Madam, – The Irish Timeswas fully entitled to publish the picture of the sea bass caught in Courtown (Angling Notes, May 4th and Letters, May 8th). I for one do not support catch and release.
Anglers who fish for coarse fish have no intention of eating their catch and usually release their fish during or at the end of their session.
If anglers want to fish for sport fish and to have fun by burying a sharp hook in a fish’s mouth, terrorising it for several minutes and then releasing it to do it all over again, so be it. Not for me. Catch and re-catch would be a better slogan.
I have been fishing for trout and salmon for more than 40 years and fully intend eating the fish I catch. I return undersize fish to the water. The famous author Hugh Falkus did not agree with catch and release and I share his view.
It is sad that there are so few sea fish around now compared with previous times, but that’s not down to anglers’ catches. – Yours, etc,