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Posts: 386
| Hey Fellas,
I was wondering what you all believe is the best method when releasing a fish. I got into a bit of an argument with a buddy of mine yesterday when releasing a beauty. The two positions on proper release were as follows:
1) Hold the tail and rock the fish from side to side slowly to get the gills going until it starts to kick and swim away.
2) WITHOUT rocking the fish at all, hold the tail and keep the fish upright until it gets its bearings and swims off.
Which of these is best in your opinion, if either, and why? Thanks for your input on what I believe is a very important question. |
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Posts: 2754
Location: Mauston, Wisconsin | Neither- I like the put them into the water upside down while holding the tail - watch their gills, etc to see how they are doing. Then roll them over. You better be prepared to get wet!
Have fun!
Al |
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Posts: 556
| i dont see a problem with eather |
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Location: Illinois | You say to-MA-toe I say to-MAY-toe. Whose to say they really KNOW which is better. I say whoever catches the fish can decide for himself. I think it's bad sportsmanship to be bird-dogging and critiquing someone elses release if both fisherman have a reasonable amount of experience.
It's up to the fisherman to ensure he believes in the release techniques he uses, not what the majority vote online is. Since this is a matter of utmost imprtance as you said, I'll tell you I prefer #2. But then again, I'm sorta a fecal freak.
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Posts: 2024
| Either will work, though I personally prefer as little movement as possible. It is not good to pull the fish forward and backward, though, as this can result in damage to the fragile gill structures. You shouldn't have to create a lot of movement, particularly if the fish is venting on its own. If it's not, then it may be too late to do anything or you could try using forward movement (i.e. turn the trolling motor on) to get oxygen to pass over the gill filaments.
I believe there will be an article in MUSKIE magazine (October issue) detailing release techniques including physiological disturbances that occur during the catch-and-release process. |
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Posts: 2893
Location: Yahara River Chain | Those two are the best examples of releasing a muskie. Either one a muskie will be glad to leave your grubby little mitts. |
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| most of the time if you don't keep the fish out of the water to long just holding the tail and keeping it up right will do the job. I even rub the belly a little underneath to get the air out of the bladder. Moving the fish back and forth in the water is still something many to argue back and forth- even the pros. I have even heard biologist argue about it. So I think more research needs to be done in this area. |
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Proper release technique