Fishing the Northeast is only as good as the fish we leave behind. Striped bass, tuna and sharks all grow slowly and are heavily fished, so how you handle a fish matters as much as how you catch it. The good news: releasing fish in great shape is easy once you know the basics, and it is the whole point of a catch-and-release trip.
The core rules of a good release
- Keep the fish wet and in the water as much as you can. Every second out of the water is stressful, so unhook and photograph fish quickly and get them back.
- Use a rubber or rubber-coated net and wet your hands. Dry hands and knotted nets strip the protective slime coat that guards a fish from infection.
- Support the fish horizontally with two hands. Never hang a big fish vertically by the jaw or gills, it can damage its organs and jaw.
- Pinch your barbs and use the right hook. Barbless and circle hooks come out fast and hook fish in the corner of the mouth, not the gut.
- Keep it quick. Have the camera and the pliers ready before you land the fish, so the whole thing takes seconds.
- Revive before you release. Hold the fish upright in the water, facing into the current, until it kicks off under its own power. Do not just drop it over the side.
Tip Get the photo ready before the fish is in the net, not after. The difference between a 5-second and a 60-second air-out is the difference between a fish that swims off strong and one that struggles, so decide the shot, then land the fish.
By species
Big striped bass
The largest stripers are the breeders, the future of the whole fishery, so they get extra care. Keep big cows in the water, support them horizontally, minimize air time, and revive them fully. A trophy bass released strong is worth far more than one that floats off belly-up for a photo.
Tuna
Bluefin fight themselves to exhaustion, so the goal is to land them efficiently on adequate gear, then revive them boatside, keep the fish in the water, keep it moving so water flows over the gills, and let it swim off before it goes down.
Sharks
Sharks are especially vulnerable and many are protected. Keep them in the water, cut the leader close on anything you cannot easily unhook, and never drag a shark up the beach or over the rail for a photo. Retention of shortfin mako is prohibited, and white sharks are fully protected, know what you cannot keep.
Deep bottom fish and barotrauma
Fish pulled up from deep water, cod, haddock and deeper black sea bass, can suffer barotrauma: a distended stomach, bulging eyes and buoyancy problems from the pressure change. Do not vent them by hand. Use a descending device (a weighted release tool that carries the fish back down) so it can recompress and swim away, it is required in some fisheries and dramatically improves survival.
Trout and warm water
Trout are fragile, especially in warm water. When water temperatures climb, a released trout may not survive the stress, so fish for them early in the day when it is cool, handle them minimally, and consider giving warm freestone rivers a rest in the heat of summer.
Gear that helps you release fish clean
- Rubber nets, gentle on the slime coat and easy to unhook from.
- Circle hooks and barbless or pinched-barb hooks, better hookups, easier releases.
- Long pliers and side cutters, so you can unhook or cut the leader fast (and cutters are required gear for shore sharking).
- A descending device for deep-water bottom fish.
Keeping a few is fine, within the rules
Catch-and-release is our default, but taking a legal fish or two for the table is part of fishing, and species like black sea bass, tautog and bonito eat beautifully. The key is to do it within the current size, bag and season limits, keep only what you will actually use, and release everything else in good shape. See the licenses and regulations page, and always confirm the current rules.