Mouldychum ran a feature a few days ago with regards to the unnecessary killing of a supposedly world record caught Steelhead salmon, which has brought wide spread condemnation towards the angler in question
Mouldychum - quote from Dylan
“Just wanted to comment on the hubbub surrounding the killing of a wild, 30+ pound wild steelhead on the Hoh River last week. Yes, people are angry throughout the region over the death of this magnificent fish, and probably with good reason. Yes, the angler’s excuse that the fish was bleeding from the gills is extremely doubtful based on his broad smile in the pictures and the visible fly stuck near the tip of the fish’s snout. And yes, it is truly a sad event.
But the outcry has been so vehement, including threats of violence toward the angler, that I think it’s important to remember this was a single fish and it was legally taken. That doesn’t make it right, but I believe we need to redirect this anger toward the larger issues of which this is just one, small example”.
To read this whole article click here
Now my argument is “What’s the difference between the Steelhead above, and this Pike caught here?, And why there isn’t a similar outcry for this image being published?. I have no argument with what Dylan has to say, in fact I wholeheartedly support his words, but I’m a pike fly-fishermen, and my love of this great fish stems beyond passionate…..its more an obsession than anything else. This Pike has seen more of the goings on below the surface of the Baltic sea, and spawned enough eggs to fill a tanker ship for the last 25-30 yrs,…………and would probably have done so for a few years more had this bloke understood the importance this great and majestic girl was to the ecosystem it swam around in. I cant tell you how sad I feel when I see images like this, especially images that glorify mans incessant quest to bolster their ego’s.
Now I love to fly-fish, & and I also like to eat fish, and will always bring something home for the dinner table for the family to eat. Yet I understand the importance of how fragile our waterways are becoming. Catch and release has been with me from an early age and is a topic I feel very strongly about indeed. Its got to a point that I will soon start to lobby for more stringent rules to be put in place over here and I also feel that these points need to be told at grass roots level as well. Kids of today are our future and unless we don’t start educating these kids early Ie: (in handling fish correctly & C&R) then what hope do we have for further generations to enjoy the feeling you get, from catching a fish.
4 comments:
all fish should be returned unless you're going to eat it.simple!
While fishing C&R this winter I was lucky enough to land a rainbow well in excess of my previous best. However that fish never left the water, I never weighed it and have no photo, just the image in my mind to remember.
The quote though I don't remember where from is "Take only memories, leave only foot prints!"
I couldn't agree more Simon. In many places in Canada the pike is considered a pest. The muskie is the prized fish for its size and fight, the walleye for its table fare. Pike infringe on the habitat of the muskie, spawning earlier and as a result the young pike eat the younger muskie. The walleye fisherman hate the pike because the more big pike there are, the less tasty walleye there will be.
Personally I'd never keep a big fish, regardless of species. The muskie guys are fanatical about releasing the big gals, much like these trout guys. Fact is, none of us were there to know the condition of these fish that were kept, and as great as it would be to have them both still swimming, chances are both of them would have died shortly after the fight.
The men who caught these fish are the only ones who will ever really know.
Pike here Clive are also classed as vermin, and will probably be so for many years to come. The larger females are starting to be released more frequently now, which is promising but on a whole the smaller Jack's are still killed in numbers.
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