Bear, I have a hard time understanding the In-Fisherman philosophy. I have seen very few and I mean very few fish caught on the fly that were going to die due to any damage caused by the fly, very few.

I suspect that most of the fatalities are due to the catching, handling and/or release techniques of the fisherman. I have seen some fishermen play a fish until the fish was totally exhausted, never a good sign. A fish like that needs a lot of time to recover, time many fishermen are not willing to give. Others handle the fish totally wrong when in the boat and some just dump the fish overboard without trying to resusitate the fish.

The few fish that don't recover become a food source for micro organisms, or Otters, Osprey, Eagles, Raccoons, or many other fish eating creatures. Not a total waste.

Larry ---sagefisher---