Fish feel pain, stress

I WOULD like to thank Wayne Rudman for his article, "Effects of deadly red tide will linger" (February 7), where he reminded us of the threats faced by ocean wildlife.

I, like Rudman, once believed that "fish feel little, if any, pain", having joined my dad on fishing outings. However, since then I have discovered a growing body of scientific evidence that fish do experience pain, fear and stress in ways that are similar to birds and mammals.

This is indicated by similarities in their anatomy, physiology and behavioural responses to painful events and stressful situations.

For example, fish try to avoid things that have caused them pain in the past.

This is not so surprising since pain, fear and stress are useful tools which strongly motivate animals, including humans, to escape and avoid harmful situations.

Pain and fear would not be such effective survival tools were they not experienced by animals negatively.

I strongly urge anglers to consider the suffering of fish and practice humane fishing methods.

I also hope that the fishing industry will be held accountable for the welfare of fish and other animals.

Tracy Timmins, Port Elizabeth