Catch and Release

[trophypikehunter]

For the last 7 days I've been pike fishing and I notice alot of boats with stringers full of pike and I noticed last nite a group of shore fishermen with coolers and everything they caught they kept, for the benifit of the doubt will say everyone was with in there limit, well here's my question what if we all limited out every time we fished would there be any fish left and what would it be like in 5 years? the last 7 days I caught 28 pike all be it 3 of those days I could of taken 6 home here on Simcoe but I dont keep any and it makes me angry when I see everybody else not practicing C&R I'm not saying throw everything back but limit your catch, almost makes me not want to fish anymore maybe I just need to get over it cause things might not ever change

[johnnyb]

Interesting one. My buddy keeps everything he can possibly justify keeping...on the two or MAYBE three trips he gets out. Per year. I don't have a problem with him gunning for his limit and filling his freezer, because he hardly ever goes out, and he NEVER goes over his limit....in fact rarely gets to his limit. On the other hand, if he was getting out two or three times a month, I would speak up and suggest that maybe he doesn't need to be so gung-ho...not that he could catch that many fish consistently

I too have a problem with the guys that will catch their limit faster than they can eat it...just not necessary, and not something that's going to help any of us catch more fish in the future.

I think the big question that you hit on is, what can we do to make things better/change? Approaching a boat with full stringers is not likely the way to do it...so what else is there? I think the more we can all show that it's better and more beneficial for future fishing opportunities to be responsible with our catch, be that to our fellow board members, kids, fishing buddies, or anyone we talk fishing with, the better the chance that we can turn the tide.

[danbouck]

That's why the fish in their freezer counts towards their limit. Some people really like to eat fish and if they decide to keep their limit every couple weeks or as fast as they can eat them then the are allowed to do so. We should be glad that there are a lot C&R anglers out there.

[Greencoachdog]

If folks would keep their limit of small fish and return the large ones to breed there would't be a problem... but that doesn't happen very often.

 

I may keep 2% of the fish I catch in a year, and the big ones always go back!!!

 

Eating the smaller fish is better for the fishery and better for you (less contaminants), I try to imbue this in everyone I fish with.

 

I'm also teaching the fish not to bite a hook thru my C&R practices and it seems to be working better than I expected this year, because I can't catch any fish!!!

 

Whenever I go Crappie fishin' with my buddy Lester, he tries to tell me Crapie are a lot harder to catch nowadays because the stocked Striped Bass are eating them all ... I tell him no, it's the 9 zillion other people like you that keep every Crappie they catch that're eating them.. he doesn't like that very much!

Edited May 30, 2009 by GCD

[cranks bait]

I usually practice catch and release. Although I have kept all the walleyes I've caught in the last three years (one). I've kept two small pike this year out of the 30 I've caught. I might keep about 4 bass a month when in season. Like Dawg, I would say I'm in a low percentile of keeping fish.

[mikeh]

I think you're always going to see people with stringers of fish, if they are within there legal limit then some people will keep them and others like yourself like to get out on the water for the sport and release your fish so you can catch them the next day.

 

Hopefully you'll be able to catch Musky in Cooks Bay soon, maybe when they hold up there stringer to show you look to see if they have any Musky on it and if they do explain that they have to put them back.

[Guest ThisPlaceSucks]

I'm also teaching the fish not to bite a hook thru my C&R practices and it seems to be working better than I expected this year, because I can't catch any fish!!!

 

haha! i think we all practice this form of C and R sometimes.

 

 

There is nothing wrong with keeping your limit in the eyes of the law.

Unfortunately, as certain species of fish are degraded, you will see limits slowly lowered and restrictions on recreational fishing imposed.

I love to eat fish, but if I can release a fish I will. I catch enough fish in a year that I can keep myself (and my fish loving grandmother) happy by only keeping fish that I think are fatally wounded or stressed due to fighting.

Edited May 30, 2009 by Dr. Salvelinus

[Fishnwire]

Unfortunately, some people will never see the connection between keeping a lot of fish and declining fish populations. Some of these people also seem equate throwing a good eater back with going into their freezer and throwing away a perfectly good steak. The second they've boated that fish they feel they own it...and I guess they do.

 

One time my buddy and I were ice fishing for crappie and and ol' timer came along and startesd talking to us. he told us we were wasting our time trying to catch crappie there, because they had all moved on years ago.

 

"We used to catch 'em by the 5 gallon pail, garbage bags at at time." he said. And then had the nerve to say, "Now they're all gone. I don't know what happened."

 

Unfortunately, there's no law against being stupid.

[yakpiker]

I don't know why, but there do seem to be fewer fish today in many bodies of water in Southern Ontario. Probably a combination of more anglers and improved fishing equipment and a general decline in the environment.

 

I'm a catch and release angler who only keeps a fish when on remote trips where it can be prepared on the spot. The idea of keeping a limit every time I go fishing is not an option for me. And keeping large fish such as pike or walleye is distasteful and unhealthy given the contaminants they consume during their lifetime.

 

While keeping fish within limits is legal, it likely means that the number of fish will continue to decline. Maybe the limits need to be reduced further to protect us from ourselves.

[muddler]

I've been fishing now for 51 years. In that time fishing has evolved from the 5% of the fishermen catching 95% of the fish to the present where just about anyone can become a good fisherman in a very short time. What took years to learn now can be found on the internet in a couple of hours. Rods are way more sensitive, reels easier to cast than ever, lines are thinner and stronger, boats have become fishing machines. Electronics (GPS, sonar, temperature sensors, etc) make s finding a spot a snap. Developement in hooks, lures/baits and scents swing the odds further in the fisherman's favour. Throw in a bunch of educational TV shows and magazines an it gets easier and easier. Every couple of years a hot new bait or method hits the fishing industry with outstanding results (ie: wacky worms, drop shotting) and for a while it so easy to catch a ton of fish.

 

For some fishermen this an opportunity of a life time. Catch a limit and show it off and have a fish fry. The ego needs that I guess. Some of it is a culture. You simply keep it all because that's what fishing is all about. We can't unring the bell here. Since education has created so many good fisherman then it is education that must also teach responsible use of a resource. I don't know how that would be done, but we have done such a good job teaching everybody how to catch these fish, that maybe the tackle companies should also spend some resources teaching responsible conservation of a great outdoor past time so that the future will also have access to this wonderful sport. Perhaps includin proper release instruction on the back of tackle packaging. I don't know the answers. I do know, if we don't try something positive to chage our fishing habits, it (fishing) will get worse.

 

muddler

[snoil]

I'm catch and release 99% of the time.I bet that MOST of the fisher people here are too.I don't see the problem with people keeping their limit as long as they follow the rules.If if becomes a problem then the limits need to be lowered.We could start with the 50 perch on Simcoe.

[pike slayer]

limits are there for a reason, i'm sure they have researched and found what amount of fish can be taken home to sustain a healthy population. Also alot of are stocked for catching and taking home purposes. I'm sure alot of guys dont always come home with their limit especially if they fish more then once a week. If there was an actual problem im sure they would have lowered the limits or changed the regs on the body of water. I don't know about southern ontario but fishing here seem better then ever.

[bigugli]

If you want to compare fishing, now, with fishing back in the 1920's-40's, it is nowhere near what it used to be. If you make the same comparison with the 1970's and 80's, in Southern Ontario, things are much better. We have far better fisheries management, albeit underfunded. Whitfish and lakers were wiped out on Simcoe and other lakes and now make a comeback.

Yes a lot of anglers keep fish. Many obey the rules, many don't. Some still kill pike as a nuisance fish, believing it will help muskie and walleye populations by doing so. Those who regularly max out their catch are a minority. However, taking perch as a typical example, they have always been considered a food fish. People travel 2-8 hours to Simcoe for the purpose of getting a supply for that reason. Posession was also cut by half a few years back. You were allowed 2 days posession of limit for Simcoe perch, now it is one.

 

It's all a matter of perspective.

[Moosebunk]

I live on fisheries where probably 90% of people keep all of their angled, netted, nightlined and speared catches. Still good, but could be mind blowingly better.

[JerseyDog]

Female fish lay thousands of eggs. Only a few become actual fish for a lot of reasons - predation, food availbility and other constraints of the habitat.

 

As long as the angling pressure doesnt cause the breeding female population to crash (a la the cod fishery), then taking fish out of the ecosystem, even what would seem like a lot, shouldnt eliminate the species altogeher.

 

Fish populations are naturally cyclical like any other animals and human predation has been a factor for our fisheries for hundreds of years.

 

Anyway, of greater concern to me would be habitat loss, pollution, fishing during the spawn, etc. - anything that would impact the ability of the fish to lay thier thousands of eggs in the first place.

[Leecher]

My signature says it all

[Sinker]

I prefer selective harvest. I will admit, I'm quite the meat hunter, but I release any spawners. I like to keep the little guys for the table. I'd rather have my 4, 15" eyes, than 4 big ones anyday. That being said, its not every day I can manage a limit of fish. If you looked in my freezer right now, you would find one meal of perch, and two meals of crappies. I don't target panfish again until ice up, so I think I"m ok to keep a few when the bite is on.

 

I eat fish I've caught once a week. There's nothing wrong with that. Its within my legal rights, and I AM selective about what I keep. I also fish for any type of fish swimming, so its spread out quite a bit.

 

Sinker

[Kenny G]

C&R 90% of the time.

[Rizzo]

fish taste gross, I don't keep any