Freshwater Fish Welfare: Angling, Catch-and-Release, and Pain

The welfare of freshwater fish during angling is increasingly discussed as evidence for fish pain and stress grows - best practices reduce unnecessary suffering.

Key Facts

Fish have nociceptors and show protective behaviours consistent with pain experience after hooking
Catch-and-release survival rates vary significantly with handling time, air exposure, and water temperature
Deep hooking causes more tissue damage and has worse survival outcomes than lip hooking
Barbless hooks and wet hands during handling reduce injury and stress
Water temperature above 20C significantly increases post-release mortality in salmonids

Welfare Considerations

The welfare of fish during angling deserves greater attention than it currently receives. Fish experience stress and potentially pain during capture, handling, and release. While catch-and-release is better than retention from a welfare perspective in some scenarios, poorly executed release causes injury and mortality. Best practices - barbless hooks, minimised air exposure, wet hands, and immediate return to water - are achievable by all anglers and meaningfully reduce suffering.

What You Can Do

Use barbless hooks to reduce hooking injury and ease release
Minimise fish air exposure during handling - never hold a fish out of water for photos
Learn the welfare signs of stressed fish and know when not to return them to water
Support fisheries management that considers fish welfare alongside sport fishing interests