How do you handle different species of fish?

[WestEndAngler]

I was sitting down watching the Spanish Fly last night and he goes down and picks up a rooster fish by the tail and in the gill plate. For those that don't know and myself included there are many species of fish that we have yet to catch or perhaps just handled them where they cut us etc.

So, when off shore how do you handle the following fish? I plan on making a sticky and crediting those that help give valuable info...

Pick one or two tell us your way of holding the fish properly to prevent injury to both yourself and fish:

Given that a good set of gloves are invaluable off shore and some of the fish your guaranteed to gaff but yet may want a photo on the boat:

Snapper (all kinds here just didn't want to list them all)
Kingfish
Dorado
Wahoo
Ling
Grouper
Amberjack
Jacks
Sharks
Stingrays
Triple tail
Sailfish

What did I miss?! Please add to the list take a fish and tell us if you can put your hand in the gill plate? Will it cut you? Sharp teeth etc. etc etc.

Grouper I know sometimes come up then they'll lay on the top of the water... do you gaff in mouth? reach down and grab them in the gills? Are they worn out... etc. Think of this as a how to for someone.

[007]

I've always figured......."if you can't gaff 'em.....they ain't big enough!!

[Milkjug]

I am a big fan of pinching the eye sockets of a fish. No spikey things to get you and it's away from the teeth. You can apply a lot of pressure, and it won't mangle it up if you want clean pics. Hold it around the tail with the other hand and you can move 'em around good.

If you are talking about getting a green fish into the boat, I dunno. Gaff or big azz net probably, but that's a question for someone else.

Subduing a speared fish underwater, I am wearing gloves, so I go for the hand grabbing the throat right where the gills connect on the bottom. You can also grab the lip (like a hand boga) on something like AJ or grouper that doesn't have sharp teeth.

[Robalo]

Snapper (all kinds here just didn't want to list them all)-if keeper, just flop em in, if undersized, feed em to the porpoises that are waiting for their release (Thanks NMFC!!).
Kingfish Gaff em if wanting to keep; otherwise tail grab and belly hold.
Dorado Gaff the biguns and flop the little in-and wash off all the blood.
Wahoo Gaff em
Ling Undersized, try tail grabbing but watch them spines-better have gloves on, the steel mesh ones-keepers use a gaff.
Grouper Never caught a biggun-small ones I lifted in by hand. On offshore platform in 70s, we used a crane and rope on the 100+ monsters-always someone else caught them-dang it! Only time I had a biggun on, after about 2 hours I popped the line.
[B]Amberjack[/B ] Keeper-gaff, undersize, grab em and then release.
Jacks PITA-cut the line.
Sharks Too stinky, cut the line. Hard to gaff with their skin and I hate when they turn head almost all the way to their tail, so I don't grab em.
Stingrays Net or flip em, cut tail off and release.
Triple tail Net em or grab or flip em. Yummy.
Sailfish Bill grab, then tail grab and take pic and release-wear gloves!!
Little Tunny: Don't put that bloody spewing mess in the boat-cut the line, or at least tail grab and keep outside of boat-yuk!

[Robalo]

Here's JT's take on this:

Snapper (all kinds here just didn't want to list them all): Eat em.
Kingfish: Give em away.
Dorado: Eat em.
Wahoo: Eat em
Ling: Eat em.
Grouper: Umm, samwiches, yum.
Amberjack: Yummy grilled.
Jacks: Not allowed near playgrounds anymore, so not sure.
Sharks: They gotta eat also.
Stingrays: Nope.
Triple tail: Any tail-all good!!
Sailfish: Prefer Black Marlin, sails are too small.

SORRY, COULDN'T HELP IT!!! Coe: Sorry, but it was too easy to do a "MOONPIE" on JT on the post!! delete at will!!

[Race1Mopar]

Hey Jerry I was looking at your response for kings, give em away. I sued to think that because of the blood lines but if you cut them perpendicular and use your fingers to ball the meat within the rings you will get only the white meat, leaving the blood lines on the carcass. Sure you lose a little meat, but not much and msot of what you leave behind is the bloody part anyway.

Try it sometimes. You can take the balls and bread/fry them. You can use them as a substitution of crab meat in a gumbo. You can pan fry them, saute them, broil them... The problem's the blood line and this is the perfect solution to get rid of that.

Joe

[Robalo]

I ball them when I keep em. Problem I find is they don't freeze well-turn mushy like a sandie.

I marinate in teriyaki, powder with garlic powder and grill em when fresh. BTW, my second response was what JT would do-notice the comment about "Jacks"!!

[Race1Mopar]

Jacks... aahahahaha hilarious! And you're right. I only keep as many kinds as I will cook without freezing, or that I can save and boil down into a gumbo for flavor.

[Baby Tran Cat]

Very well done Jerry with the Jacks comment. I like Kings ONLY when balled and dropped in crab boil that afternoon...

[Keller]

Hold a redfish belly up on his back his back and he will go to sleep.

[REELING 65]

Sharks..well that is based on the kind that you land. Usually I would use a gaff..bottom jaw if I can. Black tips, shortfin mako's, there in the cooler for dinner. King;s I put on the smoker and fry up some king nuggets. I use a Gaff other species I like Dorado..if I hooked one to small to keep. I would use my pliers and de-hook the fish. Then with both hand's I would lower the fish over the side..and set the fish in the water. Wait a couple of minutes by moving the fish gently back and fourth. You can tell when the fish is ready to swim away. Let him live another day. To grow up.. to hit a top water and get inside that cooler.

[Red Stikr]

My first experience offshore a few few years ago i hooked a 43in ling.We were about to gaff him when the capt said Don't gaff him yet.He goes below and comes up with a nickle plated 45 and caps him.Now gaff him.He said a green ling can do some serious damage.