Why can I release fish held in a livewell at the end of a fishing outing?
If allowed, fish that were stressed (e.g. on stringers, possibly not in a functional live well, etc.) would experience delayed mortality after being released. The fish may swim away but may not be healthy and eventually die. Further, if the release of a fish (or two) at the end of the day was allowed, it could possibly lead to high grading or culling. High grading is the practice of selectively harvesting fish – catching a fish, reducing it to creel (e.g. in a livewell), and then later releasing the fish after catching additional fish of a more preferable size. High grading is and has been against the law for at least the past 60 years in North Dakota. Allowing for some release of fish after being reduced to creel, would at the very least, complicate enforcement and at its worse, greatly confound the overall fishing regulations. See “‘From Both Sides’ – Release Rules” – North Dakota OUTDOORS, June 2006 (185Kb PDF).
