Towards more sustainable recreational fisheries: Consequences of catch-and-release angling on phenotypes, social networks, and reproductive success in aquatic top-predators

Conservation concerns are increasing in the fast-growing sector of recreational fisheries.

To mitigate declines in population size associated with catch-and-kill fisheries, most fish caught by recreational anglers are now released back to the water alive, a management tool referred to as catch-and-release (C&R).

Today, there is a knowledge gap regarding ecologically relevant sub-lethal effects of C&R on individuals, that precede population-level demographic responses.

In this research initiative, which is linked to several of the global goals for sustainable development and to key aspects of the environmental objectives, I will unravel C&R-induced effects on phenotypes, social networks, and stress-cascades, as well as the number of offspring produced by aquatic top-predators.

To achieve this, I use a unique experimental infrastructure, a replicated pond system equipped with positional telemetry systems allowing for unprecedented insights into fish-angler interactions.

I combine the strengths of controlled experiments with a decade-long mark-recapture study of a recreationally exploited fish population and use molecular tools to link long-term exposure to a known number of C&R-events to reproductive output via parent-offspring genetic analysis.

The research will provide a solid scientific foundation on which to base best practice guidelines to increase fish welfare and sustainable management strategies for practicing C&R in modern recreational fisheries.