Are You Killing Steelhead/Trout?

[briansII]

This is making the rounds on some forums I read.

http://www.ginkandgasoline.com/steelhea ... n-know-it/

I think sometime back someone mentioned a high mortality rate related to brain damage in trout. This certainly has me re-thinking how I land steelhead and trout. No more sliding big fish up in shallow water to get the hook out. I assumed this was better than trying to subdue them by holding/handling them, but now I will try keeping them in calf deep water for release......that is IF I get a chance to hook and land a steelhead this year.

Anyway, food for thought.

briansII

[midger]

I will need to get a larger net then. Have you ever tried to grab the line and land one of these in knee deep or deeper water? I think you'd have to play them so long that they'd suffer an equally high probability of dying from stress.

I don't mean to be too skeptical but I haven't seen many dead steelhead in the rivers I fish and it would seem to me you'd see more if their study is valid. Not saying it isn't, but I'd sure like to see another study look at this.

[NorcalBob]

Pulling ANY fish (not just steelhead) up onto rocks in order to land it is one of the worst possible ways to land that fish if you intend to release it. Not just only trauma to the head, but debris can also get into the gills quite easily. I catch a lot of grief because I use a landing glove (like in this pic) and everyone says, "you stupid #$%^, you're removing all the slime off of that fish". With the glove I can tail a fish in deeper water and prevent it from smashing against a rock.

[meb]

Interesting article. Not sure how much installing a tracking device in the fish had to do with mortality rates, but it does make sense not to drag them up on the bank unless you plan to kill them.

I don't carry a net when steelhead fishing, and when I am by myself I have struggled to grab and release fish. I don't like to tire them out to the point where you drag them across the top of the water, nor do I want to grip them with all my might. So I don't have an answer.

In general I think fly fisherman spend too much time taking "hero" shots holding fish out of water. Guides especially want the picture. In a perfect world fish should be left in the water during release.

MB

[briansII]

First off, I should have titled this "Are WE Killing....", since I've had my share of poor handling of trout.

I agree with much of what you guys said. I try to land a fish while it's still green, but doing that in deeper water is not easy. Add to that, using a spey rod, and you have a formula for something to go wrong. And with any study, there's always going to be some questions as to the accuracy/methodology. IMHO, even if the study has flaws, it highlights the potential damage we can do.

So what to do now. I fish solo a lot. Buy a big butt net and lug it around? Or just take my chances of losing some fish, and land them green in a little deeper water. Not a big decision for me. I won't say I don't care if I don't land all my fish, but I don't get upset if a trout/steelhead pops off after a few good pulls. Although, I do get upset if I break a rod while landing a fish.

briansII

[drabo2000]

Frabill makes competition nets that are light and large - the bottom of the net holds its circular/oval shape so
the fish is free to swim inside the net. Very cool and cheap! Might be a good solution for you for trout. I love mine.

Steve