Thread: Fish Shrinkage

Do you guys have a problem with fish shrinkage and law enforcement in your area? As you know when you ice down a freshly caught fish it tends to shrink in length. Here in NC, there have been situations where a fish has shrank to 1/2"+/- below the creel limit, when checked by law enforcement the result is a $250.00 fine.

Seems like there should be a little commons sense used, but then everyone would be keeping fish slightly below creel limit. I guess the answer is to only keep fish long enough to allow for shrinkage and still be legal.

"Like a frightened turtle!"


LOL
Seriously though a dead fish will definitely loose some length (as well as girth) after death especially if allowed to 'dry out' even sitting in an ice chest out of water.
Generally though the 'shrinkage factor' is only a couple % of the total length while alive.
And usually if its that close, I throw them back...
http://www.saltwaternow.com/shrinkage.pdf

What #R said: if the fish is that close, I throw it back.
But most wardens I know are gonna cut you some slack if you have one fish that's an 1/8" too short.
A cooler full? NO.
Of course you usually have to give them some other reason to even start measuring.

First, I don't know that fish will shrink when put on ice. I've heard some claims to that effect, but don't know it for a fact and tend to be skeptical. When I first read the first post in this thread earlier, I wanted to research the subject before commenting. I came across the same article that #r linked, as well a forum discussion where a poster said that Texas Parks and Wildlife told him fish don't shrink on ice. I found no scientific papers on the subject, only anecdotal accounts of fish shrinking in their coolers.

If the information in the aforementioned article is true, the half inch shrinkage situations you referred to are way out of line. I would look at the tools and methods of measuring for most if not all of the discrepancies. A freshly caught fish isn't easy to measure correctly and a cold stiff fish isn't necessarily going to lay on the scale correctly either without some bending and massaging. If your scale doesn't have a bump board at zero, I wouldn't trust the results of the measurement of a fish alive, dead, iced, frozen or in any other state. Their is too much going on to get an accurate reading while maintaining a true zero simultaneously. Also if your scale happens to be the kind molded into an ice chest lid it could be off a bit from the factory, then factor in that ice chest lids do warp, expand, contract or otherwise distorted, you only have an estimation not a measurement. The same can be said of the sticker tapes since they are highly subject to shrinkage over time. If you are using a tape measure, you're aren't measuring the fish the same way the fish cops will. On top of that a tape is not going to give you repeatable results even if the contour of the fish was the correct way to measure a fish as opposed to length. Differences in method and tools are the reasons why I personally bump up my minimum sized fish above what a state will allow, not shrinkage.

For what it is worth I measured a trout this afternoon right out of the water and again this evening after 5 hours on ice and it measured the same. Granted, I did measure it on an ice chest lid scale. Though my measurements may or may not be correct, they were the same. Also a single observation is a long way from being conclusive evidence to support my beliefs.

I have been a fishing tournament judge for years. A bump board is used to measure the fish. You guys won't believe this but a fish will measure differently by laying it on one side then the other. I think it has to do with the stomach contents. When the fish is laid flat on one side and measured, then laid flat on the other, most times those measurements will not be the same. Sounds ridiculous, but I've done it. Probably not true for small varieties because difference would be minimal but longer 25+", yes. Just some FYI.

Good points guys!
When I took a 'Plane Table Surveying' course in college we learned the less stable the media of a measuring device is and the longer the distance measured, the more prone it is to give false or misleading information.
For instance a metal measuring board is more stable than a wooden or plastic one.
And a steel tape is much more rigid and stable than a plastic or cloth tape.
IF you use one of these devices (as I do) check it against a more reputable (stable) measuring device as a check.
At least that will give you idea of the accuracy of what you are using!

When in doubt, throw it back....And for that matter only keep what you are going to eat.
I've heard to often "I had to throw out a bunch of fish in the freezer because " to old, forgot what it was. In Short don't waste.

Good point fshntime, I didn't know a fish would measure differently on either side, but it makes perfect sense to me once I ponder it. Have you noticed that a fresh caught fish is actually the same or a bit closer than an iced fish?

Originally Posted by DRH

If you are using a tape measure, you're aren't measuring the fish the same way the fish cops will.

Is there a "standardized method" for them to measure and what is it ?

Tight Lines !

Originally Posted by Ez2cDave

Is there a "standardized method" for them to measure and what is it ?

Tight Lines !

A tape measure will lay to the contour of the fish's body so if it's say a Drum he'll have a rise in the center making him measure
longer then a stick type measuring device,But with say a Mac. being less thick in the middle a tape will be as close as a stick
Always throw it back if in doubt or Pay the Man