Catch-and-release angling is presented as a welfare-conscious choice, but evidence shows it causes significant harm that requires mitigation through best practice handling.
Catch-and-release is widely promoted as a welfare improvement over keeping caught fish, but it is not without welfare cost. The stress of capture — cortisol surge, oxygen depletion, injury from hooks, handling, and air exposure — causes measurable physiological harm that can impair survival and recovery. The welfare-conscious angler minimises these costs through best practice: barbless hooks, minimum air exposure (ideally zero), gentle unhooking in water, appropriate tackle weight to minimise fight duration, and avoiding angling in warm water when fish recovery is most impaired. The honest welfare position acknowledges that catch-and-release causes harm and that minimising this harm is a genuine ethical responsibility.