Catch and release or keep to eat

[HorseEmIn]

I just read Fish Chris' topic and it raised a question with me which probably will not make me very popular. I love to eat what I catch, whether it is bass, walleyes, trout or harvesting a deer.  I never harvest more than I can use, but I like to think that I have never purchased fish fron the grocery store.  Fish is suppose to be very good for you and I think the lake I fish in is a pretty safe one.  It is about 220 acres and elec. motors only.  No farm runoff.  

Just wondering how others feel.  I am sure that there a those that are strictly C/R anglers and I can appreciate that.

I guess I am from the "old school" that grw up in the depression when it was a way of life.

[Grey Wolf]

Hey if that's what you do , that really is your business and you don't have to justify it to any body . I C&R myself but growing up I fished with my old man who fished to eat.

[mattm]

It might not make you very popular, but I don't see anything wrong with it.  Even though I catch and release 100%.  If everyone was like me the lakes would get over populated though.  Just please don't keep anything thats not legal and throw the big ones back to make bigger ones.

[the beast]

I eat blue gills, perch, crappies, and a few trout. C&R bass as I feel there is more pressure on them and that they are inferior table fare to the ones I eat.

[LakeAnnaBasser]

I catch and release bass. Only fish I have ever kept to eat are crappie and catfish.

[HesterIsGod]

I have no problem with you or other people keeping bass to eat, as long as they do it responsibily.

1. I see people all the time throw the "little ones" back and only keep the big bass they catch to eat. Big mistake, use selective harvest. Only take mid size and small fish.

2. Around here, Chicagoland, there are a lot of "bucket" fisherman. People that sit on buckets and use live bait to catch fish and throw EVERYTHING they catch into a bucket. Again, SELECTIVE HARVEST.

3. Also, smaller bodies of water are much more apt to get affected by overharvest, even if the selective harvest technique is used. There is a family that comes to a little pond I fish sometimes and they keep most of what they catch. It would be fine, the only problem is they fish the pond 3-4 times a week. Thats 2 bass a day, 3 days a week. For maybe, 6 months. Do the math thats like 140-150 fish a year. That can clean out a pond pretty fast, even though that pond is bigger than most. Last year I noticed that the fishing declined a lot. :-/

[Jake.]

The only fish I keep are saltwater fish. I used to keep bluegill every now and then, but then I realized they weren't worth the effort.

But a fresh fried flounder sandwhich...  

[Quinn]

If you aren't "poaching" (not the cooking term   ) then eat them up (if you trust the water and human polution that may occur).

Here in MO the limits vary according to the water, State, City etc.  I trust the biologist to keep the populations in check whether it is fish, deer or turkeys.

There are some places I wouldn't eat a fish from.

I don't like to see some who catch fish (any species) and throw them on the bank to rott.

[Bob Kavanaugh]

I'm strictly c&r. If people want to keep fish, I think that's great, and they are certainly well within their rights to do so. It's just the guys who keep them and stick them in the faces of people they know are c&r guys to try to get a reaction that get me. It happened to me last season. A boat full of guys and I cross paths along a bank, and he pulls out a giant bass, and says he's gonna fry him up tonight. I said, "Ok." I couldn't help but wonder what he wanted me to say...

[wdy77]

Its not a big deal as long as you keep the young fish around 2 pounds, and only keep enough for dinner. If to many people keep the big females it will take away from the spring spawn. I let all my bass go! If I catch one worth mounting I take some pics and measure the length and the girth. They can really match your fish when they make your mount!!    

All the lakes in my area get alot of pressure.  Catch and release when you can please!! 8-)

[Popeye]

Just because most of the BR guys and gals are 100% C&R certainly doesn't mean you have to be. Nothing wrong in eating your hard earned harvest. As for me personally, I C&R all bass since there are way better tasting fish to be caught and placed on the table. IMO:o)

[Catt]

It is your right as a legal angler to keep your legal limit & I will defend that right to the bitter end.  

If some one tells me they are for 100% catch & release I'll tell them they don't truly understand conservation. I firmly believe in Selective Harvesting; with that being said I haven't keep a bass in several years. The removal of smaller bass improves the overall population in both numbers & size.

[Pigsticker]

I am 100% c and r mainly because i cant kill anything plus i dont like or eat fish. If bass tasted like lobster yes but until then c&r to save my tastebuds and time. oh and i think that sometimes when you have a place like clear lake(lots of ten pound bass) you should take big bass out roughly 7-10 pounders maybe even bigger because what do ten pound bass and 20 pound bass eat, approximately the same stuff over competition and you wont have many of those high teeners to 20 pounders and there arent many around to begin with

[Bob Kavanaugh]

It is your right as a legal angler to keep your legal limit & I will defend that right to the bitter end.  

If some one tells me they are for 100% catch & release I'll tell them they don't truly understand conservation. I firmly believe in Selective Harvesting; with that being said I haven't keep a bass in several years. The removal of smaller bass improves the overall population in both numbers & size.

That's a good point. But, there is a difference between being 100% c&r yourself and being for 100% c&r.

It's good if people are harvesting the right fish, but I'm not going to be that guy. I have no use for the meat. Fish and seafood gives me terrible stomach pains and gas  

[senile1]

Releasing all bass will destroy the fishing in some waters.  Keeping all bass will destroy the fishing in others.  Each body of water is different. Selective harvest is essential and must be tailored to each body of water you fish.  

There's nothing wrong with eating some fish and if you are abiding by the laws no one has a right to rain on your parade.  Just remember, though, that you can abide by the laws and still destroy a fishery.  I don't think that's what most of us want to do.  We hope the laws protect the fishery, but in some cases they don't.  

[Tin]

Does anyone know if a lack of people keeping bass would be a reason for fisheries that are "stunted"?

[Catt]

I completely agree with you Bob but I know for a fact there are less fortunate families in your city that would benefit from your generosity. The last few times I kept bass was for my 88 year old mother-in-law and other silver saints in our church.

I may be a dumb Coonass but I believe God will bless that more than my catch & release  

[Guest muddy]

The only reason I do not keep them is I do not eat them, too lazy to clean fish  anymore . One of the beniftis of living on the East Coast is the availability of freshly caught and cleaned sea food, such as flounder,cod and shell fish, which is what I really like to eat.

Fishing for the table is as sound and ethical as hunting or garden farming for the table, as long as creel and size limits are observed, it is really no one elses business

[Raul]

Fishing for the table is as sound and ethical as hunting or garden farming for the table, as long as creel and size limits are observed, it is really no one elses business

That reply deserves a ---->  

[Del from philly]

I am very happy to read these comments. in the past it seemed like some guys on here pushed their beliefs on others a little too hard, but here everybody seems very balanced....

Me myself, im about 98% c&r....i usually make about 2 dinners each year....

For me, and others said the same thing.,....if im fishing for food, ill go with Crappies or take a trip down the shore for some blues

[backpain...]

I have not kept a fish in years because I personally don't care to go through all of the trouble of cleaning and cooking them (my wife doesn't cook or eat fish). This coming season however, I fully intend on keeping a few for my mom who has asked if I would. I have absolutely no problem with keeping fish for the table so long as it is done ethically and legally. Anyone who gives you a hard time needs to work harder on fishing than complaining.

[ba7ss3in]

If I want some fish to eat I will catch gills, crappie or catfish. For me, I think  they taste better than bass. Plus, I'm on the coast and get alot of different fish to eat. I don't see anything wrong with keeping bass to eat.

[Irrelevant]

I catch and release everything I catch but I have absolutely no problem if someone prefers to keep what they catch (even when they are fishing with me) as long as they don't go over their limit and don't give me any guff over releasing my catches.  I've had several people telling me I should have kept my fish or given it to them/other people on the water, including my father.

[Sam Bass]

The majority of  people that Keep every Bass that they catch and Eat do not have the skill to even catch a large female let alone use Artificial lures and generally are part time Bass fisherman only fishing a few times a month.Live bait fishing can get rather expensive in certain areas.I only keep a Bass if its gut hooked with no chance for survival which rarely happens plus I have an Ocean very close by if I want fish that tastes a whole lot better.

[David P]

Although it hurts me to see it, there's nothing wrong with keeping bass or any fish for that matter as long as it's within the law.

BUT, big fish should always be let go, you never know which fish will set the next world record.

Fish during spawning time should be let go, let the small males guard the beds, and let the females lay the eggs.

Don't take more then you can eat. Here in California, it suggests eating only ONE bass per MONTH.