The Effect of Scented Lures on the Hooking Injury and Mortality of Smallmouth Bass Caught by Novice and Experienced Anglers

Abstract

Although regulations prohibiting the use of natural baits are relatively common, new regulations specifically targeting the use of chemical attractants have recently been implemented. While no citeable evidence for these new regulations exists, they may have been promulgated due to a perceived increase in the risk of fish mortality from scented lures compared with unscented lures. The present study investigated the hooking injury and short-term mortality of 238 adult smallmouth bass Micropterus dolomieu captured on Lake Erie by both experienced (fished > 100 d/year) and novice (fished < 10 d/year) anglers on actively fished jigs similarly threaded with minnows, nonscented plastic grubs, or grubs scented with chemical attractants. The depth of hook ingestion, the anatomical hooking location, the presence of bleeding at the hook wound, and the total amount of time taken to remove the hook were noted on all captured fish. The fish were then transferred to a retention cage, and their survival was monitored for 72 h before release. None of the fish captured suffered any immediate (<1 h) or short-term (<72 h) mortality. The type of bait used to capture the fish had no significant effect on the depth of hook penetration or the anatomical hooking location. More experienced anglers, however, hooked the fish significantly deeper in the mouth than the novice anglers. These results suggest that the use of the chemical attractants tested in the present study do not deleteriously affect the injury rates or survival of captured smallmouth bass. Therefore, regulations prohibiting the use of chemical attractants on actively fished single-hook jigs for smallmouth bass appear unjustified if the intent was to reduce hooking injury and mortality.