooking mat, even a plastic bag to lay the fish on can help a lot.
When you release a fish, regardless of size, place it in the water and support it till it swims off. DO NOT just throw them in from shore, off a bridge, dock etc. Again fish are meant to support their weight in water not falling from heights. Many times they are stressed and tired and though they may look like they swim away the shock could result in death later. They have organs as well and a hard splash could cause a bone to rupture an air bladder or other vital part resulting in maiming or death.
This may seem like nothing to some, but these few steps can go a long way toward ensuring the future of our fisheries. By learning to care for the fish, the water, the banks and each other the sport of fishing can have a bright future full of large trophy fish and happy anglers. All it takes is a little effort on every anglers part to make sure they fish responsibly, treat the fish, the banks and others with respect. One day I would like to enjoy a trip where I don't see trash/fishing line/lures/hooks/weights/mangled or dead fish or have someone tell me I can't eat fish because of pollution. It may be a dream I never see, but I do believe we can continue to make differences by implementing small changes in our own behaviors.