Management Briefs: Effect of Catch-and-Release Angling on the Survival of Black Sea Bass

Abstract

We tested the hypothesis that black sea bass Centropristis striata captured and released by anglers experience zero mortality. Black sea bass captured by hook and line in Nantucket Sound, Massachusetts, were tagged and held in wire cages on site for 48 h. Hook location and physical condition were recorded for each fish. Concurrently, black sea bass used as controls were collected from commercial fish pots, tagged, and held under similar conditions. A preliminary experiment established that neither tagging nor densities up to 12 fish per cage caused mortality. During the 48-h posthooking period, 3 of the 64 fish tested died, resulting in an estimated hooking mortality of 4.7%. The three fatalities were among five fish hooked in the esophagus. We concluded that survival is high among small caught-and-released black sea bass (<27 cm standard length) and that release of hooked fish has little effect on total fishing mortality.