How to Keep Game Fish
In many instances, people go fishing to put food on their table, targeting specific types of game fish. Among the fish that make an excellent meal when filleted and cooked are all types of trout, salmon, bullhead, crappie, perch and especially walleye. However, you simply cannot keep every fish you catch during your outing. Every state has strict size and creel limits for certain species to ensure good fishing for the coming generations. Knowing what fish you can keep and how to keep it fresh for the trip home is an important part of angling.
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Instructions
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Study the length and creel limits in your state. Some species must be a minimum length to keep legally. The creel limit is the number of one species you can keep during a day of fishing. Conservation officers will have no sympathy if you plead ignorance to the regulations. Each state has a comprehensive guide to its fishing laws online and in print, with the booklets typically free. Look there for the regulations and carry the booklet with you for later reference.
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Measure a fish to determine its length in the manner your state requires. Most want a fish measured from the tip of the snout to the tail tip, but some states want you to measure to the fork in the tail. In Maine, for example, the angler measures the fish from the tip of its nose to the tail tip, but only after you squeeze the two tail lobes together.
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Learn what fish have "slot lengths" assigned to them. A closed slot length, such as between 14 and 18 inches for a largemouth bass, means the angler cannot keep any fish that falls within that range. Fish of open slot length can be kept. You will normally find slot lengths posted on the bodies of water where they apply for specific species as well as in the state regulations guide.
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Purchase a fish stringer to keep your fish on and immersed underwater while you are fishing. These come in simple types like a braided cord or the more complex ones such as snap chain stringers or heavy wire cables. The idea behind a stringer is to attach it to something, either on shore or in your boat, and secure the fish by inserting the cord or the locking snap through the gill slits of the fish and its mouth, making it unable to escape. Keep the fish in the water until your outing ends.
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Carry a large bucket when fishing for smaller game fish like crappie, perch or bluegill. The limits on these fish are normally high in every state, meaning a bucket half-full of water is the best way to preserve them until you can clean them. In Connecticut, for example, there is no enforced limit on crappie; you can keep as many as you catch. Simply toss them in the bucket and periodically refresh the water if you are going to be fishing for a length of time.
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