Ethics Question

[Down to Earth]

The issue of pulling a musky caught out of season out of the water for some photos was brought up in another forum. Though I don't think a "out of season" fish should leave the water it made me think of another situation.

If its in season and you catch a sub 40" fish is it justified/legal/ethical to bring the fish out of the water to photo and then release? I know a few years back I caught my first while musky fishing and it went 35.5 and I was fishing with someone and we got a couple shots out of water. Since then, though the legal 40+ fish has elluded me I've caught other sub 40" fish that have been returned without even a picture of any kind. I'd say now I'm better educated and am at a point where I DON'T NEED a picture of every musky I catch just to show people and would not even take a sub legal fish out of the water.

Thoughts??

Andy

[riverrat56]

Whats the differnce between taking a 35 incher and 42 incher out if your not going to keep them?

I don't feel it does a fish any harm to be properly handled and then released even if it is out of season or undersized. When i fished Mille Lacs a few years ago i caught what was then my biggest walleye at 24 inches, quick CPR because it was out of the slot and (to big to be eaten anyways) and there it went over the side of the boat. Fishing Red this winter i caught a 37 inch pike, quick picture and measured it and then back down the hole, im sure that neither of these fish were harmed.

So really i don't feel there is anything wrong with taking an unkeepable fish out of the water for a picture because its the same as taking the picture of a legal fish and then tossing it back.

[Crankbait_Guy]

I think if you catch one, and you really want to get a picture of it, than just be responsible and smart. 30 seconds out of the water ain't gonna do much to an animal like a muskie. If you know what you're doing, I don't think there's a lot of harkm done. It's a fish, not a snowflake, or a delicate flower.

Personally, if it's over 40", and I have a camera I'll probably try to shoot a picture, but I guess it really doesn't matter to me either way. I know I caught it, and hopefully there's someone else in the boat to verify.

You just have to make a responsible decision.JMO.

[cliffy]

That is a tough one...I guess I would go with whatever I felt was correct and I would be ready to defend my position.

For example, I caught the biggest bass of my life about two weeks ago (out of season) and I just didnt feel comfortable handling the fish long enough to get a snap shot. I got the hooks out and got her back in the water in about 10 seconds. My farther was the witness and thought I should get a pic but I disagreed...didnt want to even come close to breaking any laws. Other people might disagree with what I did but that is their choice.

By the way, that monster bass swallowed a 10 inch/ 6oz muskie bait. Luckly only the front hooks stuck so it was pretty easy to get out. And no, there was no muskies in this particular lake, I was just trying to get some of my lures to run true.

[LEECH21]

I personally agree with riverrat56 100%.

I don't really see the difference in a 39" muskie and a 40" muskie....besides that its legal to keep the 40 incher. They are both nice fish in my book and would probably deserve a quick photo. I live in an area where the closest muskie lake ia a good hour and a half away. So catching one, no matter how big, is a big deal.

[guideman]

The point being missed here is that some muskies will die no matter how careful you are with them.

By water releasing fish that aren't leagal, you may save a very valuable fish from death, by post release stress.

As far as out of season fish are concerned, the post above says there is no difference, I beg to differ. Once you bring that fish in the boat and take photos, you have broken the law. This not only applies to muskies but to any species with a closed season. Same thing with fish that are in a slot or have a minimum size limit. They are to be immediately released back into the water, ask a CO if you need to, but thats what the regs say.

"Ace"

[cybermuskie]

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I beg to differ. Once you bring that fish in the boat and take photos, you have broken the law.

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I beg to differ... Posted below are quotes from the reg book, and if you look at the example from lake ADA it says that all fish not in the slot "must be immediately returned to the water" so I figure that must mean they have to be taken out of the water in order to return them to the water.

I didn't find anything that said you are breaking the law if you bring the fish in the boat to unhook it and snap a pic and let it go. My uncle is a retired CO. I am not trying to start anything but this is what I found.

Harvest slot limit–Allows the harvest of fish from a designated size range. For example, a 14-through 18-inch harvest slot means that only fish from 14-through 18-inches may be kept. All others must be released.

• You may not intentionally fish for any species during its closed season.

ADA LAKE (Cass County)

northern pike: All from 24" through 36" must be immediately

returned to the water. Only 1 over 36" allowed in possession.

[NoviceFishingDad]

I have never landed a musky yet, but have one tactical question relating to slot limits. How would one know if a fish is legal or not particulary when you are close as the example of the 39 or 40 inch fish?

While I am sure there are those with lots of experience with these fish that would know by feel or just by looking. I would not know until I had it in the boat and put it on my ruler. I suppose you could try to put a tape on it in the water, but if you were geared for bass and caught that 'close to slot' musky w/out the right landing gear, I would not trust trying to get the tape on a fish moving around in the water - at least for me.

I am probably missing something obvious, but just my initial reaction to the question of bringing a undersized fish out of the water...

[riverrat56]

Well then how come the time i was carp fishing on the river before walleye opener and i was talking to a CO and I caught a nice (23 in) walleye on a bottom rig he took the picture of it for me? You might be right, the law says imediatly returned to water, but if i unhook it in the water, lift it out, take a picture, and put it back, I know i am doing less damage than the guy who gets it into the boat and lets it flop around while looking for his pliers.

Argue the law all you want, sometimes there is holes in the law that don't allow for common sence.

O and here is a question for you GuideMan,

Your out panfishing before walleye opener, bobber goes down, set the hook, drag starts screaming, after 15 mins you reach for the net because all you saw was a side of gold and a white tip. You scoop a 32 inch fat prespawn walleye into the net. Sun is setting in the back ground, camara is 2 ft away on the seat, do you quick unhook it and get it released or do you take 10 more seconds and snap the picture?

[Down to Earth]

I actually called the DNR the other day about pulling an out of season fish out of the water to snap a photo in the boat and I was told it WAS NOT allowed.

[cybermuskie]

Hey Down....let them try to enforce that...hahaha

[outdoor ran]

So if I hook a fish out of season I need to jump into the water and unhook my lure so I don't lift the fish from the lake and break the law

[half2fish]

it must differ from co to co. because one of the co's that works mille lacs lives on the south end and docks his boat at our resort. we had a diccusion with some of the campers a couple days previous about the same topic that is being brought up here. when he came and put his boat in we asked him. he said that if you catch a fish out of season,or a fish that is protected by a slot, and you snap a picture and put him back you are not doing anything wrong. because you are not keeping them.

[guideman]

Once again it is the spirit of the law that needs to be followed. Ethical anglers don't look for loopholes in the law. Just because you think you can get away with it does that mean you should go ahead and egnor the regs?

To answer the above question about whether or not I would water release a Big walleye, if I caught it before the season opened. I have done it many times in the past and will contine to do so.

There are measuring sticks that float, if you have any doubt about whether your fish is a legal fish, it can be measured in the water. As far as removing hooks on a muskie, I "NEVER" bring the fish into the boat to remove the hooks, it's all done in the net at boatside. Not only is it much better for the fish, but it's also much safer for the angler.

If you put the well being of the fish first, and your egos second, you'll be on your way to what I call an ethical angler. That is of cource only my opinion, I know others have their own ideas as to what constitutes being ethical. Cercumventing the law by looking for loopholes in the regs, isn't

(in my opinion) very ethical. I guess it all will depend on your point of view.

"Ace"

[CanOCorn]

I am on the fence about this issue. If I catch a trophy fish out of season, perhaps a huge walleye, I would want a picture to take to the office.

On the other hand, how can I take credit for angling a trophy when it wasn't even the species I was targeting? It's not like I used specific tactics to target the fish and won the battle. I just happened to have been fishing crappie or sunnies or something and "accidentally" caught this trophy.

I would definitely enjoy catching it but I could not justify attributing catching it to my skills as a fisherman. Therefore, I would most likely just release the fish immedietely. The water release versus boating the fish are another debate all together.

My $.2

[outdoor ran]

Guideman, what happens if someone pays you for a day of muskie fishing on a lake with a 50" size limit and that person catchs a 49" muskie. Are they allowed to hold the fish and get a picture? I know i would sure be upset if a guide just reached into the water with a pliers and unhooked a fish of a lifetime before I get to see it. Just wondering.

[Giant_Jackpot]

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I think if you catch one, and you really want to get a picture of it, than just be responsible and smart. 30 seconds out of the water ain't gonna do much to an animal like a muskie. If you know what you're doing, I don't think there's a lot of harkm done. It's a fish, not a snowflake, or a delicate flower.

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Hmmmmm………

Lets put that to the test. I’ll chase you around the parking lot for 3 minutes (with the right equipment you probably would never fight a muskie longer than that). Then I’ll hold you down for a minute or two (hook cutting time) and then I’ll ask you to hold your head under water for 30 seconds. I’m sure you would survive but doesn’t sound like much fun does it? Don’t get me wrong, I’m gonna take pictures of big fish but it is good to keep things in perspective.

[msm1018]

I'm not trying to stir things up when I say this, but I can't find any good recipes on muskies, other than mounting it I see no other use in keeping a muskie and even for muskies you can get a graphite replica. Sure the fight might be fun, but why keep muskies when there are more plentiful walleyes or crappies? And if memory serves me correctly, Muskies are not really that plentiful, sure there are lakes that have a few of them but do you see them in every other lake out there? No. I don't even know why the DNR allows one to keep one. sorry just had to vent, seems like common sense is in order.

[Giant_Jackpot]

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I'm not trying to stir things up when I say this, but I can't find any good recipes on muskies, other than mounting it I see no other use in keeping a muskie and even for muskies you can get a graphite replica. Sure the fight might be fun, but why keep muskies when there are more plentiful walleyes or crappies? And if memory serves me correctly, Muskies are not really that plentiful, sure there are lakes that have a few of them but do you see them in every other lake out there? No. I don't even know why the DNR allows one to keep one. sorry just had to vent, seems like common sense is in order.

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I don’t think anyone in this thread was talking about keeping them, just taking pictures. I personally have never kept one, and like you suggest, I had a replica made of a 51.5 I got last year. CPR is the only way to go.