Quote:
Originally Posted by dsafety
Given the current fishing conditions, I plan to target bottom fish the next time I go out. The problem is that I always release fish that I do not plan to eat.
With that in mind, I would like to ask the question... are you able to effectively release most of these small fish, assuming that you want to?
I remember years ago fishing deep off LJ and having fish come up nearly exploded. I released most of them but I doubt that many survived.
Are there any guidelines about how to make sure a deep fish can returned home? I know that some people send them to the bottom lightly hooked and jerk them free at the appropriate time.
If someone has a tutorial to share on this subject, that would be welcome to me and probably others.
|
Excellent question, and yes it is possible.
If the Fred Hall Show is not cancelled, there will be a booth there with experts on the subject, who can answer just about any question regarding
barotrauma.
To extremely simplify, it is very possible to release fish successfully, the key is to minimize handling and return them to depth ASAP.
There are a number of methods which can do this, the best of which will all utilize weight to overcome the buoyant overinflated air bladder. By using weight to pull fish to deeper water, they are able to return to equilibrium and stay at depth, which is critical to their survival.