Practice Good Releasing Techniques The folks that fish regular along Citrus County’s Nature Coast know first hand that the fish stocks seem to be improving in size and quantity. This is because of improved fisheries management and from folks like you who are taking the time to carefully release fish that are undersized or too big to keep. Who would have ever thought 20 years ago that we would be releasing redfish above the 27 inch mark. Today it is a common practice for many who fish for redfish. In the last 12 years, I have released thousands of out-of-slot reds to either go offshore to spawn or to make another person happy catching it over again.. Redfish seem to survive very well after being properly released unless of course a bull shark is nearby! Now we must train ourselves to release spotted sea trout that will be too big to keep if we expect to see it again. Next year the size limit on trout will be 15-20 inches with one fish allowed over 20 inches to be kept within a 5 per day bag limit. From personal experience, I know that if I use a dip net to land the trout, some of the scales and slime are going to rub off the fish. We should use good judgement and try to refrain from using a dip net to aid in the landing of a trout(that you know you have release) and try to keep from touching the fish at all with dry hands or with a wet towel. Wet hands or a fine meshed wet cotton cloth is a little better to use when releasing a trout. I prefer not to touch the fish at all and to use a Boga-Grip or Offshore Angler lipper to secure the fish and then release it using needle nose pliers. This saves the fish from no direct contact, no punctures, no bacterial transfers, no slime removal, no gill damage and less time out of the water. This saves time making handling quick and easy and the angler from wet and slimy hands or cuts and scratches. This practice will insure improved stocks, otherwise the fish will just die from infections from mishandling. Pressing the barbs down on the hooks of a jig is a great idea in aiding in removing the jig quickly and with much less damage. I know that it is not practical to do this within a tournament or while using multiple hook lures, but we should try to conserve when we can, especially if you are catching to release. Good luck this year with the fishing; the year 2000 is starting out to be a great trout catching year. Grouper are here year round as are the redfish and seem plentiful. Some cobia and tarpon have already shown up on the flats and will grace us with their presence this Spring and Summer for some hard pulling action. See You on the Water, Capt. Mike Locklear