i have been wondering for a while.....what is the mortality rate of fish hooked in the gills... i herd somewere that if they are able to swim away once the hook is out more likely than not they will survive..would like some input

thanx

Well in experiance every fish I've seen hooked in the gill has died.  The gills are full of blood and being the fishes way of breathing, obviously damaging them in any way is lethal.  If I had to guess I'd say mort rate would be 95% of the time and cause of death would be from suffacation or blood loss.  Im interested in what other people think on this though.

For me, gill hook = harvest.

How about bass hooked deep? I have actually caught bass with a hook in their throat. I would sat their chance of survival is pretty good. But I fish with alot of jigworms, and I don't like leaving that lead weight in them. Plus I'm cheap and I want my doggone jighead back.  : I actually bought a set of wire cutting pliers, but they have not worked as intended. What is everybody's opinion on this?

Yes damaging the gills on a fish is definately a very bad thing.  The thing that gets me is you see people hold fish by the gills all the time on big fish on fishing shows. >

i know that a gill hook is bad but i was just talking to my grandmothers friend whos been fishing his whole life and he says that if u can get the hook out quick,with minimul damage and blood lose adn there are able to swim away that there is a chance they can live

also of the fish ive gotten in the gilss ive only noticed i ever got to the top and die the rest ive never seen on the surface could that be a good thing??

and the guys on the shows hold em by the gill plate not the actual gills

i hate it when i hook a fish in the gill. I don't like to see the fish injured going back into the water. It makes me kinda feel bad i hurt it. But about half of the fish i have thrown back in i dont see floating on top later. If that helps your thoughts at all.

I hate gill hooking fish too! If they're bleeding heavily they will probably die and that's a shame! I usually still release them and give 'em a chance. They might just survive. It hurts me to release injured fish. I gill hooked quite a few last spring and released them all and i must say i never saw a dead bass around. I also caught quite a few bass deep in the throat and i allways cut the line and leave the hook. Alot of those bass i caught again with the hook still in their throat! So, hooking them deep is not so much of a problem, just cut the line and dont try to yank out the hook. I dont eat fish, but gill hooked fish should be harvested. I know you guys are gong to think a "fisherman that doesn't eat fish?"" but that's me!

The bigger fish will usually survive if you release them immediately.  If the fish has been hooked through more than one of  it's gill rakers then the fish is less likely to survive.   It's kind of like hearing about not removing a knife if a person has been stuck deep even though it might still be affecting other bodily processes.  If you take the knife out then the blood comes next.  Depending on how badly the fish's gills are damaged and your care of the fish afterward should be the determining factors in how long the fish lives.

It is the ugly side of fishing, I feel real bad about it. I let them go to give them a chance also.

T-Rig,

I don't eat fish much at all either. My wife refuses to clean, cook or eat them and my kids tend to not like fish unless it comes in a crunchy fish stick. I've been known to eat battered catfish or some pan fish, but I never butcher a Bass for food. They are purely a sport fish in my eyes and I feel that same fish will probably bring a smile to a few fishermen over its lifetime if someone does'nt make a meal out of it.

I've used this technique the last couple of years for deep hooked fish . It's much more difficult with a smaller bass . When I first read the article I was very skeptical because of what I have always heard about being gentle around the gills . I then read an article that showed removing the hook offered the fish a greater chance of survival . After using the technique I honestly feel that now I'm giving that fish that greatest chance to survive .

hook removal

This is just an exerpt of the article based on this study . It's a long read but very informative .

Based on his research, Foster recommended anglers carefully remove even deeply imbedded hooks. If the hook can not be removed, then it seems better to leave about 18 inches of line attached. Perhaps, someday, these findings will reach C&R anglers, the biologists who are researching C&R and publish C&R guidelines, and TV anglers who teach by their example.

Hooks in or out

My home lake is c&r only.  Harvesting is NOT an option.  If i gill hook a fish and its not bleeding too badly I'll try to get the hook out without additional damage.

If it's bleeding real badly and it looks like the entire cast of Grey's Anantomy couldn't save it, then I usually toss it up on the bank for the coons or whatever.

Avid, i wouldn't do that, if your lake is c+r only you might get into trouble if someone sees you tossing a fish on the bank. I would put them back in the water and if the fish dies it will float to the surface and something will surely eat it. Just my opinion :.

The first thing is the notion that a hook will rust out. I read this 30 years ago in Field and Stream and rejected it then and even more so now.

I always have offset sidecutters in the boat. With tubes I remove the plastic and cut the hook very close.

If the fish is bleeding hold the fish for a few minutes and let the blood glot. This is a double sword thing but if you get the bleeding stopped they will not bleed out.

I use course pickling salt in my livewells some people buy the Release Me stuff I think that salt works better.

Avid problem bites I would remove the air sack and sink the fish the turtles look after the rest.

Garnet

Avid, i wouldn't do that, if your lake is c+r only you might get into trouble if someone sees you tossing a fish on the bank. I would put them back in the water and if the fish dies it will float to the surface and something will surely eat it. Just my opinion :.

the rules say catch and release.  

I caught it and released it.  Plus I'm on the committee.  8-)

Fish blood clots rather quicky, so mild bleeding from the gills is not always lethal to the fish. Usually by the time i have unhooked a bleding fish, the blood has begun to clot. I occasionaly harvest a dead or "mortaly wounded" bass, but i usually let them go to give them a chance. If they do die, they provide good food for tutles, birds, and other fish.

I have only gill hooked a fish twice and they have been in my own pond. I removed the hook put them in my moms garden pond with koi(bass didnt eat the koi) and then about a week later i put them back in my pond and they were fine. i have never had any lukc with deep hooked fish liveng though. And i think Avid has a wonderful idea there,because then the fish is not going to waste.

When I hook a bass in the gills, and it's bleeeding badly after I get the hook out, it's going in the skillet. I grew up hunting and fishing, and the ethic I learned was, if you kill it, you eat it. Besides, I'll give it a more humane death than a turtle or a coon.

Eating a dieing fish is the best option. In this case not a option this is a catch and release lake period and having dead floating fish is bad press.

It's not more noble if consumed by humans. Turtles and Coons need to make a living.

Garnet

I can't speak for all C&R lakes, especially the California ones, but down here in Florida most lakes that I know of that are C&R have a health reason for the rule.   For example, My lake, is used as the water source for the sprinkler system.  This means the lake has a high level of fertilizer and insect spray as well as construction and other runoff.

STick Marsh/ Farm 13 is C&R because it was a farm and there is still much residue from corp dusting , fertilizing, and gas storage etc.