This is going to take some time to change, but definitely worth considering…
From the Native Fish Society:
This winter, Native Fish Society is launching our “Keep ‘Em Wet” campaign to increase angler awareness about the negative effects of air exposure to wild fish.
Now don’t get us wrong, we’ve all taken fish out of the water to snap a photo, Native Fish Society staff members included. But the more we learn about these issues and take care of the fish we love the more healthy wild fish there will be to catch. Right!?
Even when anglers are taking precautionary measures, like crushing the barb, prolonged air exposure can make it difficult for fish to recover and there are delayed negative effects that may not be apparent even if the fish seems fine when it swims away.
Studies have shown that the longer a fish is exposed to air after exhausting exercise the higher their mortality rates are (Ferguson and Tufts, 1992; Gale et al, 2011). Even 30 seconds of air exposure reduces a trout’s ability to recover and can provide a significant additional stress even when catch and release fishing (Ferguson and Tufts, 1992).
So, let’s get creative with the way we photograph our wild fish by keeping them wet and in the water. From January 1 to May 31st 2015, NFS will be holding a photo contest for the best picture of a wild, native fish from the Pacific Northwest with at minimum its gills in the water.
See rules and entry details here.
I tend to take all my pictures with our local trout in the water simply because I like to fish alone and I only have two hands, one on the rod, the other on the camera.
I try to never “over play” a fish and limit air exposure to a minimum, stress kills trout.
I’m not a “tree hugger” or “animal rights” activist in any sense of the terms, I just try to practice common sense, keeping fish alive and healthy means good fishing in the future.
There were small hatches of March browns this week around 1pm on the lower Mac, #12 hare’s ear soft hackles worked well during the hatch.
The Keep ‘Em Wet campaign is a great movement for our sport. It’s hard to blame someone for a grip-n-grin with a truly exceptional fish, but the more fish we leave in the water the better their chances for survival!