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throwback fluke From: Gerald P. Falotico (208.29.184.201), PENNSYLVANIA If you cut the leader, the hook will rot out.
cut leader From: bobo (162.115.235.17), NJ I usually stop cutting hooks after 15 shorts... Hey if we can write this off the expense on income tax then I am good. Or if the commercial fleet didn't turn around and sell the 11 inch fluke for 7.99 lbs.
Throwbacks From: Bill K (76.116.205.199), NEW JERSEY There are all sorts of theories about deeply hooked fish. If the fish is bleeding, it's probably, if not certainly going to die. The deeply hooked fish go belly up more often after they are hoisted up by the leader when they are pulled out of the water or out of the net. Tightening the leader only pulls the vitals up into the fish's throat. When it's tossed overboard, especially from a platform like a party boat It's questionable if they are going to survive. Measuring fish mortality is not a science and it's hard to estimate how many die.
I think a lot of us have caught fish that were previously hooked and have even caught fish that had a hook or leader still in its gut. Some make it. Some don't. Somehow, many, many survive despite heavy recreational pressure and commercial netting.
Unhooking any fish should always be a labor of love. There are ways of carefully using your pliers or fingers to reach behind the gills to reach a hook but it still has to be done with care. Ripping a hook out of a fish is a "no no". It's a moral dilemma. You do what you think is right. If you grew up thinking that tossing back a dead fish is wasteful, then it is. It's your decision to keep it or not. If it's undersized and you keep it, and can ethically legitimize your action, the only other person you have to convince is the conservation officer. Let me ask you this, " Do you feel lucky"?
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