Care must be taken in handling a catch
Picking
up once again on the junior corner (where I am trying to give helpful
hints to young anglers), I am going to concentrate on the delicate topic
of fish welfare.
Fish should be handled as little as possible so as not to cause them any
unnecessary stress or harm. They should never be handled with dry hands
or worse still with a dry cloth or towel.
Remember that fish have protective mucus on the surface of their body
to protect them from disease. Some fish are covered in more mucus than
others – skimmer bream being the most slimy species.
Fish should never be retained in keepnets for longer than necessary and
youngsters should be encouraged to return fish immediately to the water
if they are only pleasure angling.
Barbless hooks should be used and, unless the fish are really small, landing
nets should be used to assist in the process of landing hooked fish rather
than swinging them to hand.
The use of disgorgers should be kept to a minimum and any hook that is
embedded beyond the line of the gill cover should not be removed using
a disgorger.
In this instance, the line leading to the hook should be cut as close
as possible to the hook shank using a pair of scissors.
The reason for this is that some very important organs lie along the internal
cavity of the fish from its mouth to its tail.
The first important organ is the heart which is located immediately adjacent
to the lower side of the gill covers and prodding about with a disgorger
must be avoided at all costs.
If keepnets are to be used extreme care should be implemented when removing
retained fish from the net. They should never be tumbled from the bottom
of the net down to the opening and, wherever possible, let the fish swim
down the net while still under the water.
This process is quite simple all you have to do is hold the open end of
the net above the water line and carefully begin to gather the net very
gently from the bottom towards the open end.
As you gather the net together, the fish will swim towards the open end,
and once they are in the top section (below the open end) the whole of
the net can be lifted out of the water. The fish can then be placed in
an appropriate weigh net ready for the weighing in process.
Another method of removing fish from a keepnet is to pull the bottom ring
(from the inside of the net) up to the top opening in one swift movement.
This again eliminates the possibility of fish being tumbled down the full
length of the net.
If you have to use a keepnet, always use the largest one possible and
submerge it as low to the water’s surface as possible.
Do not have half a metre of net pointing skywards out of the water as
this means that you would have to drop fish in to the net rather than
gently placing them in by your wet hands.
Wherever possible always secure your net top and bottom, especially on
canals and rivers where boat traffic may be meandering along the water.
If your net is not secured, it will be drawn one way then the other as
the boat passes through your swim. It means the fish inside would be rolled
all over the place and inevitably they would be damaged if the net is
not secured.
Always place your keepnet as near to your basket as possible – do
not carry fish two or three metres along the bank to place them in your
keep net.
Do not overcrowd your net with large fish or large quantities of fish.
If you insist on having a picture taken make sure it is done as quickly
as possible, do not keep the fish out of the water any longer than is
necessary.
Don’t forget to treat the fish with the respect that they deserve
– their welfare is far more important than your vanity of having
your picture taken with your best catch of the day.
Junior Triathlon
Tickets
for this annual competition will be available from all four of the local
tackle shops as from 7th June. The entry fee is £3, and dates of
the events and venues are: 12th July (Chesterfield Canal), 16th August
(Chesterfield Canal), 27th September (Sandhill Lake).
The annual Friday night match will take place on Sandhill Lake on the
18th July and tickets for this match are priced at £1.
To qualify for entry to all of the above competitions all competitors
must be in possession of a Worksop book and any angler 12-years-old or
above must be in possession of a valid rod licence.
Junior and Youth Trials
Congratulations
are extended to Terry Foulds of Worksop (see picture) who has been selected
for the first ever international junior squad to take part in the World
Championships that are being staged in Portugal later in the year.
Terry was one of five youngsters from our region who took part in the
trials on Larford Lake near Stourport on Saturday.
The other four, although unsuccessful, tried very hard to secure a coveted
place in the squad and despite their obvious disappointment, they did
Worksop proud.
This weekend four former Worksop junior/intermediate squad members will
be visiting the same venue in the hope of securing a place in the England
youth team to travel to Portugal.
They are: Marc Foy (Langold), Andrew Landells (Bircotes), Craig Locke
(Anston), and Andrew Pickersgill (Worksop). We wish them all the very
best for these trials.
Notice Board
Worksop
Piscatorial members should note that the first match is scheduled to take
place on the High School section of the Chesterfield Canal on Sunday 1st
June.
Any senior members wishing to take part in the WDAA Association match
at Hallcroft on Saturday 7th June should also notify the secretary of
their intentions.
Worksop United’s first club match is scheduled to take place on the
Bracebridge section of the Chesterfield Canal on Sunday 1st June. Any
member intending to fish should notify the secretary.
Association News
The Annual
Delegates, Officials and Book Holders’ Match is scheduled to take
place at Sandhill Lake on Saturday 31st May.
The entry fee is £5, the draw will take place at 8.30am and fishing
will be from 9.30am until 3.30pm. The event is limited to 70 pegs.
The Senior Citizens’ match is at Hallcroft Fisheries on Saturday
7th June. The entry fee is £5, the draw will take place at 8.30am
and fishing is from 10am until 3pm. The event is limited to 120 pegs.
Applications for both events should be submitted on the official forms
that are in the hands of club secretaries and these should be returned
to Derek Brown 4, Dove Close, Worksop, Notts S81 7LG.
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Yours in Sport Glyn |