Venting and Reef Fish Survival: Perceptions and Participation Rates among Recreational Anglers in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

Abstract

Fisheries scientists, managers, and industry have developed innovative tools and techniques to improve the survival of fishes captured and released in deepwater settings. Venting involves the insertion of a hollow needle to deflate a fish's swim bladder and is among the most widely promoted barotrauma mitigation techniques. However, its efficacy has been the subject of intense debate. In the northern Gulf of Mexico, venting tools are mandatory tackle for offshore reef anglers, but current mandates on usage are being reconsidered. We surveyed recreational and tournament anglers to understand the popularity and perceived effectiveness of venting and identify factors that affect these measures. Our survey results indicate that approximately two-thirds of anglers vent the fish they release offshore and most perceive it to be effective for improving survival rates. Among recreational anglers, we found that primary fishing locale (inshore, offshore) and experience were powerful predictors of perceptions and utilization rates. However, fishing experience did not appear to influence knowledge of proper venting techniques. While further ecological and physiological experimentation is needed to resolve many uncertainties that surround venting, our study demonstrates that angler perceptions and behaviors must also be considered and that aggressive education and outreach programs would be necessary to alter or improve current venting practices.

Received October 12, 2012; accepted July 4, 2013

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We thank W. Patterson for advice on interpreting venting tool insertion points. We are grateful to the Mobile Jaycees and the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo for their continued support of the University of South Alabama's Fisheries Ecology Lab and this survey, and thank K. Anson and C. Denson at the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Marine Resources Division, for access to the license holder information. We appreciate M. Johnson, R. Gamble, and the Marine Vertebrate Zoology class from the Dauphin Island Sea Lab for assistance administering the survey. We appreciate comments from M. Drymon, C. Griswold, an associate editor, and three anonymous reviewers that helped improve earlier drafts of this manuscript. Special thanks to Diane Peebles for allowing us to use her excellent Red Snapper illustration (copyright 1992, Diane Rome Peebles [with permission from D. R. Peebles, artist and biological illustrator, St. Petersburg, Florida]). Funding support was provided by a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Marine Fisheries Initiative grant (NA08NMF4330404).