On Nov 9, 3:22 pm, daytripper wrote:
[snip]
o there is nothing obvious about a slot limit that would reduce the overall,
seasonal mortality rate. indeed, the opposite is *far* more likely: each fish
legally taken has a 0% probability of survival, while each fish released has
at least a 97% probability of survival...

You know better, we've been all over this. For one thing, if you had
to kill a legal fish, in a slot, and quit, there'd be a lot less
angler pressure. The quality of the experience would at once improve.
Further, the fish that remained in the system would have less
competition and watershed biomass production would be optimal. It's
also not stated, but somehow implied, that trending as close to 0
angler induced mortality through angling is even a good thing. With
the loss of predation and improved natality rates, some harvest is not
only a good thing, it's required to maintain maximum yield from a
watershed.

Tim