Fishing best practices and sustainability at Fishbrain

Fishbrain encourages responsible, sustainable, and legal fishing practices. 

We know that the fishing habits of our community are diverse and varied, and that fish species, fishing methods, and fishing laws and policies are different around the world. We encourage all anglers to observe local laws and regulations, and to use practices that make fishing sustainable for many generations to come. That includes the way you fish, as well as the way you treat the places where you go fishing - such as cleaning up your trash and being a responsible boater. 

Because anglers are out in nature, they can play an important role in conservation and the health of fish and waters. For instance, anglers are often the first to report pollution in water systems, illegal netting/fishing and invasive species (not just fish, but also other wildlife and fauna). 

Catch and release is one way to support building and conserving the fish population for future generations of anglers. We at Fishbrain strongly recommend this practice when appropriate - for example because of size, local regulations, or personal preference.

But for some fishing trips, of course we know that anglers will naturally be keeping the fish they catch! Whether that’s for eating, because it’s an invasive species that shouldn’t be put back in the water, or because catch and release is illegal in that location, we understand it’s not always possible to return fish to the water. As a member of the Fishbrain community, we simply hope you will always fish responsibly and with the utmost care for the fish, water, and environment. 

It’s always worth checking on Fishbrain first to see if the weather conditions and depth contours allow for catch and release before heading out. Fishbrain can also provide anglers with insight into safe catch and release methods, and we base our continued support of catch and release on the guidelines and advice given by organizations such as FishSmart and the Angling Trust.

If you prefer to only see “catch and release” catches in Fishbrain, you can always use the “catch and release” feature in the settings. If you’d like to see other types of filters in the app, please let us know! You can reach us at support@fishbrain.com. We also moderate all content that is uploaded to Fishbrain to make sure it aligns with our community guidelines for responsible, sustainable, and legal fishing, but sometimes things can slip through. We are thankful for our engaged community that helps us report anything inappropriate. Thank you for your continued support!

To ensure that fishing can be enjoyed both now and in the future, and does not have a negative impact on fish species and populations, Fishbrain has a long-standing partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Wildlife Commission. We also have data-sharing agreements with leading university and science researchers to better understand fish and angler behavior, fishing patterns, and fishing trends worldwide. Please contact us if you’re interested in learning more about becoming a research partner.

Other references: https://www.takemefishing.org/how-to-fish/how-to-catch-fish/how-to-release-a-fish/

https://www.anglingtrust.net/page.asp?section=649&sectionTitle=Invasive+Non-Native+Species