The ethical issues of using fish finders in the sport
fishing community is somewhat of a hot topic these days. Some experts believe that using a device which
lets a fisherman literally look beneath the water to locate a potential catch
is cheating, since it takes the luck factor out of the equation. Others believe that all is fair when it comes
to locating that perfect fish; because, the use of a fish finder does not guarantee
a hit. After all, the fish still has to
take the bait and swallow the hook. This
is an argument that is more than likely not going to be settled in the near
future.
There are other debates out there as well, including the
question of whether recreational fishing of any kind is ethical. The people who do argue against it take the
view that there is no need to fish anymore, since it is not necessary to kill
fish to feed oneself or their family.
They look with horror on any action which harms these aquatic creatures,
including the very action of using a hook, net, or other device to catch fish.
Is this an ethical issue?
Certainly. At least for some
people, and the most passionate of these individual do not mind going the
empathic route of putting themselves or their readers in the proverbial shoes
of the fish. In fact, they can be quite
graphic in their descriptions of the torment these creatures go through when
caught. Just reading their articles
could be enough to put one off the notion of eating fish ever again.
Another debate is whether it is ethical to use a fish
finder. Judging by the thousands of
websites which sell the device, it is certainly a financially lucrative
idea. Why else would a whole industry be
developed to create, develop, manufacture and sell these items?
The championship tournaments out there who have had to come
to terms with these machines. Some allow
their participants to use them, while others remain old school and have banned
them, considering luck and skill of the fisherman more valuable than any
mechanical or electrical device. It is,
again, a choice which is left to the group or individual when it comes to using
a fish finder.
For the individual angler, it is a personal choice. Some see no harm in using one since many
employ the catch and release style of fishing.
The person is really there for the recreation, pleasure, or other
challenges which comes with fishing.
They are there to catch fish and simply document their catches with cell
phone cameras before releasing them back into the water.
Ethics are about what our conscious, our beliefs, and our
value systems allow us to do. It is
about what you do when no one is looking.
So, the ethics of using a fish finder is really under the control of the
person. Whether they feel it is right or
not.