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I release almost all of my fish. I don't see any benefit of keeping a big one vs a small one for eating unless a specific amount of fish is needed for some occasion. The bigger ones (or should I say mid sized one like 30 pounds) are supposed to be the prime breeders. I have read that as they approach 50 pounds , they are declining as breeders but still do produce many eggs , just not as much as when they were younger. So the point is that awareness of the fishery and the idea of keeping breeders alive should extend down to the 25 to 30 pound fish and not just to the 50 pound trophies. For a meal and in fact several plates , a fish mayne 32 is ideal I think and even then , it should be eaten if taken and not just tossed in a dumpster.
Now a big issue is whether the big one you land will live. It sometimes takes a long hard fight to get a big one in. That may doom the fish. Also , sometimes the fish is mortally injured by the hook(s) . So you need to assess that issue too. Other's have mentioned this also when they choose to keep a big fish they would like to release but just will not survive.
Some guys keep every legal fish they can. Almost like they must. I think the idea is to have people think about the impact keeping certain fish, important to breeding, might have on the fishery.
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