Many Anglers Finding a Way to Get Off the Limit Hook

A conservation-minded fisherman was saying he felt sorry for hunters, who are unable to practice their sport without depleting the resource.

“You can’t shoot and release a deer,” he said.

But an angler can catch and release a fish and, as the Eastern Sierra trout season opens Saturday, the practice is catching on. Hook ‘em and cook ‘em is on the way out.

It’s easy to catch and release a fish--saltwater or fresh--and there are advantages to doing so.

First, with limits in force, as in California where the maximum daily trout take was cut in half to five last year, an angler can keep fishing, as long as he is releasing. Otherwise, what’s he to do the rest of the day?

Or, if he has no taste for fish, he doesn’t have to keep any--which also means he doesn’t have to clean them. To some anglers, the fun is in the catching, not the keeping--and they can feel real good about themselves for preserving the population. Those fish will live to grow and be caught again.

Is it possible that an angler’s son or daughter--or grandson or granddaughter--might catch the same fish he caught years before?

The California Department of Fish and Game encourages catch and release, but does not discourage keeping. To many, the taste of freshly caught trout is an uncommon treat--and anyone who pays $22.60 for a license he might use two or three days a year deserves all the fish he can legally keep.

But more releases mean less pressure on the hatcheries, which already are under a strain to meet the angling demands of the nation’s most populous state. The conservation lobby CalTrout estimates the cost of each hatchery fish at $1.85.

Most big game saltwater tournaments now practice catch and release. The ones that don’t are called “kill” tournaments, in which some responsible anglers would never enter.

All of the organized bass tournaments are catch and release. The competitors keep their fish in “live wells” on their boats and return them to the water after weighing them in at the end of the day. There also is the added advantage of replacing a smaller catch with a larger one before checking in. Bass tournaments boast when they complete the competition without a single kill.

The ethic is practiced religiously by fly-fishermen. Critics call them snobs and accuse them of “ripping lips”--mutilating fish by hooking and releasing them, time and again.

Fly anglers counter: “You’d prefer we killed them?”

The dispute has raged for years whether fish feel pain. Dick Thies of Long Beach, executive vice president of the Fly Fishing Federation, says, “The whole argument is kind of dumb because fish do not have nervous systems which react to pain. They react solely to instinct.”

Besides, Thies asks, “How can you consider it torture to catch and release a fish but not torture to catch and kill a fish?”

There are exceptions. Where fish are thick and forage is limited, their growth and life span are stunted.

Thies says, “I generally keep and eat dozens of golden trout in the Sierra because many little-fished streams are so overpopulated that culling helps the remaining hordes to gain a bit more size and health.”

Lee Wulff, a legend among fly-fishermen, was a pioneer of catch and release. In 1964 he uttered the words that became its precept: “A game fish is too valuable to be caught only once.”

Later, the Federation of Fly Fishers, organized in 1965, promoted the idea with: “Limit your kill. Don’t kill your limit.”

The group later incorporated the motto “Catch & Release” in its logo.

In the past five years, the Bob Marriott fly-fishing stores in Los Angeles and Orange counties have introduced 5,000 beginning anglers to the ethic. Multiply that by similar programs conducted regularly by other stores and the 23 fly clubs in the federation’s

Catch and release is easy for fly anglers, a little more difficult for bait fishermen. Fish generally don’t swallow artificial flies or lures. Most fly anglers use barbless hooks to facilitate removal--in fact, some designated “wild trout” streams require artificials and single, barbless hooks.

Glenn Tinnin, a guide at Lee’s Ferry in Arizona, says the thing to keep in mind when handling a fish is, “Don’t hold a fish out of water any longer than you’d want somebody to hold your head under water.”

Thies says, “Over the years we’ve left out an important word: catch, revive and release. The mortality rate goes up substantially unless the fish is properly revived.”

If an angler takes too long to land a fish, it also can die from the buildup of lactic acid due to stress--but not until as much as two hours after the angler thinks he has successfully released it.

Bob Grider of the DFG’s Mt. Whitney Fish Hatchery also cautions anglers not to handle a fish they plan to release.

“Any time you touch them with your hands you’re doing additional damage by removing the (protective) mucous,” Grider said. “It’s better if you can leave ‘em in the water while you just reach down and take the hook out.”

So you catch a whopper that you would like to have mounted in your den. Who’s going to believe you if you release it?

Most serious catch and release anglers carry a pocket camera, hand-held scale and tape measure. From a photo and statistics, modern taxidermy can produce a fiberglass replica that compares well to the real thing.

That’s what catch and release is all about. You can have your fish without eating him, too.

Some basics of catch and release:

--DFG study indicates that decreasing hook size from 4 to 8 may decrease fish mortality by 60%. Also, fish are released easily from single, barbless hooks.

--Don’t overplay him. A fish can die from exhaustion, especially in warm water. Use heavier leaders and try to land or net him as quickly as possible.

--For larger fish, use a net to reduce landing time. Use your hands for smaller fish. Don’t let it flop around on the ground or in the boat. Keep it in at least six inches of water.

--Cradle the fish in your hands behind the gills and near the tail, without squeezing. Avoid the gills and eyes. Try to keep the fish’s gills in the water. Three or four minutes out of the water can cause brain damage. Bass and small trout may be held by the lower jaw. Take pictures and measurements quickly.

--Use pliers or fishermen’s forceps to remove the hook. Try to keep the fish in the water. Never try to pull the hook free. If it is in too deep, snip the leader as close to the hook as possible. The hook will eventually dissolve, especially if it’s made of bronzed steel. A fish is worth more than a hook.

--Never throw one back into the water, but lower it horizontally. If it seems stunned or rolls belly up, point it into the current or, in still water, move it back and forth until its gills are working. It will swim away when it’s ready.

--With large fish, cutting the leader is often best. If a shark approaches your fish, let the fish run, or harden the drag to break the line. Use a release gaff, if you use one at all. If the fish seems disoriented, a gentle poke with a rod may cause it to swim away.

HOT SPOTS

Some Favorite California Fisheries :

Trout Unlimited: 1. Sacramento River, below Shasta Dam. 2. South Fork of Trinity River. 3. Russian River. 4. San Joaquin River, below Friant Dam. 5. Klamath River. 6. Feather River. 7. Owens River, below Crowley Dam. 8. Truckee River. 9. East Walker River. 10. Kern River.

Compiled by Marvin Silverman Federation of Fly Fishers: 1. Trinity River, Junction City area (steelhead, trout). 2. Fall River, Dana area (trout). 3. Hat Creek, Fall River Mills area (trout). 4. Lower Sacramento/Yuba Rivers, Chico area (shad, steelhead. 5. Twin Lakes (float tubing, trout). 6. Hot Creek (trout). 7. Owens River, Big Springs to Bishop (trout). 8. South Fork of Kings River, Cedar Grove area (trout). 9. Redondo Harbor (bonito, mackerel, barracuda). 10. Oso Reservoir (float tubing, bass).

Compiled by Dick Thies American Bass Association: 1. Lake Castaic. 2. Lake Casitas. 3. San Vicente Lake. 4. Lake Hodges. 5. Lake Perris. 6. Otay Lake. 7. El Capitan Lake. 8. Pyramid Lake. 9. Lake Cachuma. 10. Lake Silverwood

Compiled by Craig Sutherland CalTrout: 1. Hot Creek (rainbows, browns). 2. Heenan Lake, Alpine County (cutthroat). 3. Kirman Lake (brook). 4. Crowley Lake (float tube, Kamloops). 5. Manzanita Lake, Lassen National Park (browns). 6. East Walker (browns). 7. Middle Fork of San Joaquin (4 species). 8. Yellow Creek, near Lake Almanor (browns). 9. Truckee River (rainbows, browns). 10. Bear Creek (San Bernardino National Forest; browns)

Compiled by Jim Edmondson