Influence of artificial lure hook type on hooking characteristics, handling, and injury of angled freshwater gamefish

Abstract

Catch-and-release is practiced in recreational fisheries under the premise that released fish will survive with negligible injury and stress. However, hooking injuries may prevent that outcome from being realized. One way to potentially minimize injuries and maximize survival in angled fish is to replace treble hooks on hard plastic lures with single hooks, but the effectiveness of this tactic has yet to be tested. Our study investigated if replacing treble hooks with single hooks on hard plastic lures reduced injuries and handling for angled Northern Pike (Esox lucius), Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus dolomieu) and Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides). Furthermore, we compared fish handling (i.e., need for use of hook removal gear) and injuries between fish that were captured with barbed and barbless hooks. Fish were angled using three types of conventional hard plastic lures (i.e., crankbaits, jerkbaits, and lipless crankbaits). Upon landing, total length of the fish, an array of hooking characteristics (i.e., number of hook points in the fish, anatomical hooking location(s)), and reflex impairment were recorded. Analyses revealed that using barbless J hooks on all lures yielded the shortest unhooking times for all species. For Smallmouth Bass caught on both crank and jerk baits, J hooks tended to result in more shallow hooking than treble hooks. Barbless treble hooks were more likely to be embedded in a sensitive location (e.g., foul hooked, gullet, gills, and/or eyes) compared to barbless J hooks in Smallmouth Bass. No other significant differences in hook types and anatomical locations were found for other species. Hook type and lure type did not influence reflex impairment or survival for any of the species. Using J hooks, especially barbless ones, on lures that traditionally have treble hooks should be considered when encouraging best angling practices for the freshwater gamefish studied here to expedite release, although the extent to which this influences mortality remains unclear.