Short-term hooking mortality of three marine fish species (Sparidae) caught by recreational angling in the south Portugal

Published source details Veiga P., Gonçalves J.M.S. & Erzini K. (2011) Short-term hooking mortality of three marine fish species (Sparidae) caught by recreational angling in the south Portugal. Fisheries Research, 108, 58-64.
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This study is summarised as evidence for the following.

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	Use a different hook type Action Link

Use a different hook type

A replicated, controlled study in 2009 at a fish farm reservoir in the Atlantic Ocean, off southern Portugal (Veiga et al. 2011) found that changing hook size did not affect the short-term post-release mortality of immature individuals of three sea bream Sparidae species, but survival of fish that were deep-hooked with an intermediate sized hook was reduced. Overall post-release mortality rate for the three species combined was low (6%) and ranged from 0% and 3% for the two-banded Diplodus vulgaris and black Spondyliosoma cantharus sea breams, respectively, to 12% for gilt-head sea bream Sparus aurata. Hook size alone did not affect mortality rates. However, deep-hooked fish were 2.6 times more likely to die than shallow-hooked fish, and fish hooked with the intermediate sized hook were deeply hooked more frequently than the smaller and larger hook sizes (data reported as statistical results). A total of 384 fish of the three bream species were captured by six anglers in October 2009 from a fish farm reservoir in the Ria Formosa. Three typically used hook sizes were tested, baited with ragworm Hediste diversicolor (7.5, 7.9 and 10.6 mm barb widths, see original paper for other dimensions). Two randomly selected hook sizes were trialled/fisher. After capture, fish total length and hooking location were recorded by species and fish were tagged. Tagged fish were placed into 1 m³ sea cages and the number of dead fish recorded after 2–3 h.

(Summarised by: Chris Barrett/Natasha Taylor)