+ Reply to Thread
Results 1 to 6 of 6

Thread: FISHING DURING THE SPAWN - Readers Cast (Steven H. McGarthwaite) - March 29, 2010

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2002
    Location
    Bothell, WA, USA
    Posts
    2,122
    Blog Entries
    1

    Default FISHING DURING THE SPAWN - Readers Cast (Steven H. McGarthwaite) - March 29, 2010

    FISHING DURING THE SPAWN

    I was reading Bob Boese?s ?Springtime Bream Fishing?, when I came to this part of the article?.

    You need to know about spawning time because you want to catch the spawning fish. Don?t worry about affecting the sunfish population, at an average of 18,000 fry hatching from each bed, it is almost impossible to over fish them.
    Last edited by rtidd; 03-29-2010 at 12:09 AM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    White Bear Lake MN
    Posts
    1,054

    Default I Meant No Disrepect...

    I meant no disrespect to Bob Boese's "Springtime Bream Fishing" article in last weeks Reader's Cast on FAOL. I never really tell anyone, what they should or should not do, I normally let people decide for themselves.

    This article was takeng from my response in "Reader Voice" last week. This decision was that of the Publisher and Editors of FAOL, and not at my request.

    I live in Minnesota, that has 15,453 lakes, over 9,000 miles of streams and rivers, untold number of ponds. And our fishing is getting harder every year, and the fish are getting fewer, and the DNR and the State of Minnesota, does not have the manpower, or the money to correct the problems.

    There is still the strong idea that many have, that by buying a fishing licenses, gives them the right to fish and keep every fish they catch. Bring it home, clean them, and put them in the freezer, or hand them out to friends and neighbors.

    You can catch 8 Sunfish, and have a maximum of 16 in possession. That means the ones you caught that day plus the 8 and the refrigerator or freezer.

    It is getting to a point that where there were weekend cabins, there are now lake homes, and the owners think that they own the water that their home and property abut on. Some have houses that are separated from the water by a road or highway, and the land between the road/highway and the water is public right of way. Yet they place their docks out into the water, build storage building on the shore, and clear-out the water vegetation for a swimming beach and for swimming.

    All of this destroys the habitat and ecosystem of the water they live on. There is also warnings from the State DNR on how much fish different age groups should eat, to prevent being effected by the pollutions that is building up in our public waters.

    I was at the Great Water Fly Fishing Expo this past weekend, and I had long talks with the State DNR people about the Sunfish problem, I also talked the the National Park Service who take care to the St. Croix River (boundary between Minnesota and Wisconsin) as it is under the protection of the Department of Interior Park Service and the "Wild & Scenic River Act". It seems that those who are suppose to guard our nations lands and waters, are not able to do the task because of ruled, and budgets, and lack of manpower.

    All of this sadden me, as I see our Nation's great heritage rapidly disappearing, in less than my lifetime...~Parnelli
    Last edited by Steven McGarthwaite; 03-29-2010 at 07:32 AM.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2002
    Location
    Bothell, WA, USA
    Posts
    2,122
    Blog Entries
    1

    Default

    It's our differences that make us stronger. By looking at any issue from multiple viewpoints, we are better informed, and more capable of making reasonable decisions that fit with our own personal ethics and beliefs.

    Thanks for the alternate take on Bob's article, and even more so; thanks for clarifying your article, and being very clear that you pose no disrespect, but have a different take on this issue.

    --Ron--

  4. #4

    Default

    Different lakes and regions differ. In warmer parts of the US, bluegills can often spawn several times over the course of the warmer months. The first "spawn" is always the biggest, though.

    In bigger lakes, and southern lakes, overharvest may not be as big of an issue, but it certainly can be a major problem on smaller waters and northerly waters.

    I've fly-fished local public ponds intensively for the past 4 years, and have seen several ponds get totally destroyed by excessive harvest during the ice-fishing season, and during the spawning season. I've seen it so bad in some ponds that the females will be HUGE with eggs, but they can't find any males on nests to complete the act of spawning, because the bulls have been harvested off their nests. In those ponds, I finally did catch a few males at night, but during daylight hours I caught almost exclusively females. It was pretty clear to me what had affected those populations.

    Our DNR says they have NO evidence that angler harvest has hurt bluegill populations in any of the State-managed lakes, but last year they passed a new law restricting panfish harvest to 25 bluegills/sunfish and 25 crappies/day.
    David Merical
    St. Louis, MO

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    savannah, georgia
    Posts
    417

    Default

    i agree that this is less of a problem as you move further south (get longer warm seasons) and bigger fisheries. it is also less of a problem if you practice catch-n-release during the spawn. another technique is to fish to the perimeter of the beds during the spawn, and not to the heart of a bedding area. but then you're settling for the smaller fish and engaging in conservation activity through selective harvest. so it depends on whether you want to be a conservationist, a trophy hunter, or a meat hunter as an angler. and you have to know the nature of the fishery where you are fishing. no 2 are exactly the same. this is especially important to those who manage private ponds/lakes. public waters are a tough subject when it comes to fisheries management by selective/restricted harvest.

  6. #6

    Default

    Just goes to show how different the fish population problems can be in different regions.

    A large issue on many smaller reservoirs, ponds and impoundments in the southwest is underharvest of bluegills.

    Lack of desire to catch and eat these fish, coupled with the catch and release ethics of many anglers, has resulted in overpopulations and stunting as a result. When you consider that the bass populations here have exploded and that few folks ever catch and eat bass (another 'problem' for the G&F folks), you'd think that thebass would control the 'gills by predation. But it's not happening and the bluegill populations are still way out of control.

    Our local game and fish guy told me that what he neeed to help with this problem was a couple of thousand folks that would keep and eat a few hundred of these fish a week for a few years.

    So, if you could send those Minnesota fish eaters down our way, I'd appreciate it. Them little bitty brim are making it hard to get to the bigger ones.

    Buddy

+ Reply to Thread

Similar Threads

  1. Replies: 7
    Last Post: 06-16-2010, 03:38 PM
  2. Replies: 2
    Last Post: 05-18-2010, 06:26 PM
  3. Replies: 8
    Last Post: 03-12-2010, 12:39 AM
  4. Replies: 0
    Last Post: 03-07-2010, 11:37 PM
  5. Replies: 1
    Last Post: 03-02-2010, 12:48 AM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts