Maintain Fisheries with Replicas of Trophy Smallmouth Bass

Have you ever admired a huge smallmouth bass mounted on a fellow fisherman’s wall?

I have, and was shocked to learn what I was looking at was not the real deal but a perfectly replicated match of the live trophy fish. The art of replicating trophy fish of all species is an art form many skilled top taxidermists perform. This is a winning game plan for a trophy smallmouth that continues to live on in your favorite waters and continue to reproduce a line of future trophy smallies. And as a fisherman, you have the knowledge you are a conscience catch and release sportsman, plus you get to see the realistic replication on the wall of your den every day.

We all need to maintain our favorite fisheries with replicas of trophy smallmouth bass we are fortunate to catch.

You might be thinking yes, this is a good idea, but I am not going to spend the money for a replica. Well, this might surprise you but these replicas of smallmouth bass are about the same cost as having the real fish mounted, they retain their appearance with no flaking or decay for decades,  and you will not be able to tell the difference.

My uncle first turned me onto this method for maintaining the brutes in local fisheries, yet still having his trophy catch on the wall. He has fished many waters in Canada and America, and during a visit I was admiring a 22 inch Golden Trout on his wall when he ask if I would have returned this trophy back into the stream instead of having it mounted. I said yes, I would have kept the Golden and had it mounted just like he did.

My dad was quietly observing this little exchange take place, and when he and my uncle shared an unspoken look between them I knew something was up. They went on to explain what I was looking at was a replica of the real trophy. I learned a valuable lesson that day about how catch and release is the only way we, as ethical fishermen, must do our part to maintain these valuable fisheries yielding up such beautiful fish.

I have seen the effect of over-fishing and the results are not good. I am not at all against keeping a few fish for the table but these large fish are the ones producing huge numbers of future trophies so it is only wise to return them to the water.

Next time you catch a huge smallmouth bass snap a few pictures from various angles, take the measurements, weigh, and then place your lunker back for others to catch and hopefully release.  The pictures and other details you have are all a good taxidermist requires to produce a realistic replica for the wall. By doing so we can maintain our fisheries and have all the replicas of trophy smallmouth bass our wives will allow!

Some of the best replica work I have ever seen is done by Fish Scale Taxidermy. They are truly works of art!

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