May 29, 2022
It's every angler's
responsibility to care for their fish to insure
a healthy release. Tournament organizations
place large penalties on those who fail to keep
their fish alive. The anglers I know and see on
the water are constantly checking their
live-wells throughout the day and caring for
their catch. I am sure there are exceptions to
this, if we see poor fish care it is also our
responsibility to point it out and help to
correct it.
Tournament organizations also share in this
responsibility. There are many views on the best
ways to run a weigh-in. It is my opinion that
the most important thing that
any organization can do is shorten the time from
live-well to release. If you can limit
that time to a few minutes you are reducing the
chance of any delayed mortality.
U.S. Angler's Choice recently held a 300 boat
Championship on Grand Lake of the Cherokees. There
was one fish brought to the scales deceased,
likely due to a deep hook. There was also one
fish we removed from the check tank that we
believed would not survive at day's end. We saw
no floating or impaired fish the day after each
weigh-in. We had a GRDA release trailer at the
event that was limited in capacity (400lbs of fish I
believe). The trailer also reported all fish
released alive. Seventeen hundred and fifty fish
were brought to the scales at the event.
Studies tell us many of these
fish will expire after release "Delayed
Mortality". There is no doubt some fish may
expire after release, I agree with this. What I
do not agree with is the numbers that have been
created by these studies. In my opinion
these studies have multiplied the delayed mortality rates
by eliminating the natural recovery process and
adding days of additional stress.
Many of us have pets at home and
when they get sick the common thing
veterinarians will
tell you is put them somewhere away from people,
noises "stress". Generally we do not have to do
this because this is how we realized the animal
was sick to begin with. They went off to a quiet
area away from any stress.
Every study I have seen on
delayed mortality has eliminated the natural
recovery process. They have in fact, applied,
additional stress to already stressed fish by
confining them with large numbers of other fish
in cages, pens, netted enclosures etc. The
stress of the situation can be confirmed by the
mortality of the control group. Although the
control group mortalities are statistically
minimal they are a huge red flag to the accuracy
of these studies. If healthy control groups have
mortality how is that "multiplied" when the fish
already have a day of stress and are admittedly
sick.
The veterinarian did not tell you to put
your sick animal in a single pen with hundreds
of other animals. The mortality studies have
removed the natural recovery process. There is
no doubt these fish have one, whether they seek
out higher oxygen rates, water temps, water
depths, solitude or all. These studies have
removed this ability and applied days of
additional stress to the fish through the study.
If these opinions have
scientific merit, which I believe they do, it is
critical that it be realized and acknowledged by
the Fisheries
community. These studies are being used to
limit access and limit our sport.
Placing limitations and mandates on events using
data that may be flawed is happening.
It's an acknowledgment that we
may never get. People are resistant to admitting
that they may have got it wrong. I have also
recognized a resistance by "some" within the
Fisheries community
to oppose other's views publicly. These are
their peers. Then you have
the politics of the whole situation of immediate
release vs. conventional tournaments. Proponents
of catch weigh and release wish to use these
studies as reason to change the industry. There
is also the money element, professional opinions are
valuable when they have that degree or pedigree.
The Fisheries community,
however, is full of good people doing everything
they can to enhance fisheries. These people are
willing to examine theories, ideas and opinions.
They understand that difference of opinion is
how you ultimately "Get Things Right". It
provokes thought and conversation.
There currently is no way to
allow fish to go through their natural recovery
process and study delayed mortality without
adding additional stress. When you add that
additional stress there is no way to calculate
how much you have multiplied your end result. No
study is perfect but in my opinion the delayed
mortality studies I have read are flawed.
Adding stress on top of stress
is a killer. I have seen this as a director and
as an angler. After the spawn, fish are
stressed. They are sick and when you apply
additional stress they can expire quickly. The
major spawn event is impossible to time with
accuracy. Post spawn events have the highest
mortality rates. From my experience, these rates
are much higher than mid Summer events. Stress
on top of Stress, kills fish.
It is my hope this opinion piece
provokes thought and conversation. "Getting it
Right" is critical to the future of tournament
bass fishing.
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