Barbless Hooks
Here we are in late October with leaves
falling and temperatures dropping. A deluge in late August brought us some Northumberland shore salmon fishing in early September,
but we’ve not had a good rain since. This makes many small tributaries inaccessible to spawning salmon, but fall salmon
will soon have to enter the rivers regardless of water conditions because, as St. Mary’s River angler Wes MacDougall
used to say, “it’s their time”.
This season Atlantic salmon fishing regulations required the use of barbless hooks in Nova Scotia. Most
anglers I encounter seem to agree that barbless hooks aid conservation in two ways; they reduce injury to released fish and
they increase the percentage of fish lost. As one of many anglers who have used barbless hooks for many years, I think that
an examination of the prevailing wisdom is in order.
I’ve observed that barbless hooks make it much quicker and easier to release fish. There is no
doubt in my mind, based upon my experience, that barbless hooks aid in maximizing survival of released angled fish. Some biologists
will argue that a study conducted in New Brunswick some years ago showed that use of barbless hooks doesn’t affect the
survival rates of released angled salmon, but I have to assume that the study’s conclusions were incorrect. I have to
believe what I’ve experienced over many years and dismiss results of a study which may have been poorly designed. Far
too often we hear “Studies show that ….”. Sometimes I think that the main thing studies show is that there
are too many studies.
The common belief that barbless hook use
causes anglers to lose more fish is the one that I question. I’ve always found that fish are more readily hooked on
barbless hooks, and well-hooked fish means more fish landed. A recent article Going Barbless by Kevin Compton in
the fall 2008 issue of Hatches magazine provides some insight regarding this issue. Mr. Compton writes, “Fishing
hooks were originally made of bone, shell, and thorn and were fashioned without barbs. The first metal hooks, made of Egyptian
copper, were barbless. By Roman times, however, barbs appeared on bronze and iron hooks. Bending bronze or steel wire into
a particular hook shape requires a barb, what Jeff Pierce of Mustad USA calls an ‘anchoring point’. That is, a
wedge-like, raised ‘barb’ cut into the metal wire that ‘anchors’ the wire between the pin and the
hook template while it is being forged. Contrary to expectation, the production of a barbless hook requires an initial barb
to ‘anchor’ the hook wire and to shape the hook bend. The barb is then removed. The added production time needed
to remove a barb accounts, in part, for the higher cost of barbless hooks.”
Mr. Compton goes on to say, “To understand the various characteristics
of barbless hook design, it is helpful to understand some of the disadvantages of barbed hooks. Aside from its pivotal role
as an ‘anchor’ in the forging process, barbs are designed to retain fish. On the other hand, aside from the inevitable
and senseless harm done to a fish, a barbed hook has many disadvantages. Darrel Martin, in his excellent work ‘Fly-tying
Methods’, explains: ‘A wide or long barb may actually impede penetration. The increased surface of a large barb,
sometimes described as the ‘resistance wedge’, requires greater penetrative force. The entry furrow caused by
a large barb may actually allow the spear to escape. The primary penetration resistance occurs on the top of the spear where
the barb is located. This, of course, allows the barb to hold under pressure; however, the resistance may also preclude deep
entry by a large barb. When in doubt, cut the barb out. A sharp point and a flattened barb may actually increase retention
because the spear sinks deeper into trout tissue. If a barb is present, it should be small and far enough from the hook heel
to allow deep penetration. The only advantage of a small, delicate barb may be for airborne trout on a slack line.’”
Many years on the river have taught me
to believe only what I see. I’d encourage readers to consider these thoughts in your own fishing and to experiment.
A simple test anyone can conduct is to take two identical hooks and flatten the barb on one. Then pull each point though a
piece of stiff cardboard, observing the effort required to achieve penetration. You’ll be surprised, I think, by how
much easier the barbless hook penetrates.
Most important, though, is to be thoughtful and form your own opinions rather than believing everything
you hear or read. All of the truly great anglers I’ve met were observant deep-thinkers.
Please stay on the line …