When is a trophy Ok?

[Brian D]

Hey Guys reading the posts about the Tiger Shark and released alive or not it made me think.

When is it OK to take a trophy?

What I mean is I am off to Awoonga tomorrow and I practice catch and release more often then not. But if I want a trophy.

I think if I caught that shark and I actually got it to the beach from LB I think I would want a few photos. And I would rather take the photos safely.

Besides that by the time that shark was dragged up the beach it would be near dead. So I say \"when is it ok to take a trophy\"?

[jeff f]

tiger sharks aren't endangered to my knowlege.......stuff it!

[Feral]

Having had a good scare from a shark many years ago (actually 2 thinking about it) in my opinion the only good shark is a dead un!

Brian there is nothing wrong with taking fish / sharks for food or a trophy, that is why they have bag limits.

People who get precious because someone else does not share their philosophies need to remember that if the other person is not breaking the law they are perfectly entitled to do what ever it is they are doing.

It is perfectly acceptable to try and talk someone around to your philosophy, but if you cant, you dont ridicule them, give them a hard time, or in any other way piss them off! (Once you piss someone off and get their back up you will never get them to see your point of view)

Particulary in your case Brian, taking a trophy fish from a rare catch, competiton or impoundment is more than acceptable! You practice very sustainable fishing!

After all its not like your taking 500 tonne of Orange Roughy after they have been declared an endangered species like certain southern professionals intend to.

[Cowfish13]

When you say \"trophy\", do you mean like the catch of a lifetime and then take it home for pictures and food, or do you mean to have it mounted and waste the meat?

I agree with the first part for food but if it's for mounting it's kind of a waste of a fish.

[Tim a]

There must be a way that you could get the meat out of the interior then stuff it with something for mounting.

[Angus]

I agree with Andrew, and i dont think the meat comes into it.

I practice catch and release more so than not.

And anything i catch that is kept either becomes fodd for me or bait.

However.

If you adhere to bag and size limits i dont mind what you do with the catch.

This applies even moreso in impundments.

Remember these dams are stocked for the sole purpose of fishing.

If Brians permit therefore goes into stockeing the next generation of fingerlings, i feel he has every right to take his trophy.

As Andrew said, this is sustainable fishing in action.

Angus

[Tiagra 80W]

If you look at the tiger pics, you will see that with the bigger fish, NEVER once was it removed from the water. This fish was not dragged up the beach for a photo opportunity as has been suggested. Instead, it lay in the shallows with waves washing over it the whole time. You would not be able to take a fish this size out of the water totally without using a 4wd to tow it, and that would endanger its survival. With a fish like this under these conditions, you need people around you who know their roles and have experience in managing situations of this calibre. It's no good trying to shoot off pics and release at the same time.

I have been really annoyed reading people's opinions on whether they believe, the fish was released or not. If I tell you it was released, then it was released, and it was released in perfect health. I have no need to lie about this at all.

End of story!

James

This one is dead!! [img size=286]http://www.australianfishing.com.au/media/kunena/attachments/legacy/images/hammer1.jpg

[Angus]

Nice Hammer.

Was that one of the records?

Angus

[Mako_Matt]

:ohmy: That's a lot of shark meat you got mate and you got two sharks that night ? more meat to take home good on you

I hope you bring with you on the trips some 200lt ice chests and buy a lot of bags of ice so you can properly care for the meat.

Better start cutting it up and bleeding it , you know what can happen and that sun wont be helping mate.

I hope all that shark meat not go to waste and all the people on the beach passing by were more then happy to take all that meat off your hands ? thats crazy.

Well dont feel guilty of potentially wasting a massive breeding shark of that size that would have been more then 5 years old .

Or was this one tow out to sea ? or was it where the ranger said to dig a big hole for them in the moring befor the rest of civilization saw it.