| Let's Hold and Release Bass RIGHT! Last year, | | | | |
| David Campbell, of TP&WD's Tyler Hatchery, | | | | We can do better. From now on, all published |
| announced anglers were breaking the jaws of | | | | bass videos and photographs should show lip |
| lunker bass brought to him under the Lone | | | | landings in which bass stay vertical, hanging |
| Star Lunker Program. Since then, Honey Hole, | | | | from jaws that aren't forced wide open. If a |
| In-Fisherman, and many other fishing | | | | bass is rotated any amount toward the |
| magazines have reported his comments. By now, | | | | horizontal, the lucky angler's other hand |
| most bassers who occasionally read fishing | | | | must support the weight of the body, not the |
| magazines have heard about jaw damage. But | | | | bass' jaw. |
| this doesn't mean they understand it. | | | | |
| | | | It will take time and effort to learn better |
| We, and I mean just about everybody who ever | | | | lipping and holding procedures. |
| unhooked a bass or held one in one hand for a | | | | |
| photograph, have been torquing the jaws of | | | | Anglers need to experiment with alternate |
| bass. A jaw, whether human or fish, is only | | | | grips. One technique that seems to help is to |
| meant to open so wide and no more. Forcing it | | | | keep fingers straight while lip-landing and |
| wider does damage. | | | | lip-holding bass. This grip doesn't feel as |
| | | | firm and secure as the old method and is |
| A few weeks ago I watched a popular | | | | awkward at first. |
| television fisherman mention this jaw damage | | | | |
| and claim it only applies to lunkers. He said | | | | But straight fingers don't push in under the |
| lip-landing was the best way to land and | | | | jaw and force it open as much as the harmful |
| handle bass up to six pounds. If this expert | | | | grip with fingers rolled in toward the thumb. |
| thinks carelessly lip-holding small bass is | | | | |
| harmless, it's likely many other bassers | | | | Another option is to grip the bass' jaw from |
| think so too. | | | | the side without a lure and hooks rather than |
| | | | from the front. This grip is also less apt to |
| The TV angler was partially right. | | | | force a jaw too wide open. |
| | | | |
| Lip-landing does the least damage to small | | | | At least one bass angler I've seen in a video |
| bass, and is often harmless IF their jaws | | | | didn't land bass by the lip at all. |
| aren't distorted. Only the jaws of mishandled | | | | |
| super-lunkers are likely to actually break | | | | Instead, he put his hand under tired bass and |
| and cause a bass to starve. But he was wrong | | | | lifted them straight up. They seemed docile |
| if he thinks anglers should continue to hold | | | | and didn't flip away. |
| smaller bass as we have in the past. | | | | |
| | | | However, he still had the problem of how to |
| By using jaws as levers to rotate hanging | | | | hold the fish while unhooking it. For |
| bass away from vertical to a "more natural" | | | | unhooking, it's hard to beat a lip lock that |
| horizontal position with one hand; TV | | | | doesn't force the jaw open too far. |
| anglers, outdoor writers, and average | | | | |
| fishermen have unnecessarily strained jaw | | | | Proper release techniques also don't include |
| tissues. Tissue damage occurs long before | | | | swishing a bass back and forth to |
| bones break. It may take 13 or more pounds to | | | | "re-oxygenate" its gills. Gill filaments are |
| break a bass jaw completely, but strain | | | | attached at only one end and are meant to |
| occurs anytime the jaw is distorted beyond | | | | stream like a flag in a flow from only one |
| the full-open position naturally used by | | | | direction. Backward current can bend, bruise, |
| bass. We don't need to carelessly give every | | | | or break fragile gill filaments. In addition, |
| released bass a "jaw ache." My files and | | | | too much forward movement can force excess |
| likely those of most TV fishermen, | | | | water into the fish's stomach. Although fresh |
| advertisers, and other outdoor writers | | | | bass naturally jump and splash, fish that are |
| contain many pictures that show improper | | | | tired and stressed from battle don't need |
| handling techniques. As we all have a moral | | | | more stress. Place them in the water rather |
| responsibility to display good handling, | | | | than dropping or throwing them back. If a |
| these old videos, slides, and prints are | | | | fish is healthy enough to swim slowly away, |
| obsolete and should not be used, except to | | | | just let it go gently. |
| illustrate bad procedure. Anglers should no | | | | |
| longer see distorted jaws and other bad | | | | Let's hold and release bass right from now |
| examples. | | | | on. |