Video Credit @SteveRogersOutdoors @MajorLeagueFishing @thenatureoffishing7591
I have heard anglers say that fishing is being ruined..that technology, charters, tournaments and simply fishing pressure is negatively impacting the sport of fishing for generations to come.
I mean what if you went to go fishing one day…and there was no fish to be caught? What if our fish populations were gone? One might say this is the greatest fear a fisherman could have… but what does science say?
This 1 study may completely change the way you think about fishing and the impact it is having on our fisheries.
Since I started competitively bass fishing nearly 20 years ago…I have heard that same sentiment time and time again. “You’re killing our lakes”...and when you look into studies that have been done on Bass Tournament Mortality you’d be shocked to find that it has been documented that delayed mortality can be as high as 68%,! Now, while that was an extreme outlier, many other studies have shown that about 25-30% of tournament retained bass die shortly after being released.
Now this obviously makes a lot of recreational anglers mad at tournament anglers….BUT..…you also go to the lake and occasionally see recreational anglers intentionally harvesting bass for the dinner table, in which case 100% die. ANNNDD if you are simply a catch, weigh, release angler..you are NOT off the hook. Another study conducted in Texas specifically on catch and release bass showed 22% of the bas s caught and released died within 72 Hours due to a number of factors like being hooked deeply and mishandling of the fish. Mix in social media and you now have a brotherhood of fisherman that are simply divided…
But at the end of the day…no matter what side of the fence you think you’re on…nobody wants to see our fisheries go to trash…so as anglers we should be asking the question….are we actually killing our lakes?
That's the question I was asking myself…so…a few weeks ago I decided to do a deep dive, I started scouring internet databases for scientific papers, I talked to different fisheries biologist to hear their input, and I found 4 different studies that were done in Minnesota, Connecticut and TEXAS that spoke about the impact anglers had on a bass population.
BassFishingHQ is dedicated to teaching people how to catch more and bigger bass. I will go over different bass fishing tips & techniques that will put more fish in the boat or on the shore. Whether you are just starting out or a seasoned tournament angler, my goal is to help you catch more bass.
DISCLAIMER: Links included in this description might be affiliate links. If you purchase a product or service with the links that I provide I may receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you! Thank you for supporting my channel so I can continue to provide you with free content each week!
