Catch and Release the Pros vs. the Cons

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Eric DeLay on June 23, 2009 at 2:56pm

I believe that this topic became too emotionally charged the first time around so I deleted it.

I would like to say for the record that I don't freak out every time I see someone kill a bass. I am a firm believer in renewable resources, from the timber industry to game animals. I believe God put these animals on Earth for us to utilize and that we are supposed to be stewards of the land.

If you enjoy eating bass then eat 'em up. I would just urge those who choose to harvest these fish to do so responsibly. Know your lakes. Some lakes have too many 10"- 12" fish (Banks Lake may be a good example) and would actually benefit from harvest. Too much C&R may be hurting that fishery. I would say that any lake you can easily catch 15- 50 small fish in is over populated. Many lakes would benefit from the harvest of Yellow Perch, Northern Pikeminnows, Carp, etc....
Other lakes are very susceptible to over-harvest. I know a lot of the little lakes in the Federal Way/ Auburn area suffer from bank fishermen killing small fish by the bucketful. This information comes straight from the mouth of a Game Warden. There is one lake by my house that was shocked two nights in a row by biologists and they were shocked by how few bass were in it.

One thing I think we can all agree on, is that killing large fish is not good for anyone. They aren't as good to eat as smaller fish, they are the only fish in the lake that can keep the population of small fish under control, they are the funnest to catch, they take a long time to get that big, and they are the ones we want breeding every year.

I really hope that those who eat bass do so selectively. Catch and release can be credited for helping our favorite lakes maintain a healthy population of fish. There is more and more pressure being put on our fish so it is important that we release the mature, breeder size fish. This is good for everyone in the end.

And Mark Byrne is a rabble rouser.

Permalink Reply by RFatt16 on June 23, 2009 at 3:13pm

Can i post my pic back up on this one??? LOL

I'll just stay out of this topic

Permalink Reply by Tag Watson on June 23, 2009 at 3:13pm

Here are my opinions on the subject for whatever they're worth:

1) If you choose to keep some fish for the table, follow the regulations and slot limits. They are in place for a reason.

2) Use common sense. I agree that lakes like Banks, Pothholes and Roosevelt can benefit from the harvest of limits of bass under 14 inches. The earlier comparison of these fisheries to Lake Washington, made by one individual, is clearly apples and oranges. I am no biologist, but keeping 3 and 4 pound smallies out of any fishery cannot be beneficial. Please correct me if I am wrong. I wanted to bring this up because I felt like Eric was wrongly attacked earlier on this particular issue.

Eric, I like the fact that you are not only policing our spelling but looking out for the best interest of our fisheries and their futures. Thank you.

Permalink Reply by Eric DeLay on June 23, 2009 at 3:26pm

Thanks Tag. I think I brought it on myself by being too emotional about the subject. I should have been less one sided about it and thought about the subject more deeply before posting my opinions.
To those I offended, I apologize.

Permalink Reply by Eric DeLay on June 23, 2009 at 3:32pm

You should put that pic up on WaFakes. Mike Carey would go crazy.
You could also put it up on your page and set it for "friends only" to see. That might be the best place for it.
I cracked up when I saw that, after I figured out you weren't talking to me.

RFatt16 said:

Can i post my pic back up on this one??? LOL

I'll just stay out of this topic

Permalink Reply by Jerry on June 23, 2009 at 3:35pm

I agree with the above statements. I have no problem with anyone keeping fish that are legal....to each his own. I have a problem with people keeping fish in the slot, or over limits...regardless of species. The whole "what does it matter" attitude doesn't cut it. I agree too, about large fish should be released. Though if someone has a need to keep one..again..to each his own, though I personally don't understand it. I think it's proven that fiberglass replicas are far superior for quality and longevity.

I don't know Mark Byrne so I can't confirm the rabble rouser claim...therefore, no opinion

Permalink Reply by RFatt16 on June 23, 2009 at 4:03pm

Yeah i wasn't talking about you. I'm pretty sure were on the same team on this topic Eric

I didn't know you could post pics for friends only. It would also be no fun if i couldn't have Ponch in this topic so I'll leave him out for now........

Eric DeLay said:

You should put that pic up on WaFakes. Mike Carey would go crazy.
You could also put it up on your page and set it for "friends only" to see. That might be the best place for it. I cracked up when I saw that, after I figured out you weren't talking to me. RFatt16 said:

Can i post my pic back up on this one??? LOL

I'll just stay out of this topic

Permalink Reply by Marc Marcantonio on June 23, 2009 at 4:11pm

This post is thoughtful and well-stated Eric.

Every lake is a complex and ever-changing environment, and there really is no such thing as a stable or balanced population. People don't realize this, and it leads to many problems. For instance, right now Banks Lake in my opinion is in need of harvesting small bass. I base this on many tournament records of catches and comparisons of the number of limits caught, and compare this to the size of the biggest bass awards. More limits are recorded, and the big bass weights have declined.

The general principle in fisheries management at work here is that the lake has reached its carrying capacity of fish. Each lake has a limit to the number of pounds of total fish it can produce...you can have a lot of little fish that total the carrying capacity, or you can have fewer but larger fish that produce the same total weight. Of course in reality this is an oversimplification, but the concept is pretty well accepted. Banks has so many small bass (and other fish) that nature limits the size of the bass. Get rid of the numbers and increase the sizes.

The problems come in when the equation shifts (as a result of harvest, habitat loss or gain, water quality changes, weather changes, etc.) and you go from too many small bass to not enough; then you have people say that those who advocated harvest of the small bass were wrong! Fisheries managers can't win with some people because nature is not always predictable or constant.

In a perfect world we would know more than we currently do about all fish species, and we would have better methods for determining population density and size, and we would have fisheries managers keep tabs of all of this and are ready to change harvest rules annually to suit the situation.

None of this is likely to happen, so in the meantime we need to do the best we can and try to use common sense, and be ready to change positions as necessary when the situation changes (cause it will).

I hope something in this blabbering makes some kind of sense...

Oh, and BTW, as Eric learned by the first post on this subject becoming emotionally charged...one big problem with the internet is that a reader may not understand the context or thought process behind a post; and may make assumptions based upon the written words that the poster did not intend. I have been victim to this before myself. Years ago someone asked a tournament rules question. I answered the question with the exact rule and the guidance from the tournament director about how he enforces the rule. Some other's who read the post didn't like my answer (which was a fact, not an opinion), and started bashing me by saying I was attacking their favorite fishing method because they didn't like the truth. It is a common tactic...if you don't like the message then shoot the messenger. So we all need to think about this before we post on the internet. This is a reason I don't participate in a lot of discussion threads that become emotionally charged...not because I am afraid to state what I think, but because the subject matter isn't important enough to be worth how others might interpret my words.

ciao,
Marc

Eric DeLay said:

I believe that this topic became too emotionally charged the first time around so I deleted it.

I would like to say for the record that I don't freak out every time I see someone kill a bass. I am a firm believer in renewable resources, from the timber industry to game animals. I believe God put these animals on Earth for us to utilize and that we are supposed to be stewards of the land.

If you enjoy eating bass then eat 'em up. I would just urge those who choose to harvest these fish to do so responsibly. Know your lakes. Some lakes have too many 10"- 12" fish (Banks Lake may be a good example) and would actually benefit from harvest. Too much C&R may be hurting that fishery. I would say that any lake you can easily catch 15- 50 small fish in is over populated. Many lakes would benefit from the harvest of Yellow Perch, Northern Pikeminnows, Carp, etc....
Other lakes are very susceptible to over-harvest. I know a lot of the little lakes in the Federal Way/ Auburn area suffer from bank fishermen killing small fish by the bucketful. This information comes straight from the mouth of a Game Warden. There is one lake by my house that was shocked two nights in a row by biologists and they were shocked by how few bass were in it.

One thing I think we can all agree on, is that killing large fish is not good for anyone. They aren't as good to eat as smaller fish, they are the only fish in the lake that can keep the population of small fish under control, they are the funnest to catch, they take a long time to get that big, and they are the ones we want breeding every year.

I really hope that those who eat bass do so selectively. Catch and release can be credited for helping our favorite lakes maintain a healthy population of fish. There is more and more pressure being put on our fish so it is important that we release the mature, breeder size fish. This is good for everyone in the end.

And Mark Byrne is a rabble rouser.

Permalink Reply by S Hwang on June 23, 2009 at 4:20pm

damn missed all the emotionally-charged reading material.

recap: harvest selectively, there are better easier species to catch and eat, release big fish, yada yada

Permalink Reply by RFatt16 on June 23, 2009 at 4:22pm

I know i put my 2 cents in and a fitting pic only to come back too see it all missing. :(

Seung Hwang said:

damn missed all the emotionally-charged reading material.

recap: harvest selectively, there are better easier species to catch and eat, release big fish, yada yada

Permalink Reply by Tag Watson on June 23, 2009 at 4:32pm

As always, excellent post, Marc. I think I speak for all of us when I say we really appreciate you taking the time to offer your insights and biological perspectives.

Permalink Reply by Steve Hastings on June 23, 2009 at 4:49pm

I'd Like to know who removed the previous post, and why. I believe there was a lot of value on the topic in that post too. I for one would like to see it returned.

A tip regarding the online, ego based, bickering... read your post out loud to yourself and if what you hear, you wouldn't say to someone's face its better to not send it. You are after all representing yourself and people are absolutely forming opinions about you based on your posts. Connotation does not translate in the written word very well... especially in forums and email, where little time is invested. ... hmmm ....Had that very conversation over some posts over the weekend at the Fed qualifiers.

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