Does it annoy you how many people mishandle fish, laying them on the ground and lipping them at a 45 degree angle for pictures?

[bigspirit]

I’m honestly pretty surprised to see the responses in this thread. I personally do not agree with the “not my business” sentiment. It is a resource that is public, why would you not want the general public to do their best to take care of it? Just like littering. 
 

It is a rather well known fact that you can damage the jaw of a bass, larger size atleast, by holding them at a 45 degree angle by the lip. Similar to snook. It may not lead to them directly dying - but can affect their ability to feed thus getting the appropriate nutrients. 
 

Think of the masses that fish. Truly think about that for a second and then think of the effect it could have. 
 

Im not trying to sound like I am on a high-horse. I have certainly mishandled fish before I knew better, but now I do what I can to take the best care of each fish I catch. It’s not hard. Some people just don’t want to hear that they are wrong I guess. 
 

However, it’s not a hill I would die on. My bigger gripe/annoyance is putting fish in a live well and bouncing them around all day just to get a picture at the ramp. Especially around the time they are spawning. 

[Basser2021]

10 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

It doesn’t bother me, none of my business 

What he said

[DitchPanda]

I've done it in the past hen learned the error of my ways. If a buddy did it I'd probably point it out to him, otherwise I wouldn't say anything because I don't want a " thing" with a stranger. I will however call out anybody for leaving garbage..nothing ticks me off like garbage. A bad hold on a fish affects only that fish trash affects all the fish, turtles, birds etc.

[mamdlwk]

A lot of people do a lot of dumb things in front of people who know better. It's tragic when people do dumb things outdoors, especially in the USA, because our public lands are so special and so unique to our history and identity. 

 

Lipping fish wrong is one thing. Not everyone has someone to teach them, to fish with them in person, etc. It takes time to learn. Like everyone said, I'd like to never find an empty soft plastic bag or styrofoam worm cup again. It's a good idea to keep a stash of small trash bags with you when you're out there. 

 

Any argument about tournament fishing, I would think, is overshadowed by the money and attention that tournaments and the sport fishing industry bring to conservation. Is that true? 

[bulldog1935]

The people who don't recognize a photo is an instant sliced out of time are normally short on imagination, and likely both fishing and photography skills. 

You expect to hear this argument on a fly fishing forum, but not on BR. 

Fish photography is a honed skill like any other. 

Camera on a lanyard, turned on when the rod is still bent.  The photo is a sweep, already part of handling and releasing the fish, that takes less than 2 seconds.  Camera set on macro and sequential frames.  The photo isn't framed, just aimed, and the camera dropped on its lanyard, focusing attention on releasing the fish. 

The photo gets rotated, framed and cropped later on the computer. 

The general rule of photography also applies - it takes 50 fish to get one good photo. 

 

 

In Texas, btw, it's a Class B Misdemeanor to harass a legal sportsman.  If there's something you don't like, call the Game Warden. 

[Bankc]

Sure, it bothers me.  But lots of things bother me.  You can't fight all of the good fights.  

 

The best we can do is to focus on ourselves and be the person we wish we saw in others.  Show people the right way to do it and hope other's follow our example.  Pointing out the wrongdoings of others won't make them better people, and it won't endear you to them either.  

[flyfisher]

Doesn't bother me.  People act like its an instant death sentence if you hold a fish wrong or let it get dirty yet they go around sticking sharp metal objects in their mouth and then putting them in livewells and weigh them in.  

 

I'm more concerned with other aspects of not taking care of the environment we fish in.

[thediscochef]

22 hours ago, Ohioguy25 said:

This drives me nuts, the vast majority of people I see posting in Facebook groups either have no clue how bad that is for the fish or simply don’t care.

I get more upset with the amateur tournament anglers who don't know how to fizz big fish they caught in deep water. Also trash and shore anglers leaving huge lengths of line in the water. Kills me every time I break a lure off, it's just littering with extra steps. 

 

Injury from jaw holding is pretty rare, that's not something I'm going to say much about unless I'm showing a friend how to hold the fish. I hold them vertical for a selfie but am mindful of how far the mouth gets opened. I've not killed a bass yet so ?‍♂️?‍♂️?‍♂️

[mamdlwk]

11 minutes ago, thediscochef said:

how to fizz big fish

From what depth? Do you mean bleeding their swim bladder?

[thediscochef]

1 hour ago, mamdlwk said:

From what depth? Do you mean bleeding their swim bladder?

Yes, as a last-ditch effort to save a bass that has suffered barotrauma worse than it can self recover. For anglers who won't take the bass home (which is just as good as trying to save the fish imo), learning to fizz can slightly raise the survival odds of a fish who will certainly die from the swim bladder trauma. These are the deep fish that are suspended at 20-25ft in 40+ feet of water and released into hot surface water at the ramp. Bass caught deep in those conditions should be released immediately which creates a problem for livewell tournaments. Releasing a bloated fish into surface water this time of year is certain death. A skilled fizzer somewhere in the group would at least give the fish a better chance if things like fin clips don't work. Or just be prepared to take home dinner if you're fishing deep ?‍♂️?‍♂️ either way is fine

[Choporoz]

My wife yells at the TV when a Jimmy Houston or Scott Martin or anyone else stands there holding a fish and yapping away before tossing it back.  

  I see lots of stuff on the interwebs that bothers me.  Not too often that I feel the need to confront virtually....unless I think I can do it in a particularly understated witty and passively aggressive way....sometimes discretion goes out the window

[TnRiver46]

Part of me hopes I never catch a Muskie, they have by far the most criticism on this topic. I will probably just lay down next to it so I can prove I caught it

[Choporoz]

Maybe muskie guys are converted trout guys

[AlabamaSpothunter]

2 minutes ago, Choporoz said:

Maybe muskie guys are converted trout guys

Trout people are nothing more than Karens with fishing poles......prove me wrong ?

[thediscochef]

Honestly there's times I'm thankful that gar are the only toothy fish I really have to worry about in my home waters, and nobody is going to give you heck unless its a trophy...God bless north texas

[Glenn]

What started out as educating people about the potential harm that can be done to a heavy fish by holding him at a 45-degree angle by the lip, has turned into a massive over-correction.  Holding a fish of any size vertically by the jaw is not harmful, yet I consistently see people freaking out and "shaming" others when they do that.

 

[gim]

25 minutes ago, Choporoz said:

Maybe muskie guys are converted trout guys

Not this guy.  I have never caught a species of trout in my entire life.  Not even by accident.

 

May us bass guys can learn a thing or two from these muskie or trout guys.  Treat the resource with some respect and it will return the favor in the future.

[MN Fisher]

2 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Not this guy.  I have never caught a species of trout in my entire life.  Not even by accident.

I've done the trout thing - as a kid in a stream near the house I caught brookies galore. Living in Bemidji, I'd fish the Straight River near Park Rapids for trout frequently.

 

Ya - if you're releasing them, then delicate handling is required.

[gim]

14 hours ago, bigspirit said:

My bigger gripe/annoyance is putting fish in a live well and bouncing them around all day just to get a picture at the ramp.

This really bothers me.  If you intend to release the fish, do it immediately after you catch it.  Sticking it in the livewell for personal glorification later is nothing but an ego trip.  Its different if you're in a tournament.  Then you have to follow the rules and weigh them in at a later point.

[A-Jay]

For me, following the letter and the spirit of the C & R,

as well as Fish Possession laws is not optional.

In that regard, the opinion of the folks wearing this badge matters.

It ends there. 

 

"At age 20, we worry about what others think of us.

At Age 40, we don't care what they think of us.

At age 60, we discover that they haven't been thinking of us at all."

 

A-Jay

 

 

[throttleplate]

2 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

Part of me hopes I never catch a Muskie, they have by far the most criticism on this topic. I will probably just lay down next to it so I can prove I caught it

 

A big problem with large muskie is that they are heavy, long, muscular, slimey and have big teeth.

When you grab it it torques and twists its body to the point you have to put it down and grip it by the gill plate.

This seems to calm the fish down and you can controll him. Am i doing damage?

Well a friend of the nd yak angler showed me one day as i was fishing next to him and caught a muskie how to handle him and was ok with holding vertical from the gill plate.

Upon research on my own its not good to hold vertical but to hold horizontal.

 

This is an ok way to hold pike or muskie using a jaw gripper and supporting his lower body.

 

This way not so good from my research for catch and release.

 

[Ohioguy25]

3 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

Part of me hopes I never catch a Muskie, they have by far the most criticism on this topic. I will probably just lay down next to it so I can prove I caught it

I imagine because they are the most fragile when caught, many die on release due to stress from the fight, esp if the water is over a certain temp.

[TnRiver46]

8 minutes ago, Ohioguy25 said:

I imagine because they are the most fragile when caught, many die on release due to stress from the fight, esp if the water is over a certain temp.

It’s funny, you can try your whole life not to catch one and get lambasted by people that target them regularly 

[BassNJake]

Around here there are quite a few folks that fish for food.

They go multiple times a week and will harvest pretty much anything.

Those are the people I'm concerned about.

Hope they catch enough for a meal.

 

[bulldog1935]

8 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

......prove me wrong ?

not my biggest, but definitely my best photo

this same fish was photographed again 3 months later by a friend on FFR. 

 

this is my biggest

many more stud bucks where these came from. 

 

But I changed my mind, this is my best photo

I run Trout in the Classroom for Texas