![]() Stange described Selective Harvest this way: “The fish we catch and keep to eat are for most of us a reward for our effort that goes beyond sport and ties us to the principle reason that our ancestors fished. In-Fisherman popularized the concept of “Selective Harvest,” beginning in 1986 with a series of articles by Editor In Chief Doug Stange who highlighted the benefits and drawbacks of C&R, including delayed mortality and a sociological shift away from using personally procured natural resources as food, an American tradition for centuries. In addition, there are genetic components to growth potential, so the size structure on overharvested waterways may not improve without drastic management action. This attitude has been most problematic for bluegills, as research has shown that removal of disproportionate numbers of large males, in particular, can cause a cascading response whereby smaller and younger males mature and spawn, never fulfilling their growth potential. While minimum length limits for crappie have been accepted in many areas, fishermen generally seek the largest specimens to harvest. Researchers have identified various socioeconomic aspects of these divergent groups, and managers in several regions have been able to craft regulations that seem generally acceptable to both groups.Īdoption of C&R has proved most challenging among those who pursue panfish, arguably the most harvest-oriented of freshwater anglers. These challenges remain today, though fishery managers have come to view two schools of catfish anglers-those who fish for food and a different group who focus on catching very large catfish and releasing most of them. It took years and widespread implementation of slot limits to encourage release of walleyes, but today most avid anglers routinely release large fish voluntarily, keeping some smaller ones for a meal.īiologists managing catfish and panfish have faced conflicting attitudes toward releasing fish, whether by regulation or voluntarily, that proved difficult to resolve. And generations of anglers had a hard time releasing fish that are valued so highly as food. Early on, representatives of commercial walleye fisheries fought what they saw as an attack on their traditions and economic base. Experience and education help inspire skill and confidence in this realm.Īnglers targeting walleyes, catfish, and panfish, species traditionally viewed as “food fish,” have been much slower to adopt C&R, either through regulations or voluntarily. Many less experienced anglers targeting muskies and big pike are intimidated, handling them poorly and releasing fish that can be highly stressed and damaged, leading to post-release mortality. While muskie anglers can be even more religious in their C&R attitudes than bass fishermen, dealing with these large, toothy fish as they thrash about with large treble-hook lures in the jaws can be problematic. ![]() Fishery managers have noted this trend and tried to emphasize the biological benefits of moderate levels of harvest, which include thinning numbers of these prolific species to enhance growth rates and population structure. Among bass anglers, we’ve seen an excessive fixation on releasing bass, to the extent that subsistence anglers and kids who keep some bass for food have been criticized by self-proclaimed sportsmen. This concept grew regionally among trout anglers and caught on in the 1970s among muskie anglers and in the bass world where tournaments adopted a release format, beginning in the 1970s. They emphasized the idea of fishing for fun, rather than for food and also noted the benefits to populations when fish are successfully released to grow and multiply. The Growth and Challenges of C&Rįamous fly fisherman Lee Wulff coined the phrase, “Gamefish are too valuable to be caught only once,” which became the rallying cry of C&R proponents. JBy By Steve Quinn* with Ron Lindner and Doug StangeĬatch-and-release (C&R) has a hallowed history in North America, first gaining impetus among trout anglers in the 1930s, though in the 90 years since, there have been many challenges to its principles.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |