educate anglers about their 

 impact on the stocks and how to 

 properly return fish to the water. 

 The effort would be a success, he 

 says, if it approaches the effec- 

 tiveness of the Smokey Bear 

 and seat belt campaigns in 

 changing behaviors. 



"I think that because fish 

 stocks have declined to the 

 extent that they have, people are 

 beginning to recognize some- 

 thing is wrong, that maybe they 

 are part of the problem and need 

 to be part of the solution," he 

 says. 



The first task is to sensitize 

 people to the issues. Then, 

 provide information they can use 

 to evaluate their own beliefs 

 about these issues. By changing 

 their beliefs, voluntary behavior 

 changes are more likely to occur. 



Schmied says he targets the 

 segment of the sportfishing commu- 

 nity that understands the issue. These 

 are "change agents," highly visible 

 and credible, and by their example on 

 the water, they can help others to see 

 the value in catch-and-release. 



"Like the charter captain who 

 tells a client to release fish and shows 

 him how to do it," Schmied says. 

 "That captain is held in a position of 

 esteem by the fishermen. So when he 

 displays proper handling, others will 

 follow suit." 



Avid anglers, however, are more 

 likely to change their behavior than 

 younger or less experienced fisher- 

 men, the task force study says. 



Nowell agrees most fishermen go 

 through an ethical progression of 

 behavior before they're ready to 

 release their catch. When they are 

 young or inexperienced, they tend to 

 keep every fish caught, big or small. 

 They want to fill the cooler because 



1991 - 1992 Catch-and-Release Comparisons 

 N.C. Saltwater Fishing Tournament 



Species 



Year 



Released 



Kept 



Amberjack 



1991 



72 



35 





1992 



40 



101 



Cobia 



1991 



48 



114 





1992 



30 



124 



Red Drum 



1991 



308 



27 





1992 



422 



30 





Blue Marlin 



1991 



253 



7 





1992 



424 



4 



White Marlin 



1991 



274 



3 





1992 



730 



3 



Sailfish 



1991 



390 



25 





1992 



497 



11 



Tarpon 



1991 



10 



7 





1992 



8 



11 



Source: N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries 



to them, a great day equals a cooler full 

 of fish. 



"For these anglers, the benefits of 

 landing and retaining their catch is 

 paramount," according to the angler 

 conservation report. "They are more 

 concerned with today and expect fish to 

 be available tomorrow." 



At some point, however, they start 

 to throw back the fish that are too small. 

 And that's when the conservation voice 

 begins to speak to them, Nowell says. 

 With maturity and experience, fisher- 

 men learn to respect the resource. 



In a battle waged from the 

 nation's Capitol to town halls, 

 recreational and commercial 

 fishermen are locked in a 

 struggle over who gets 



what share of a 

 disappearing resource. 



"It's that natural growth, 

 maturing, that when you go 

 fishing, you don't go necessarily 

 to kill fish," he says. "You do 

 occasionally because they're 

 great to eat. But you go for the 

 enjoyment. And after you catch a 

 number of fish, it becomes a 

 whole lot more fun to let them 

 go-" 



The task of changing anglers' 

 behavior is monumental, but 

 there are reasons to be optimistic. 



In North Carolina last year, 

 2,151 fish (amberjack, cobia, red 

 drum, blue marlin, white marlin, 

 sailfish and tarpon) were released 

 in the yearlong saltwater fishing 

 tournament, compared to 1,355 

 in 1991, according to the N.C. 

 Division of Marine Fisheries 

 (DMF). 



And in Louisiana, a 1990 survey 

 conducted by Louisiana State Univer- 

 sity and the state Wildlife and Fisher- 

 ies Department showed that 75 percent 

 of fishermen polled would attend 

 fishing clinics. 



This finding is significant, 

 Schmied says, because Louisiana 

 anglers tend to be consumption- 

 oriented, fiercely independent and 

 great seafood lovers. In other words, 

 it's a "sportsman's paradise," he says. 



The survey also gauged saltwater 

 anglers' interest in topics for fishing 

 clinics. Between 68 and 87 percent of 

 fishermen rated the following topics as 

 moderately to extremely beneficial: 

 fish identification, fisheries manage- 

 ment, care and handling, fishing 

 regulations, fishing methods, fish 

 biology and fishing ethics. 



And a resounding 92 percent of 

 respondents wanted a publication on 

 fishing regulations. 



"These responses indicate to me 



Continued 



COASTWATCH 1 I 



