Author Topic: True Survivors (Read 1928 times)

Buck762 · « **on:** Mar 01, 2008, 06:32 PM »

I fished a small public lake today and absolutly hammered the gill's and speck's! I always seem to have a buncha fish that just live forever, even when they're on the ice and snow. When i got home i poured all the fish in the sink, and even after 5 hours of sitting on a frozen lake, most were still flopping! I buried them in the snow in my backyard and will fillet them in a few more hours. Anyone know how fish can survive so long out of water, in the fridged temps?

CasTnBlasT14 · « **Reply #1 on:** Mar 01, 2008, 06:51 PM »

I often wondered that too.My first time out we were just throwing the fish we were gunna keep in front of us and after i think maybe 5 or 6 hours on the ice we decided to throw one or two back,it took them a second but they swam right off without a problem

cp13 · « **Reply #2 on:** Mar 01, 2008, 07:01 PM »

i think it might be nerves, but there was the one time we caught a bunch of trout and tossed them on the ice in the snow, they were stiff as a board at the end of the day ( i hate double freeze too but we ate those right after we cleaned them) but we threw them in the sink and ran some water on them so they could thaw and 2 minutes later when we came back they were swimming in the sink?

flagup#1 · « **Reply #3 on:** Mar 01, 2008, 09:05 PM »

I always assumed it was because they were cold blooded so that their metablism slowed way down

jayswimmer09 · « **Reply #4 on:** Mar 01, 2008, 09:15 PM »

a lot has to do with their metabolism, But what actually kills a fish when you take it out of the water is it suffacating. Yah everyone is saying da. Well it isnt cause they cant get air. They in fact can. get some. What kills them is that their gills are very weak. When they are int he water the water helps to hold them up. when you take the fish out their gills collapse and that is why they die. In the winter my guess is the cold weather keeps them from collapsing as much

Mr. gill · « **Reply #5 on:** Mar 01, 2008, 09:53 PM »

I had the same thing happen this year with a bunch of crappies. I left them out side 4 about 12 hours after i got home I put them in the sink of water and they started swimming. My little girls thought it was awsome.

deadsmelthead · « **Reply #6 on:** Mar 02, 2008, 07:01 AM »

If I keep fish I slit their throat and run a threading pin right through their head, I can't stand watching them flop around.

Buck762 · « **Reply #7 on:** Mar 02, 2008, 03:53 PM »

I was told to ripp their gills out with pliers and bleed them on the ice. I find it o.k. to kill fish if your gonna eat them, and i just cant stand watching them die, or having them come back to life on the fillet board!

PCB · « **Reply #8 on:** Mar 02, 2008, 03:56 PM »

weve done that with crappies before. Threw him in an aquarium just to see if it would actually survive, or if it was just nerves. Some lived for a year or better in a 55 gallon tank... id say nerves has nothing to do with it... haha

Mr.Vexilar · « **Reply #9 on:** Mar 02, 2008, 04:34 PM »

I HATE filleting live fish!! It'd be like us getting skun alive!! Ahhh, gross

gillkiller1125 · « **Reply #10 on:** Mar 02, 2008, 04:41 PM »

I don't believe fish have nerve endings so its not hurting them when you fillet them alive.

d3 · « **Reply #11 on:** Mar 02, 2008, 09:04 PM »

I was taught as a youngster immediately upon catching a fish if you are going to keep it to put it down so to say. There is enough controversy about fishing and hunting we do not need to give them anymore ammo. Do yourself the fish and the outdoors people and treat fish with respect and do not just throw them on the ice or the bank. Further more have you ever eatin vension from a deer that has been pushed all around the county before it died versus a deer who was harvested on a regular sit. The meet is much more tender. It is just like fighting tuna the longer they fight the less the meat is worth do to the fact that the fish will heat up. Just my two cents. No I am not soft just trying to protect the future of the outdoors for the next generation.

D3

ryguy337 · « **Reply #12 on:** Mar 02, 2008, 09:11 PM »

i had crappie on the ice for 3 hrs one time brought it home and hit it over the head to kill it, i then gutted it, i then went to throw it on the grill to cook with the head on and all etc(creep out my sister for her b-day) and i picked it up and it was flopping around, with its guts taken out and its head smashed...? i dont get it.

fisher2hunter · « **Reply #13 on:** Mar 03, 2008, 11:32 AM »

haha this page just reminded me i have 10 fish outside waiting to get cleaned

scavengerj · « **Reply #14 on:** Mar 03, 2008, 11:50 AM »

With all due respect, its a fish for gosh sakes!! LoL A pig is a rat is a boy?? NOT. Why do people bother with stringers in the summer?? To keep fish alive in the water?? For what? Same goes with livewells. If you ain't in a C&R tournament, why bother? Only reasons I had when I use to keep alot of fish was so that they were as fresh as can be when I got them home to eat'em. I think fish that are alive after such things as being left on the ice and such are displaying not much more then a nervous system reflex like a frogs legs do. Sure, you may have one that has been on the ice for hours and then swims away when you put it in the water but, does this fish really live?? Look at the pro bass tournaments...they talk about minimal handling of the fish to prevent removal of the protective slime. When we catch fish ice fishing and leave them on the ice, do they get treated the same?? Do we make sure that our hands are wet when handling the fish to prevent removal of this protection??

I know, I know I ranted...just brought alot of thoughts to my mind when reading the post. No intent on offending anyone.

Walltrout · « **Reply #15 on:** Mar 03, 2008, 03:59 PM »

I can tell a huge difference in the quality of meat that I get from properly handling any deer or elk meat that I get, so I took this philosophy and applied it to fishing. Any fish I plan to keep gets whacked in the head right away and gutted as soon as possible after that. I will filet it later but I like to get the guts out right away.

perchhogslayer · « **Reply #16 on:** Mar 03, 2008, 04:17 PM »

Quote from: Walltrout on Mar 03, 2008, 03:59 PM

I can tell a huge difference in the quality of meat that I get from properly handling any deer or elk meat that I get, so I took this philosophy and applied it to fishing. Any fish I plan to keep gets whacked in the head right away and gutted as soon as possible after that. I will filet it later but I like to get the guts out right away.

Yep, same here. when I decide to keep a fish, I wack it on the back of the head a couple times and toss it on the ice. If I can't get to filleting that same day, I will gut them at least, otherwise just fillet them all at once. My friends just let theirs flop on the ice or in the bucket all day, even fillet them while alive sometimes. I know they have nerve endings, they are like any other animal. I don't mind killing them if I'll eat them, but I don't really care to watch them flounder for hours, just doesn't seem right.

scavengerj · « **Reply #17 on:** Mar 03, 2008, 08:33 PM »

I had always thought the reason meat tasted different from a deer and such when it was under stress before dying was due to acid building up in the muscle. So a deer that has to be tracked and is deeply wounded is going to run and build up the acid in the tissue and taste different then an animal dropped with one clean shot. I would think that this acid build up occurs in a fish during the fight regardless of how it dies after being caught. The meat will be what it is. At least the flavor can be maximized by proper handling after catching them by keeping them cold. Kind of like bluefish from the surf. They should be put on ice right away to prevent the stomach acid from eating through the tissue. But the taste is what it is regardless if the fish died quickly or not.
But I really do think that fish that have been out of the water for a period of time or improperly handled do not really survive once put back in the water. Especially if there is any tissue damage that would open the skin up to infection.

PCB · « **Reply #18 on:** Mar 03, 2008, 08:35 PM »

as long as they werent gaffed through the head or their gills mangled, ive had many fish survive for long periods of time in aquariums... some of the fish i noticed that didnt survive well were trout, walleyes, and bass... the panfish did much better and almost always made it a few months at least

scavengerj · « **Reply #19 on:** Mar 03, 2008, 08:42 PM »

Well, thats what I am curious about. Some say they've survived this long and that long but it has always been in a clean water enviroment with well or tap water in an aquarium or barrel of some sort. What is it like in the real world though....... in a lake? Or is it that we like to think they survive because they "swim" away when we let them go after being out of the water for hours and exposed to freezing temps? Does a rap to the head really kill the fish or does it just stun it? Kind of like a person being unconcious and suffocating at the same time.

PCB · « **Reply #20 on:** Mar 03, 2008, 09:06 PM »

Quote from: scavengerj on Mar 03, 2008, 08:42 PM

Well, thats what I am curious about. Some say they've survived this long and that long but it has always been in a clean water enviroment with well or tap water in an aquarium or barrel of some sort. What is it like in the real world though....... in a lake? Or is it that we like to think they survive because they "swim" away when we let them go after being out of the water for hours and exposed to freezing temps? Does a rap to the head really kill the fish or does it just stun it? Kind of like a person being unconcious and suffocating at the same time.

good point... i dont like to throw fish back after being on the ice for a few hours... while often times they did come back in the aquariums there were always a few that didnt make it... better off not taking the chance and getting the knife dirty, if only for a few fish... if my fish hits the ice, its coming home with me

Buck762 · « **Reply #21 on:** Mar 05, 2008, 04:32 PM »

Panfish are real hardy fish and will survive for a really long time. I hate watching the fish flop on the ice for hours so i usually bury them in snow to speed up the process. I dont mind killing fish, just as long as i eat them.

swampbuckster · « **Reply #22 on:** Mar 05, 2008, 05:35 PM »

I kill them and eat them. No ifs ands or buts about it. They can flop on the ice, swim in my sink, jump outta my trash can after their fileted and gutted, and I could really care less. I catch them for food and I am a human being. Human beings are inhumane no matter which way you look at it. I'm sure when an eagle swoops out of the sky and grabs that bluegill outta the lake, he doesn't bop it over the head so it doesn't suffer, same with the pike that takes the perch in one munch, I think we're getting a little feminine on this issue. Just had to throw some testosterone in

miket. · « **Reply #23 on:** Mar 05, 2008, 05:53 PM »

i guess when your desperate, you hang as much as possible.

abishop · « **Reply #24 on:** Mar 05, 2008, 08:33 PM »

The same thing happened to me that is wild.

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Author Topic: True Survivors (Read 1928 times)