GM wrote:
daytripper wrote:
http://www.benningtonbanner.com/localnews/ci_4200376

Discuss.

I hope to attend the meeting.

It seems to be a warped kind of democracy in that the locals want
something and the state feels obliged to give it to them, to hell with
the science.

Ken Cox, who I have met and regularly provide creel surveys to, sounds
buffoon-like with his "compromise" goal. The decision to stock or not is
a binary thing. At least be honest about it.

I have read studies on the effect of stocking in PA streams that already
hold a head of wild fish. The stocked fish become "delinquent" and
disrupt the feeding patterns of the wild fish. I don't know what success
he alludes to in England. The chalk streams are regularly stocked, but
I thought the UK stocked fingerling trout that CAN reproduce. He could
not be referring to the ghastly Put-and-Take fisheries with their pellet
fed monsters that taste like ****?

Rumor I heard this week is that a landowner who is participating in a
stream side restoration project is going to pull out if the state stocks
the river. This is very bad news, because the lack of stream-side cover
IS the major problem in this river. But there is a lot of emotion around
this issue, make no mistake.

I shared some emails with the Central MA ROFFians earlier this year that
show a 1/2 dozen wild browns all over 15", some a lot more, all caught
in the same morning. This is what this river does produce and if the
resources were spent improving the overall habitat, even the locals
could catch enough to take a few home.

Hi GM,

A couple of points to make.

In my opinion you are suggesting managing the river to optimize what is
there, not what is optimal or desired in the long term. From a pure
management perspective this might not make the most sense. I think your
motivations might be clouded by love, which is understandable. If what
you suggest is precisely the right course than why not improve the
resident bullhead or channel catfish populations? Bullhead are a
delicacy on the table and are probably indiginous to boot. What is your
real reason for protecting the brown trout? That they can exist in
sub-standard conditions? Is sub-standard the goal you are setting for a
long term policy?

You should also know that finishing pellets have been improved greatly
improving the taste of fish raised in farms. All rainbow trout you eat
prepared by chefs in 5 star restaurants are farm-reared rainbow trout
so please don't automatically assume them to be the livery paste of the
past.

Your pal,

Halfordian Golfer