Catch & Release Mortality of Speckled Trout

[Jerkyourcroaker]

....slow day at the office today so I am e/fishing. Bear with me.

I have seen several post lately on this board and on others about the number of fish that die after being caught and released (most posts were talking about the practice of culling, fish dieing after tournaments, etc.). Knowing that there is probably some PhD locked in a basement somewhere trying to correlate hook size, the solunar tables and fish mortality, I did some internet research and found the attached paper by Greg Stunz from Texas A&M Corpus Christi. It was published in 2006.

A couple of interesting points from the paper if you don't have time or interest to read it.

• In the study of 448 specks caught and released, size range 10" to 30", the mortality rate was relatively low at 11%.
• Angler experience is the most important factor in catch and release mortality. Fish caught and released by 'inexperienced anglers' in the study had a mortality rate of 18%. Anecdotally, the study says that inexperienced anglers don't have a feel for the fish biting and it results in gut hooked fish, likewise they have limited experience handling fish and that is what leads the the higher mortality.
• They spent a good deal of effort studying the mortality of larger fish. The 25" upper slot limit on specks is predicated on the idea that the fish caught and released in that size range will survive. The study showed no correlation between size and mortality (e.g. the big girls will survive just as well as the young sprouts, they aren't disproportionately affected).
• Hook type (Kahle, J Hook or Treble) didn't materially affect the 11% average mortality rate.
• Soft plastics had the lowest mortality rate (+/-6%), Live Shrimp a bit above the average (+/-14%) and topwaters the highest (20ish %). The higher mortality from live shrimp was anecdotally linked to deep hooking. The higher mortality from treble hooks was linked to mortal external wounds from large treble hooks.

In the report summary, they identify that there is a significant amount of variability in the statistics depending on the design of the study, the replicability, etc. but that the numbers are directionally correct. There is some discussion in the report of further study on the topic. I e/mailed the author to see if there was any follow up work done. If I get a reply, I will follow up.

In short, be careful handling specks that you catch and release and they will generally be just fine. Take the time to teach an inexperienced angler how to hook, play and release fish safely and it's good for the overall population.

Ok......now back to work.

catch and release mortality of speckled trout 2006.pdf

[bubbas kenner]

Great post and a very good reminder thank you sir all of which is soo important for the future of our resource.I want my grandkids to catch fish and thats the only way to do it .

[Curmudgeon]

Great info! Thanks for posting!

[ubermensch1324]

Awesome information.

I tried to tell a guy this on 2cool and I guess he didn't think it was 2cool.

He said the mortality rate was 20%+ so what does it hurt to keep big trout here and there .... errrr was his logic. Anyways, thanks for the information and I was pretty sure he wasn't right because I repeatedly asked him to link me sources other than, "...a study shows that." I could care less what a "study" shows if it doesn't have any evidence to back it up or the sample size is relatively small. I also tried to tell him that the ratio of trout kept/killed/not released to future offspring isn't just 1:1. That trout will lay millions of eggs, and with the mortality rate of trout being low on catch and release, there's a very good chance she will be spawning a bunch of eggs. So it's not "just 1 fish."

It's also awesome you posted facts on the myth about big girls not surviving as well as 25" and below trout. I have no idea where that came from but I hear people say it all the time. I think someone reputable said it and it caught wind so now everyone just repeats it without knowing if it's actually true or not.

Post this on 2cool if you want a laugh. You will bring the idiots out of the woodwork guaranteed. More people need to be informed about the facts that's for sure.

[GoldSpoonGeneral]

im only looking for one big trout to mount after that the rest get released for other ppl and population other than that i wont keep a trout over 25 even at 25 i tend to go for 18 to 23 inch range.

[B&P]

Awesome information.

I tried to tell a guy this on 2cool and I guess he didn't think it was 2cool.

He said the mortality rate was 20%+ so what does it hurt to keep big trout here and there .... errrr was his logic. Anyways, thanks for the information and I was pretty sure he wasn't right because I repeatedly asked him to link me sources other than, "...a study shows that." I could care less what a "study" shows if it doesn't have any evidence to back it up or the sample size is relatively small. I also tried to tell him that the ratio of trout kept/killed/not released to future offspring isn't just 1:1. That trout will lay millions of eggs, and with the mortality rate of trout being low on catch and release, there's a very good chance she will be spawning a bunch of eggs. So it's not "just 1 fish."

It's also awesome you posted facts on the myth about big girls not surviving as well as 25" and below trout. I have no idea where that came from but I hear people say it all the time. I think someone reputable said it and it caught wind so now everyone just repeats it without knowing if it's actually true or not.

Post this on 2cool if you want a laugh. You will bring the idiots out of the woodwork guaranteed. More people need to be informed about the facts that's for sure.

You can't the brain trust on 2cool anything. Hell, they did the research and wrote the paper. Some of those yahoo's really are full of themselves.

[Swells]

I estimate 1,000 fishermen during the TIFT just for the bay - about 200 offshore and total 1,200. These folks fish for two days in early August of every year. I would suspect the average throw-back ratio for reds and specks is about 10 during that period. Even at 10% mortality and an average of only 2 pounds per fish, that means about a ton of dead fish. So I don't dispute the study - which is very good and I really like the work TAMU does and they also did another study about that time that showed that the TIFT brings in about a million dollars to the the Port Isabel-South Padre region.

But the trash, the muddy waters, the floating grass, and the dead fish are rather startling to see on the Monday after the fishermen leave. I commented as such, wishing perhaps something could be done to reduce those impacts but I am no "turd in the punch bowl" as the bozos on 2Cool like to say. Enough said about the bay trout and thanks for the excellent reference.

Know why the mortality is low compared to other species? No barotrauma, which is what happens when fish are hauled up more than about 80 feet deep. Such fish will have a bloated air bladders, sometimes with the eyes popping out in deeper waters. Studies of mortality for deep water fish like the red snapper are therefore much higher, despite special ventilation devices and dehookers and circle hooks. That's a different topic but maybe useful as to explaining why speck trout mortality isn't closer to 25 or even 50 percent.

[Dawg]

Thanks for the info

[Jerkyourcroaker]

I e/mailed the author to see if there was any follow up work done. If I get a reply, I will follow up.

Well, sure enough, I e/mailed Dr. Stunz and he very promptly replied. I asked him if he had done additional research on the topic since the 2006 study. He replied yes. They have studied tournament catch & release (mortality rate higher than the 'normal' c&r but still relatively low at 25%). They have 80 specks they are tracking in real time with electronic tags (talk about virtual potlicking!). In summary, they have done additional research and the further studies corroborate an overall survival rate of 90% for specks and reds caught and released.

Thanks Swell for your comments in general and the reminder that this study is limited to inshore bay fish. To your comment on snapper, Dr. Stunz said almost exactly the same thing in his e/mail to me this afternoon "For red snapper that is a different story, many of those fish do not make it due to barotrauma injuries associated with bringing them up from such deep depths".

For those that are curious, the referenced studies and many others are available on the following website: Texas A&M Corpus Christi - Department of Life Sciences.

[Randy]

Good read and thanks for posting!

[trophytroutman]

great info.

[S-troop]

Great information and thanks for reporting.


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[Swells]

Well, sure enough, I e/mailed Dr. Stunz and he very promptly replied. I asked him if he had done additional research on the topic since the 2006 study. He replied yes. They have studied tournament catch & release (mortality rate higher than the 'normal' c&r but still relatively low at 25%).

Hmmm ... this is quite a revelation if true, that tournaments where people catch a lot of specks have have double the mortality rate as compared to us regulars and charter boys. Perhaps that's in line with my perspective that very large tournaments can be quite destructive to a fishery such as the Lower Laguna Madre.

I also went back and reread the article, and they said that they didn't look into hook placement - what they found was a correlation with angler experience instead - we all know that noobs can tear up the fish. I must admit that I've killed my fair share of throw-back spotted seatrout, either a hook through its brain and eye socket or one swallowed deep. I felt bad about that and started clipping the line close in the hopes the hook would rust out, rather than pulling the poor fish's brains, throat bones, gills, or guts out! I have no idea if that's the right thing to do but it does bother me, the floaters. Sometimes I crush the barb down on the hook and let them get dull, which seems silly but I still can catch my limits.

But the interesting part was your info that tourneys are about 25% throw-back mortality. Ugh.

[Rcastillo]

Any body know any good canals to fish in Galveston county

[corndog]

Nice read here folks. I recently have been putting trout on the O2 system to see how they fair for next years FWE tourney. I did notice after 6 hours the fish were alive but on the decline. I did not change the water enough I think and had a red and flattie with them. Maybe it is the stress they go thru in the live well and being handled at the weigh station. Maybe being put on a stringer till they get em in the live well adds to it. Anyhow I am glad 75 % of them make it compared to a dead fish tourney. BTW I have found many tips of hooks in the throats of redfish that had been hooked. Appears the hooks rust away. Kinda funny the tip that is in the flesh will look brand new.