Sadly, catch and release mortality is approximately 9%. That means for every 10 fish you catch one fish dies. One fish that could have spawned; that could have been caught by someone else; that could have lived a good life. We can do better.
Thankfully, the Fish Need Water Alliance (FNWA) agrees and has put out a list of six fish-handling techniques to help anglers reduce their catch and release mortality rate. Not all of them apply to striped bass, but most do. Conservation Tip will be a recurring segment in which we take one of FNWA’s techniques and provide striped bass specific information.
We previously discussed how to minimize fight time. This time we will discuss using low impact equipment and lures. FNWA's guidance on the topic reads as follows:
"Using artificial lures has been proven to reduce fish mortality relative to bait; flies and single-hooked lures have the lowest associated impact. Equipment manufacturers are constantly developing new products to help minimize our impact on caught fish. Employing small-mesh rubber nets, barbless single hooks, and adequately-rated rods and lines all help get released fish back at it."
For this post we wan't to focus on the use of barbless hooks. While this has become common practice among many trout fly fishermen (with many trout hooks being manufactured without a barb), most saltwater fly anglers are still quite fond of their barbs. Many believe that barbs reduce the number of lost fish, but this could not be further from the truth.
When an angler looses a fish it is often believed that it was because the fish became unhooked; that is, they believe the hook had pierced the fishes mouth then exited the fishes mouth the same way it went in. In reality, fish that become unhooked were probably never hooked in the first place. The hook point likely never fully pierced the fishes mouth, making it all to easy to become dislodged.
Maintaining sharp hook points is important for quality hook sets, but mashing the barb will also increase hookup rates by narrowing the hook point, thus making it easier to puncture the fish's mouth. Contrary to popular belief, no head shake or jump will make a barbless hook leave a fish's mouth. If you maintain pressure throughout the fight, that fish won't go anywhere. Once you bring the fish to hand the absence of a barb will make unhooking and releasing the fish a breeze.
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