Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (agedsage) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 11:44:12 PST

Nice black crappie John.

This thread reminds me of a personal experience at about the ripe old age of 7. My Dad had business at the county courthouse, which was seven miles from where we lived, and he asked me if I would like to ride along. I asked if he would take me to the very pretty spring-fed creek that ran through to county seat, and through a city park only one block from the courthouse, after he finished his business. (This creek was gin clear and had the most beautiful sunfish in the world in it, at least to a 7 year old boy.) He said yes, so I went along with him. We go to the park and start walking along the creek bank so I could check out all of the fish. Just ahead sat an older colored lady with about a half dozen cane poles stuck in the bank, each with a piece of string just a little longer than the pole, and a red and white plastic bobber floating on the surface. I had walked past her and dad was just getting to her when she grabbed one of the poles and...

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (gillbuster) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 19:42:22 PST

Well, I plead the 5th.. I do harvest some pan fish occasionally for dinner..Crappie and Yellow Perch mostly, Wife is crazy about them dipped in Beer Batter with a big glass of Ice Tea.... She is a Texas Gal who was raised with southern cook-in way of life. LM & SM Bass, I do not keep at all, I feel they are TOO precious a resource and they should be rewarded to fight on someones fishing line another day. I agree with Wayne on this topic. Most of the ponds I fish are loaded with panfish, some ponds are stunted in size and I feel I am helping the with balancing the ponds population... Some ponds like Burrage Pond, you can catch 200-250 pan fish a day and w/o proper harvesting this pond would eventually be ruined with 6" sized fish... There is not enough forage to create a health size forage, altho there is some whopper Gills/perch in this pond... Take a look at the size of these Crappies from Glen Charlie Pond taken last spring which there has a healthy population of 12-...

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (waynebh) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 12:12:11 PST

I haven't kept a fish in years. I like to eat fish but, the ones I catch typically provide so much enjoyment that I just couldn't bring myself to kill them and subsequnetly eat them. Heck, I feel bad when I deep hook a fish and it bleeds! I almost look at the fish as friends, they provided me with entertainment and relaxation. Perhaps that's it. I'm so relaxed and calm when fishing that my passive side take over??

Wayne

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (quashnet) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 22:55:01 PST

My father owned and captained a charter fishing boat in the 1950's and 1960's. The day's goal was to bring the party back with full fish boxes. A lot of fish were wasted. These early experiences made me receptive to catch-and-release when I first heard about it. But I still remember how tough it was to slide back into the water that first big fly-caught trout that I could have legally kept.

In recent years, I've released any native or wild naturally-reproducing game fish that I've caught. I keep the occasional stocked trout if I know that my wife would like one for dinner on that same day. Given the state of the economy, if I find some nice big bluegills next season, I wouldn't be surprised if I kept a few for dinner on that same day. A fish for dinner had better be a fresh one - that's definitely a concept that dates from my childhood.

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (Cornmuse) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 09:13:42 PST

I'm with you regarding catch and keep - when I'm in the mood and if the fishery supports harvest then I'm all about it. I love a mess of crappies in the spring and I'll usually keep a couple fiddler catfish or a hybrid striper or two during the season. I also have kept every steelhead I've caught from the Great Lakes (both of them...) It's a put-and-take fishery and there's no shortage of fish!!! Controlled harvest is good for a properly managed population (all caveats regarding proper management, of course).

One interesting thing about trophy fish - by the time they get that big they are normally not as efficient with spawning. A 20" smallmouth (nearing 10 years old around here in the creeks) produces only about half the number of viable eggs and fry as a fish that's 15" and similarly healthy. Of course you're not selecting for genetics by harvesting the smaller fish - you might take a giant's DNA out of the system without...

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (Wee Hooker) — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 13:30:16 PST

Wow, it's like Mr. Syder was right in my head. I couldn't see more eye to eye. I still kill a fish or two for the table (and encourage others to do so.) Not only is it part of the heritage of the sport but the satisfaction of enjoying (or providing) a self caught dinner is something that stirs the caveman in all of us. ( Especially youngsters and those of us who never quite grow up :-)
I DO however share his sentiments on killing big/trophy fish. I'd much rather let the old gals swim to fight and spawn another day. The last time I killed a big fish (38" striper) was likely the last time I kill a big fish. I didn't enjoy it and there was so much meat that much of it was wasted/ given away to folks who didn't appreciate it.

p.s. White perch is a favorite Mmmmmmmmm

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (spinzo) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:14:30 PST

I generally don't keep anything I catch because I don't care to eat fish. Never have liked the taste/texture very much. But...

Last year I got a chance to go out off the NH coast for one last striper trip and I managed to catch a keeper that took my treble hook too deep, so I filleted the fish, gave half to my buddy's daughter and her husband, and took the rest home. The next night I baked that fish and I've got to tell you, I'll consider keeping a few more fish next year.

Personal consumption is perfectly fine in my book. Always has been, even when I hadn't killed a fish in more than a decade. Wasteful use of any resouce is without excuse, however.

Mike

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (BassYakker) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 10:56:29 PST

I think folks today, for the most part, fish to eat or fish for photos. Thanks to education and limits, most folks don't keep their catches to prove something.

The problem you have now, is folks sometimes turn their noses up to others who fish to eat. We have to assume that the fish and game folks are correct in their limits and if someone is following the law and harvesting fish, that not only is it OK, but ultimately helpful to the ecosystem and the fishery.

I must admit that I have a problem with folks who harvest more fish than they can eat in month.

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (Gerbubble Bug) — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 19:27:21 PST

Oops! I really need to make more of the trips. Hope Alec & I haven't but the hex on the discussion.
Tom

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (Flytackle) — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 05:55:16 PST

Tom - Gillbuster won the trophy this past Sept. with a fish fry, so there!!

Here are a couple that I released right into my belly.

Beats Star-kist hands down

White Perch are better off this way than being harrased by pickerel

Re: Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (Gerbubble Bug) — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 14:12:08 PST

If God intended us to keep the fish we catch, why did He:
1. Invent Hellman's Mayonnaise and stuff all that tuna in a can - yum!
2. Invent Lobster
3. Invent Clam Chowder
4. Fill fish full of bones
5. Make fish such a pain to clean
6. Invent Steak
7. Never award the STS Food Award for a fish dish
8. Invent Cake
9. Write a recipe for Fish Barbecue
10. Make them easier to release than to hold and put on a stringer.
Do you see where I'm going?

I haven't kept a fish in decades and don't intend to. Never have enjoyed killing, cleaning, and then eating fish. However, seeing the Boston Globe recommending eating fish twice a week and being realistic about the economy, I just hope we only harvest what we intend to eat soon after the fish are caught. Keep medium sized fish ONLY. If your neighbors and friends would love it if you brought them a fish, take them fishing or loan them a rod. Keep your catch out of...

Catch and Release vs. Catch and Eat

feeds@kickapps.com (gillbuster) — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 17:00:43 PST

Neat article I read, thought I would share with the group

Posted Dec 19th 2008 9:07AM by William R. Snyder (author feed)
Filed under: Outdoorsman