Catch and Release: How do fish respond to fishing pressure?
By practicing catch and release we actively alter our favorite rivers and lakes and influence the dynamics of the fishery.
June 2020
If you're interested in fishing, especially fly-fishing, you've likely heard about, felt influenced by, or even practiced catch and release. It has been said that catch and release fishing allows anglers to "best" nature (catch the fish) and be "healed" through nature (release the fish) [Arlinghaus et al. 2013]. Yet, by practicing catch and release (C&R) we actively alter our favorite C&R rivers and lakes by influencing the dynamics of the fishery. Several groups of scientists have studied the effects of C&R and I believe these findings are worth looking at for the inquisitive angler.