Hook-B-Gone..

My tippet breaking experience a few weeks ago and Tims'
10-foot-release response to an earlier post made me curious:

Does anyone know, or can anyone speculate, what happens to hooks that
break off during a fight? Do they rust off? Do the fish shed them?
What happens?

I have nightmares about some fish having to carry around my fly and
part of a leader for the rest of his life.

I've caught one fish that had a fly and part of a leader in the roof
of its mouth, but just one. It seems to me that, with Tim and me on
the loose, there should be thousands of such fish swimming around.

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