07-24-2013, 07:13 PM
[quote AFFamily]Over the years I've seen a lot of folks mention the spear fisherman and their impact on the fishery.
I know nothing of the spear fishing community. Do they really harvest enough to impact the ecosystem at a specific lake?[/quote]
[#0000FF]There are a lot of arguments...pro and con...about the effects of spear fishing on the game fish populations at Deer Creek and Jordanelle. Admittedly, the spearos do a good job at carp management by killing and removing lots of the bronze buglemouths. But they also kill and remove a significant number of gamefish...walleyes and bass.
The pic below shows a couple of walleyes taken from Deer Creek. No weight or measurements available on those fish but the largest looks like it could be a state record if taken on hook and line. Any angler would give up a valuable appendage to be able to catch even one that size. Some spear fishermen harvest several over a season.
[inline "DEER CREEK WALLEYE.jpg"]
Big walleyes and big bass have something in common. They both take several years to get to trophy size. And with the relative small sizes of both Deer Creek and Jordanelle...compared to the huge impoundments of the midwest...there are really not many fish that size in our reservoirs at any given time. Each one removed represents the end of the chain for what began as thousands of little ones. And each one removed leaves a big hole in the population...both for spawning and for availability to anglers.
There has been a big increase in the number of spear fishermen in Utah since the spear fishing laws have been liberalized and it has been made legal to shoot game fish. Many states still do not allow this practice...even with greater fish populations. It must also be noted that many newbie spear fishermen are not unlike newbie rifle hunters. They get itchy trigger fingers and just want to kill something. And since bass are notoriously complacent about divers approaching them...within easy spear range...they make good targets for spearos who just wanna put a hole in a fish.
In fairness, not all spear fishermen are happy harvesters. Most of the seasoned fish stickers are respectful of the resource and only occasionally shoot a game fish. The problem is that they are almost universally "trophy" hunters...shooting the biggest fish they can find. ALSO...there is no catch and release with spear fishing.
Bottom line? Spear fishing DEFINITELY impacts the big fish numbers in any waters in which it is legal to shoot fish with spearguns. Anglers...especially those who practice C&R on larger bass...have a minimal impact on the numbers of large fish at any given time. There ARE some large bass that are harvested by the meat fishermen. But the truly big bass are usually too wary to be duped by anglers who do not have the savvy, the equipment and the techniques to fool them. And even the best anglers do not always catch the biggest fish in the lake. Can't say that for spear fishermen.
My personal opinion is that spear fishing should be disallowed on any water in which the gamefish are already having a difficult time reaching larger sizes. Doesn't matter about slot limits, C&R or selective harvest among anglers if the fish they allow to grow bigger leave the lake with a hole in their sides.
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I know nothing of the spear fishing community. Do they really harvest enough to impact the ecosystem at a specific lake?[/quote]
[#0000FF]There are a lot of arguments...pro and con...about the effects of spear fishing on the game fish populations at Deer Creek and Jordanelle. Admittedly, the spearos do a good job at carp management by killing and removing lots of the bronze buglemouths. But they also kill and remove a significant number of gamefish...walleyes and bass.
The pic below shows a couple of walleyes taken from Deer Creek. No weight or measurements available on those fish but the largest looks like it could be a state record if taken on hook and line. Any angler would give up a valuable appendage to be able to catch even one that size. Some spear fishermen harvest several over a season.
[inline "DEER CREEK WALLEYE.jpg"]
Big walleyes and big bass have something in common. They both take several years to get to trophy size. And with the relative small sizes of both Deer Creek and Jordanelle...compared to the huge impoundments of the midwest...there are really not many fish that size in our reservoirs at any given time. Each one removed represents the end of the chain for what began as thousands of little ones. And each one removed leaves a big hole in the population...both for spawning and for availability to anglers.
There has been a big increase in the number of spear fishermen in Utah since the spear fishing laws have been liberalized and it has been made legal to shoot game fish. Many states still do not allow this practice...even with greater fish populations. It must also be noted that many newbie spear fishermen are not unlike newbie rifle hunters. They get itchy trigger fingers and just want to kill something. And since bass are notoriously complacent about divers approaching them...within easy spear range...they make good targets for spearos who just wanna put a hole in a fish.
In fairness, not all spear fishermen are happy harvesters. Most of the seasoned fish stickers are respectful of the resource and only occasionally shoot a game fish. The problem is that they are almost universally "trophy" hunters...shooting the biggest fish they can find. ALSO...there is no catch and release with spear fishing.
Bottom line? Spear fishing DEFINITELY impacts the big fish numbers in any waters in which it is legal to shoot fish with spearguns. Anglers...especially those who practice C&R on larger bass...have a minimal impact on the numbers of large fish at any given time. There ARE some large bass that are harvested by the meat fishermen. But the truly big bass are usually too wary to be duped by anglers who do not have the savvy, the equipment and the techniques to fool them. And even the best anglers do not always catch the biggest fish in the lake. Can't say that for spear fishermen.
My personal opinion is that spear fishing should be disallowed on any water in which the gamefish are already having a difficult time reaching larger sizes. Doesn't matter about slot limits, C&R or selective harvest among anglers if the fish they allow to grow bigger leave the lake with a hole in their sides.
[/#0000FF]
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