09-20-2013, 04:21 PM
[quote gstott]But that takes time, especially with slower growing warmwater fish. I'd still prefer people take smaller fish, because that is immediate. Those little fish won't be missed, but taking out a bunch of large fish will reduce the number of large fish available right then.[/quote]
....even with bass, growth rates can be very fast in Utah if population densities are not too high. I have seen exceptional growth rates in places like Newcastle, Minersville, Otter Creek, and Piute and even northern reservoirs like Mantua of newly stocked bass because competition was low. But, growth rates slow as density increases. The end result of harvesting a large fish may be immediate...but, if overharvest is NOT the issue, you are talking about a drop in the bucket and no noticeable difference will be seen by fishermen.
In order to achieve the desired result of having more big fish, you always have to discover what the limiting factors are keeping a fishery from having more. Your post again seems to assume that overharvest is the problem. But, again, when the problem is density, the removal of any fish allows for faster growth rates of all fish.
[quote gstott] I've seen this happen on smaller bass waters. People discover that there are some good bass in there, so they treat it like their meat locker, and then wonder what happened to the fishery. The only good part of the scenario is that people then lose interest in the fishery and stop going there. In a few years it becomes good again.[/quote]
This above example, though, is the result of overharvest. Again, if overharvest is an issue, the larger fish should be protected. But, if overharvest isn't the limiting factor, harvest of all fish sizes can help.
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....even with bass, growth rates can be very fast in Utah if population densities are not too high. I have seen exceptional growth rates in places like Newcastle, Minersville, Otter Creek, and Piute and even northern reservoirs like Mantua of newly stocked bass because competition was low. But, growth rates slow as density increases. The end result of harvesting a large fish may be immediate...but, if overharvest is NOT the issue, you are talking about a drop in the bucket and no noticeable difference will be seen by fishermen.
In order to achieve the desired result of having more big fish, you always have to discover what the limiting factors are keeping a fishery from having more. Your post again seems to assume that overharvest is the problem. But, again, when the problem is density, the removal of any fish allows for faster growth rates of all fish.
[quote gstott] I've seen this happen on smaller bass waters. People discover that there are some good bass in there, so they treat it like their meat locker, and then wonder what happened to the fishery. The only good part of the scenario is that people then lose interest in the fishery and stop going there. In a few years it becomes good again.[/quote]
This above example, though, is the result of overharvest. Again, if overharvest is an issue, the larger fish should be protected. But, if overharvest isn't the limiting factor, harvest of all fish sizes can help.
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