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United
States -Canada How to Deflate a Deep Caught Fish
Education
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50
STATES FISH, GAME and WILDLIFE WEB SITES |
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Catching
Fish from
deep water is probably the most common situation where you
will injure fish, and the serious damage that may result
presents a problem when practicing ( catch and release ).
Fisheries biologists liken this swim bladder problem in fish
to the “bends” problem humans experience when they return
too rapidly to the surface from a deep-water dive.
Consequently, it's important to understand why and how
injuries occur and what you can do to minimize the number of
fish that die as a result of landing bass from the depths.
When you catch Fish in deep water, the depth change is
too rapid for fish to compensate and the compressed air in
their bladder expands - they float! This condition is worse
in summer when fish also experience an increase in water
temperature at the surface.
When you have hauled in a Fish from deep down. His eyes
are bulging and his stomach is sticking out of his mouth.
Don't try to force the stomach or other organs back into the
body cavity. How can you get him back in the water to safely
swim away? You can’t unless you vent his swim bladder gases.
The swim bladder is an organ filled with gases, mostly
oxygen and nitrogen. This organ is in the abdominal cavity
along the backbone beneath the first dorsal fin. Except for
sharks and rays most marine fishes have well-developed swim
bladders. The swim bladder helps keep the fish buoyant at
whatever depth they normally live.
When fish are at rest, the pressure of the gases in the
swim bladder equals the pressure exerted by the surrounding
water. The gases are compressed and the swim bladder
occupies a relatively small space. If you bring a fish
rapidly to the surface from down below 30’, the outside
pressure lessens and the gases in the swim bladder expand in
direct proportion.
Say you catch a
Fish at a depth of 33 feet. By the time
you get him to the surface the gases in his swim bladder
will occupy twice their original volume. His eyes are
bulging and his stomach is sticking out of his mouth. These
bladders can only stretch so far before they burst. When
they do, the gases escape into the fishes abdomen, where
they continue to expand. This puts pressure on the stomach,
the intestines and other internal organs. To return the Fish
safely, you must vent those gases. And you must do it
without further injury to the fish. DO NOT vent the gases by
puncturing the protruding stomach or going through the anus.
The fish will probably swim away but won’t live.
Most Fish are hardy and can survive this trauma, if
properly deflated, they will survive, get bigger and
reproduce. Here is how you do it:
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- Use a deflating tool (a hypodermic needle, an athletic
ball inflation needle ground to a sharp point or a
carpet needle).
- To determine the safe
insertion point, Draw
an imaginary line from the anal opening to the space
between the spiny and soft ray portions of the dorsal
fin. Locate the middle of that line, and while holding
the bass firmly but gently, remove a single scale with
your pliers. With a swift smooth motion, insert the
deflating tool through the flesh at a 45-degree angle
toward the head of the fish. Proper depth of the
insertion depends on the size of the fish.
- Squeeze the fish gently to force the gases out through the
tube or needle.
- Do this quickly and very soon
after capture
- Release the fish holding him
in the water by the tail until he can swim away.
- If the bass and the deflating
tool are held slightly below the water's surface during
the procedure, bubbles will escape when the swim bladder
is pierced. After the bubbling has stopped, the fish
should be ready for release with a much better chance of
survival.
- The main problem you will come
across when deflating a bladder is a clogged needle. If
you do not hear any air on your first try, or bass still
doesn't swim normally when you finish, blow out the
obstruction and repeat the process.
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Catch and Release
is extremely important to maintaining healthy Fish
populations, and properly handling your catch is vital for
their survival. There is no way to save every Fish you catch
from deep water, but by fishing as shallow as possible,
retrieving and releasing Fish quickly and properly taking
care of fish you have to keep in your Livewell, you can
reduce stress and give every Fish a fighting chance.
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