Fishing is a personal thing. If you asked a group of fishermen why they head out, you may get many different replies. To bring home a feed, others to relax and some may say for the company or mateship. I go for the science or as it is more commonly referred to these days, citizen science. A definition of Citizen Science is the collection and analysis of data relating to the natural world by members of the general public.
Most of the fish I catch are tagged and released and my fishing trips around Brisbane are planned around this. The tag I place in a fish has its own individual number + a phone number and basic instructions saying record date place and length. If it is recaptured the details are matched against the original tag details I have submitted which are entered into a central data base.
Why do I do this you ask? Well, I am interested in the fish as such. Growth rates, survival, movements and population sizes. This is the citizen science aspect. I still get the “fun” of catching the fish but get to watch them swim off to be caught another day + add to the information being gathered on that species. It is a pretty amazing feeling watching a big snapper, jew, thready or even a big yellowfin bream head back to where they come from. I also like the personal challenge aspect of tagging. Trying to tag your biggest snapper or a certain number of a particular species. I have been tagging fish for over 25 years now through Suntag Qld and still love it.