The ethical behavior of anglers changes with the times. When I was a youngster just learning to fish, too many of my role model adult fishermen were fish hogs. Game wardens were kept busy writing up those who far exceeded their daily bag limits of fish. A popular outdoors poster depicted a young angler looking up at a fisherman with a full string of trout and asking, “Gee mister, won’t you save some for me?”

Thankfully, times are changing. Although there are still some greedy fish hogs among today’s contemporary anglers, the catch-and-release ethic is alive and well, especially, it seems, among fly fishermen and competitive bass anglers. I have shared canoes with many purists, who will not kill a trout, period. Today, the new catch-and-release ethic runs deep, to the point where it approaches a religion with some anglers.

I confess an affinity for pan-fried brook trout. In the so-called consumptive angling spectrum, I fall somewhere between the catch-and-fry diehards and the catch-and-release priesthood. It is my nature to believe that our Creator intended for us to kill things and eat them. And I do, with deep appreciation and no guilt. So perhaps I bring a conflict of interest to the debate about when to keep and when to release.

Maybe we need to adjust our thinking and apply some common sense when it comes to decisions about releasing fish. After all, the biologists who manage our sport fishery use anglers as a fishery management tool just like wildlife managers use hunters. A lake or a pond is a habitat with a finite forage base that will support just so many fish. In some Maine waters, too many anglers are releasing fish.

Ron Brokaw, former regional fisheries biologist for Washington County, wrote this a few years ago:

“We have a number of waters that are currently experiencing salmonid growth problems. Most angler-caught salmon and togue from such lakes are not as large or as well proportioned as we would like. You can do your part by keeping more of the salmon and togue you catch. If more anglers would kill their limit rather than limiting their kill, they would help thin out the salmon/togue population. It would help restore more favorable growth conditions sooner than would otherwise be the case. The end result is larger and fatter fish, sooner rather than later.”

Jay Robinson wrote some thoughtful words on this subject. “So what’s a fisherman to do? Taken as a whole, yes, the scenery and fresh air are not to be taken for granted as part of the whole experience. But are we to deny the angler his ultimate prize – the fish he caught? Perhaps it’s a real trophy fish or the first fish he’s ever caught on a fly rod. Maybe he wishes to share the reward further and enjoy a meal of fine table fare with family or friends. He’s within the bounds of the law on his catch, but still hears the echoes in his conscience of the catch-and-release crowd. The answer to his dilemma is simple and personal. He alone should make the choice. No one is right, and no one is wrong in this case. It should be a personal choice left up to each angler as to whether releasing a fish or keeping it as part of your legal bag limit.”

All of this is not to say that, as an angling ethic, catch-and-release has lost its value. But informed anglers will know the waters they’re fishing and keep or release fish accordingly. In most cases, you can do more to help the fishery by keeping the smaller fish for the skillet and releasing the larger fish for the breeding process.

Speaking of larger fish and catch-and-release, Maine’s list of designated catch-and-release trout ponds is growing. This is good news. Here’s my list: Horseshoe Pond (Somerset County), Salmon Pond (Greenville), Moccasin Pond (Aroostook County), Mirror Pond or Monkey Pond (Piscataquis County), Mt. View Pond (Piscataquis County), Little Black Pond (Aroostook County), and Stink Pond (Aroostook County).

V. Paul Reynolds is editor of the Northwoods Sporting Journal.He is also a Maine Guide, co-host of a weekly radio program “Maine Outdoors” heard Sundays at 7 p.m. on 103.9, and former information officer for the Maine Dept. of Fish and Wildlife.