I have just finished reading the Robson Green thread regarding bonefish and the one important point that everyone seemed to miss is what do you do with them once you have them to hand...hand being the salient point.
I have fished for bones for over twelve years often to the exclusion of anything else. I am fortunate enough to have my own skiff based at McLeans Town in the East End of Grand Bahama. This area is teeming with Bull Sharks as well as other species, it really is shark city. When we are searching for bones the easiest way to find them is finding the sharks because you know the bones are not going to be far away.
In this area bones being near to the bottom of the food chain and because of their numbers have become the staple diet of the sharks. Often you will spot bones working their way along the tide literally within feet of the sharks, the bulls appear to ignore them, probably because its too much effort to chase them down but as soon as you hook a silver speedster within seconds the sharks pick up the panic signals of the distressed fish and are on to it like a pack of hounds.
I use 13lb tippets which break at 13lbs knotted, forget what the manufactures label states I always test my line in a knotted state. Some brands state their straight pull strength but as soon as its knotted they could lose up to 30% of their strength.
So we have hooked a bone with the sharks in pursuit. a heavily set clutch with 30lb backing allows you to take quick control of the fish and limit its runs to 40-50 yards. As the fish approaches the boat this is where your stronger tippet material comes into play. You can quickly unhook the fish whilst it is still in the water using forceps, the flattened barb allows you to unhook the bone without even touching it.
Don't worry about the sharks the guide is yelling and lunging his pole at them along with one or two well aimed conch shells.
And this is where the problem lays. As soon as you hold a bone you cannot help but remove its protective slime. When that fish is released, long or short fight it does not matter that bone is a swimming advert for food because of the scent it gives off. That bone is shark food and they will just follow the scent.
I have over the years caught hundreds of bones certainly over the thousand mark and for a long time witnessed a good number of them being tracked down by sharks and consumed after release. Then one day I went with an experienced guide who insisted that I used stronger tippets to land them quicker and unhook them without touching them. Since that day the vast majority of my bones have made it to live another day because the nearby sharks had little or no scent trail to track them down.
I have caught numerous bones well into double digits and when I hook a trophy I will handle it for a quick shot and then motor the skiff over to the safety of the mangroves where the big bulls cannot enter. Depending on the tide and current we leave it in a safe spot.
It still bothers me that when that biggie is held even with wet hands some slime will be removed but at least the fish will have a good few hours to regain its strength and awareness.
If you fish for bones with few if any sharks around you do not have the same problem but having fished in many different locations over the years there are very few that I have been to that have contained no sharks.
To prolong the fight for this wonderful species is totally wrong and it puts them in danger, use sensible tackle, with a good quality clutch to get the fish close in an acceptable time and that will give it every chance to see tomorrow. Playing a bone with a mildly set clutch does the fish no favours at all.
One more thing do the fish a favour and don't use those damn Boger Grips they really do inflict damage on their fragile mouths.
Finally don't forget your forceps.....remember you can look but don't touch. Wink.
Edited added info...There are many days when the shark problem is not around, so if I am fishing from the skiff or wading its still good practice to unhook them belly up in the water without handling them. On those days when I am fortunate enough to catch one of those really big girls I carry with me a smooth PVC bag and wet it thoroughly inside to weigh the fish before release.
Bonefish care
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