Catching, Handling and Photographing Large Sturgeon
Handling fish in a safe manner helps preserve this wonderful species and lets it live to fight another day. Even if you don't book a trip with Fraser Legends Fishing, we want you to be aware of safe fish handling techniques even if you book with another charter or go out on your own. Here are the steps to getting a great photo that will be talked about for years and still treat the fish with respect and ensure maximum chance of survival.
Any sturgeon, 5 feet or longer should be considered a big fish and not pulled out of the water onto a boat. These fish are too large to safely handle without risking serious injury to the fish. Keeping the fish in the water is important for it's safety and survival.
Try to keep shore time to 10 minutes or less.Any sturgeon over 5 feet in length should be towed to shore to get a photograph. If you haul it into the boat, the rough handling and struggling of the fish plus the weight of the fish can damage it's internal organs and threaten its survival after release. Select a safe shore area. Keep the fish in the water at all times. The tagging, measuring and photo session should not last more than 10 minutes as you want to send the fish off into the river as quickly as possible.
Never use a rope Lasso. Keeping the fish hooked adds a measure of control and minimizes injury to the fish. You or your guide should never use a rope lasso tied at the back of the fish to try and control it. This is very damaging to the fish's skin and muscle. An experienced and well trained guide should never use a rope on the fish.
Scanning a fish for PITT Tags. The first thing your guide should do is scan the entire fish for a "Passive Integrated Transponder Tag" or "PIT" Tag. This is a microchip that may have been inserted just behind the left side of the scull plate during a previous capture. The PIT Tags are read each time the fish is captured by a trained guide. The scanner records a 10 digit code number that uniquely identifies the fish. The guide should record the number, length and girth of the fish and note any injuries or indications of disease. This allows the growth rate, migration, life history, and population health to be reported to the provincial Ministry of Environment. You may be asked to help in the recording process and help supply critical data for the management of this magnificent species. We strongly suggest that you book with a guide that supports this measuring and management program.
Try to keep shore time to 10 minutes or less.Any sturgeon over 5 feet in length should be towed to shore to get a photograph. If you haul it into the boat, the rough handling and struggling of the fish plus the weight of the fish can damage it's internal organs and threaten its survival after release. Select a safe shore area. Keep the fish in the water at all times. The tagging, measuring and photo session should not last more than 10 minutes as you want to send the fish off into the river as quickly as possible.
Never use a rope Lasso. Keeping the fish hooked adds a measure of control and minimizes injury to the fish. You or your guide should never use a rope lasso tied at the back of the fish to try and control it. This is very damaging to the fish's skin and muscle. An experienced and well trained guide should never use a rope on the fish.
Scanning a fish for PITT Tags. The first thing your guide should do is scan the entire fish for a "Passive Integrated Transponder Tag" or "PIT" Tag. This is a microchip that may have been inserted just behind the left side of the scull plate during a previous capture. The PIT Tags are read each time the fish is captured by a trained guide. The scanner records a 10 digit code number that uniquely identifies the fish. The guide should record the number, length and girth of the fish and note any injuries or indications of disease. This allows the growth rate, migration, life history, and population health to be reported to the provincial Ministry of Environment. You may be asked to help in the recording process and help supply critical data for the management of this magnificent species. We strongly suggest that you book with a guide that supports this measuring and management program.
Controlling the fish. A properly landed fish will generally be quite docile. Don't unhook it until you are ready for the photo. Put on gloves to protect your hands from the bony white scutes that lie in five rows along the top and sides of the fish. These are the only bones in the body of the sturgeon and they can be razor sharp! The smaller the fish, the sharper the scutes and they can create very nasty cuts requiring stitches and infections and are the main defense mechanism of the fish. Once the fish has been positioned make sure the guide gets you in position behind the fish near the head.
Gently place your hand just underneath and behind the front pectoral fins to control the head and provide support underneath the belly. Do not squeeze anything. Have the second (and subsequent) people line up beside you towards the tail. The person near the tail should grab the fish underneath behind the rear fins and grasp the solid muscle just before the tail. Note that the hand at the tail is positioned so the that thumb comes over top from the back side of the fish. This allows the entire front lateral line of the fish to be seen and provides the best photograph.
Gently lift the entire fish so that the mouth and the stomach are still in the water. This allows the fish to suck in water and still be able to breath. The water still provides support to the stomach which allows the lowest risk of putting pressure on the internal organs. Note how the front person has both hands gently underneath the fish and the rear person slightly lifts the muscle at the tail just out of the water with the support hand on the back side of the fish. This allows the entire fish, from head to tail to be viewed and the beautiful lateral line of white scutes to be visible.
Hold the fish for a few seconds to take a few of those photos that will make this a memory to share for years to come. (Note, on the INTERNET you will see plenty of photos of large fish being held up completely out of the water likely on the knees of the fisherman. This is the most likely way to damage the internal organs of the fish as now the entire weight of the fish is crushing down on the internal organs of a fish that is normally supported by the weight of water around it. DON'T DO THIS!)
Hold the fish for a few seconds to take a few of those photos that will make this a memory to share for years to come. (Note, on the INTERNET you will see plenty of photos of large fish being held up completely out of the water likely on the knees of the fisherman. This is the most likely way to damage the internal organs of the fish as now the entire weight of the fish is crushing down on the internal organs of a fish that is normally supported by the weight of water around it. DON'T DO THIS!)
To release the fish, carefully use two hands to roll it onto it's side and if possible, remove the barbless hook.
If you can't remove the barbless hook when the fish is on its side, then roll it onto it's back. This is good to do at any time if the fish gets active, as rolling it on its back will cause it to calm down almost immediately and get it back under control. Follow these simple instructions and you will get great photos in a manner that is safest for both you and the fish.
