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Walleye Mortality during a Live‐Release Tournament on Mille Lacs, Minnesota
Author(s) -
Goeman Timothy J.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
north american journal of fisheries management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.587
H-Index - 72
eISSN - 1548-8675
pISSN - 0275-5947
DOI - 10.1577/1548-8675(1991)011<0057:wmdalr>2.3.co;2
Subject(s) - tournament , micropterus , stizostedion , fishing , fishery , bass (fish) , catch and release , fish <actinopterygii> , league , biology , toxicology , mathematics , recreational fishing , combinatorics , physics , astronomy
Weigh‐in, postrelease, and total mortalities were estimated for a 3‐d live‐release fishing tournament for walleye Stizostedion vitreum . Weigh‐in mortality for walleye ranged from 1.0 to 6.2% and was apparently influenced by weather conditions experienced during the tournament. Postrelease mortality ranged from 5.7 to 47.1 % and was associated with weigh‐in stress, weather conditions during the tournament, and possibly, live‐well densities. Mortality was not associated with fish size or sex. Total tournament mortality was about 40%, but the total of all fish caught during the tournament was less than 0.5% by weight of the 5‐year mean open‐water harvest estimate for 1984–1988 at Mille Lacs. The live‐release format is a viable option for walleye fishing tournaments, but only under highly controlled conditions. Tournament angling has become increasingly popular in recent years, with the live‐release format contributing to more widespread acceptance of tournaments. Inland competitive fishing has focused on largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides, and consequently, tournament mortality of this species has been widely studied (May 1973; Plumb et al. 1975, 1988; Seidensticker 1975; Schramm et al. 1985, 1987).