That's the title for what originally was a show tune and popular song from the 1940 Rodgers and Hart musical "Pal Joey." It also describes how I've felt the past few years as I experimented with different culling systems.
I've always had a problem with using those old-fashioned shower-curtain type of culling tags. Each time I rammed one of those points through the lower jaw of a bass, I couldn't help thinking, "I wonder how I'd feel if someone did that to me."
With that thought in mind, I started trying various non-puncturing contraptions I had read about online or in magazines, or seen advertised on TV. My goal was to find one with which I could lift fish out of the livewell without having the clip turn loose of the fish. Unfortunately, I couldn't even find one in which the non-penetrating clip would stay attached to the fish in the livewell.
Recently, however, I've discovered that my goal was unreasonable. Anytime you use non-puncturing cull clips, experts advise that you should expect fish to come unfastened if you try to lift them out of the livewell with the clips. To a lesser degree, a few also will come unfastened from the clip while in the livewell. The secret is in HOW you use them. Users of the non-puncturing clips should take the floating end of the cull tag in one hand and reach for the fish with the other hand. Lip the fish, then lift it from the livewell, and remove the clip. Grabbing the floating end and snatching a fish from the livewell likely will end in failure.
That being said, let's now look at some of the different options available in fish-friendly cull clips.
First up, from Cal Coast Fishing is the Clip-N-Cull 2.0. This system locks on the bass's mouth when the handles are squeezed together, and the interlocking teeth hold pressure. The retail price is $49.99, which includes a culling beam.
Next up is TH Marine's addition to their G-Force Cull System. The Conservation Clips hold onto a bass by sliding a ring down over an open clip that forces the clip to close. This system can be found for $43.99 and includes the balance beam.
The Accu Cull E-Con Tags Culling System uses a clip that reminds you of an old chip-bag clip, minus the use of a metal spring. Simply squeeze to open and release to attach to the side of a bass's mouth. The $27.99 price tag includes a livewell mount.
Moving to a totally different system, Zorro Baits has your fish lassoed. The Zorro Baits Tail Culling System does exactly as it sounds and wraps around the tail of a fish. You can find them for $11.99.
Another alternative to attaching a clip to a fish is the Pro Cull Fishing Conservation Clips. In spite of the name, there is no clip to go on the mouth of a bass. Instead, the tubing is threaded through the gill of the fish and out through the mouth, then locked to form a loop. A set costs $34.99.
Finally, Russell Marine Products has a system that doesn't involve clips at all. They have a new bag system that allows you to place a bass into a mesh, zippered bag, so that you no longer have to handle the fish. While no price is available from the RMP website, a similar system from Glory Bags runs $79.95.
There's still a few other options out there for you to check out. Each of the items listed have their own pros and cons. The book hasn't been written yet on the effect these options have on fish, so you have to be your own judge. Simply going without cull tags could lead to increased handling of fish.
And here are some common-sense culling tips:
* Do not take the time to cull until you have a five-fish limit.
* Once the fifth bass is caught, begin weighing, tagging and recording the fish.
* Once the sixth fish is caught, weigh it, and, if it is found to be heavier than your smallest one, change the weight of the smallest from your livewell, remove the clip, and release that fish. It is important to cull before you tag the larger fish and place it in the livewell. You often can be penalized for putting a sixth fish in the livewell. And do not make another cast before culling!
* If a fish of the same weight as the smallest fish is caught, it is still a good idea to cull the older fish, just for the health of the fish, if nothing else.
* Remember to keep your fish healthy in your livewell, even if the tournament rules do not have live-fish rules. This is the characteristic of a true sportsman.
If you follow a proven culling system, you will increase your chances of victory in a sport where the difference between winning or losing sometimes only amounts to tenths of an ounce.
"It is admirable of you and other anglers to consider these puncture-free types of culling products. Although I would not advocate a device that intentionally punctures the jaw in any way, I must admit that even I, as a fisheries biologist, have utilized fin clips on bass for various research projects. Specifically, I use these clips when I am working on a 'mark/recapture' type of project, where I am trying to determine whether we have captured a specific fish in previous events. Generally, we do not see any lasting effects from these fin clips, and all of the soft-rayed fins will regenerate.
"That said, let me now revert to previous discussions I've had with other avid bass anglers.
"I would be much less concerned about puncturing the lip of a bass than I would be about the water-quality conditions of the livewell itself. Studies have shown, time after time, that the water temp, O2 and pH (result of fish urine build-up) are the leading issues revolving around post-release mortality of tournament-caught bass. I also would urge anglers to refer to B.A.S.S. for some great recommendations regarding the holding of bass in livewells, especially during hot-water conditions.
"Again, as I've discussed with other anglers, even if the bass are kept in livewells in ideal conditions, such as icing the water and using additives to reduce uric acid and increase O2 capacity of the water, if the fish are released back into water with significantly different water quality, then they can still be susceptible to mortality. A good example of this is the Northwest River at Bob's Fishing Hole, where the O2 level tends to be much lower. Anglers fishing out of there often will catch bass downriver, where the O2 is high, and then keep them in excellent livewell conditions BUT ultimately release them at the ramp at Bob's. With the much lower O2 there, these bass still can suffer mortality. Water quality, especially in livewells, are very important to bass survival.
"In conclusion, if bass anglers would be as concerned about the water in their livewells, as they may be about puncturing the lips of bass with culling devices, then I think we'd end up with a lot less post-release tournament mortality."
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