Catch and release?? Whats the deal!?

Question

I fish for food. I I am not going to eat it, then there is no reason to catch it.

It makes no sense to me that people who "catch and realese" act as if they are better than me for some reason.

They catch and injure fish only to realese them back into the water. Why the hell catch it and hurt it just for your own enjoyment.

In my opinion a real pro fisherman is someone who depends on the food not someone who does it for no reason other than enjoyment.

I would like some opinions on this, and maybe even an answer as to why catch and relese fishermen are better than I

I would like to add a few things.......

Catching a fish and letting it go is not a good idea. I see dead fish around tournament release areas all the time.

If you fish and you dont like the taste of fish then what the heck is your problem.

That would be like a deer hunter who doesent like to eat deer.

In response to "Tom S"

If the people that didnt eat them didnt fish then there would be perfect balance. There would also be a whole lot less rude city folks on the lake

Ok......I only fish say maybe 5 days during the year. During that time I catch enough fish to feed my family of four fish 3 times a week.

My point is I dont go back to the lake to pointlessly catch fish and throw them back in the water.

I really dont care for these weekend warriors. They go out for seemingly no reason other than to aggervate the fish and real fishermen.

There are plenty of other "hobbies" these people could be doing.

Catch and relese would not even be needed if it werent for people who catch fish for "sport"

Answer 1

I agree with you 100% I have no clue why people do this whenever I go fish I take them home to eat I dont let them go!!

Answer 2

Well, you obviously don't enjoy fishing and don't understand those of us who do. I like to fish, and when the fish want to bite like crazy, I don't want to spend ten minutes and fill my limit and go home. Maybe you do, but that's your choice. I bet there's something you DO enjoy, and you wouldn't want to quit for the day just because you got lucky right at the start.

As to injuring fish: I'm not so stupid I believe that every fish I catch can be released and survive, so those that won't make it go in the bag. But there have been enough tagging studies which show that fish released properly have a very high survival rate, so I have no problem releasing lip hooked fish.

One other thing -- there's a lot of fish conservation programs like the wild trout restoration program mentioned by another responder, as well as a lot of saltwater hatchery programs, all funded by sport fishing licenses. Without catch and release, there would be fewer licenses sold, resulting in less money for these programs, and the fisheries would be in worse shape.

(By the way, the ocean fisheries are the ones in real trouble, and it's not the sport guys who caused the imbalance. The 2% of the fishermen who catch 90% of the fish are the ones with nets, and they DON'T do catch and release, habitat restoration, or anything, and pay almost nothing in license fees.)

Answer 3

I agree with the fact you keep what you want to eat. I love fresh fish too. I also love the sport of catching them and releasing them to live another day.Bass fishing especially today is a multi billion dollar industry. The catch and release program relies on the fact that we can catch fish and put them back to grow and fight on. Do you think this billion dollar industry would hold tournaments and events that will take that money out of their hands if all the fish die from being caught once?? The research has been done and everything possible to keep caught fish in the best health is followed like clockwork.I personally have caught fish that have been caught numerous times and are still perfectly healthy. If you want to eat some go ahead, if I want I will to if not I will enjoy the hunt, catch and release.

Answer 4

I fish for Steelhead and release ALL native (wild) steelies! Why, because there is such a nation wide problem with these native fish eg., commercial fishing, poachers, water rights, politicians and the over abundance of hatchery produced fish!! I release other fish, so they can possibly reach record size, so others might enjoy... I understand where your coming from regardin' releasing fish that are sure to die, this is why the use of barbless hooks is essential. I could go on and on about this but won't, I suggest you do some investagatin' on the Internet and I'm sure you'll find out more. Hope I helped clear up a few thoughts about "Catch and Release" efforts?

"There's no head like Steelhead" ;)

Answer 5

No one is saying they are better than you are. If you want to eat your catch you can. If others chose not to, thats should ok too. Catch and release is mostly practiced to sustain wild population of fish like black bass or trout. I have lived in Southern California for over 50 years and I can remember when the state was almost completely fished out. The only fish were those put in by the state fish and game. It is called the "put and take" program. Studies indicated that 80 to 90% of the fish did not survived the first week. Further, it was found that even if these fish survived and bred, their genes which are products of an artificial environment of a hatchery, were inferior to those wild stocks in terms of being able to survive. Eventually, sportsmen and politicians realized that there was value in maintaining wild indigenous stocks of fish but they had to be protected by catch and release. Without catch and release, those fish would be wiped out just as before by overfishing. The idea of conversing our stock of wild fish has spread from not just protected areas but as a general practice in an effort to preserve our stock of wild fish. True, not all of the fish survive but most do if the right technique is followed. Nevertheless, all of this does not diminish your right to take and eat your catch. I eat what I catch sometimes too and no one is looking down on you because of it.

Answer 6

I see what your saying. They shouldnt look down on you for keeping them. I dont really have a problem with either, but yeah they are hurting them just as much as you. The only reason i dont keep them is because i dont like to eat fish. But i dont see the big deal, unless of course you are on catch and release water.

Answer 7

So what if you catch something under the size limit, you going to take some bony-*** fish and cut it up for 1/2 pound of edible meat? yeah That's more inhumane than throwing it back.

And hasn't it been proven that fish don't have nerves near the mouth. you throw them back so they can keep doing what fish enjoy; swimming, eating, and making babies. Now isn't
that better that killing them?

Answer 8

I fish for fun, food and treasure trophy's/

If I get catch a 10 lb Bass and my freezer is full. I let him go.

Answer 9

ther cant be one without the other

if we didnt catch and release then fish wouldnt last as long and then you wouldnt have as much meat

if nobody ate the fish thow it would become over populated and the fish would die young

that is why there should be abalance

Answer 10

They want to go fishing, but don't like the taste of fish. It's like going for a drive just because you like driving, not because you want to go somewhere. It really doesn't make much sense, but you have to respect the (bizarre) way those people like to fish.