How to get your fish mounted
It is a good idea to make sure you know how the mounting process works and what you need to do to get a good fish mount before you go out and catch that trophy fish. By knowing how to get your fish mounted beforehand you can reduce the stress experienced by both you and the fish, as well as guarantee the best possible result. To learn more about how the taxidermist produce your fish mount, read our articles about fiberglass fish and fish replica.
Nowadays, fish mounts are usually fiberglass fish replicas and hence there is no need for the actual fish. You can choose to release the fish back into the wild or put it on the dinner table – it will not affect the reproduction process. The exception from this is if you catch a very small fish, i.e. a fish that is no longer than a few inches, since the best way to mount such as small fish may be freeze drying and this calls for the actual fish. The process of freeze drying should be initiated as soon as possible.
When you catch a large fish that you think you may want to have mounted, take photographs of it as soon as possible. This is usually best done before you even take it out of the water. The more stressed and fatigued the fish becomes, the less of its true striking color will be displayed. Try to take sharp high resolution pictures so that the artist can see and reproduce every dot and pattern on the fish. Blurry pictures are harder to work with but can still be a big help to the fish taxidermist. If you are unable to take any pictures of the fish, try to get a hold of other pictures of the same species captured in the same region. These will usually be the closest match to your fish.
Once you have snapped the pictures you need to measure your fish. Ideally measure both the length and the girth of the fish. Having its girth measured can be stressful for the fish, and if it is catch and release fishing and the fish already looks very stressed it can be better to skip this measurement. Approximate measurements can be taken from the pictures in this case.
If you are unable to take measurements, make an estimation and memorize the built of the fish. Was it fat or slender for it species? Are its pattern and/or coloration differing from what is typical for the species?
When you have all this data you can return the fish to the water, go home and try to find a good fish taxidermist. Choose one that is an expert on the type of fish you want mounted. Just because a taxidermist make one species well does not mean he does others well. It is not enough that the taxidermist know how to get your fish mounted, he or she also needs to know how to really “bring it to life”. Make sure to check sample work from the fish taxidermist before commissioning anything. The sample work should be of the same or a similar species. Always go to a fish taxidermist, not a regular taxidermist. Fish taxidermy is likely the hardest of all taxidermy branches and it is worth getting an expert with extensive experience in preserving fish.