Is This A Good Thing Or A Bad Thing?

[ghost]

Smallmouth bass, pike and walleye are invasive species:

 

 

http://www.grindtv.com/wildlife/voracious-predators-threaten-colorado-river-basins-endangered-native-fish/#r7ypaxy37QCWYmLS.97

[Bluebasser86]

Sounds bad to me. Kill off a bunch popular sportfish for some minnows?? 

[BASSPATROL247]

Hmmmmm..not sure how i,feel?

[Montanaro]

Protecting our resources is a good thing. They don't belong and are driving unique species out. Plenty of other smallies and northerns to catch elsewhere.

[Bluebasser86]

Protecting our resources is a good thing. They don't belong and are driving unique species out. Plenty of other smallies and northerns to catch elsewhere.

Agreed, but they're established over a few decades now. Seems like it's probably a little too little too late at this point. I'd think you'd be better off trying to improve habitat for the native species and continue with supplemental stocking of them to try to improve their populations while loosening restrictions on the predator species. 

[Lund Explorer]

Yup, those are all invasive species in that river system.  It doesn't matter if they are the "popular" fish, unless it would also be okay with you when your neighbors who like Koi to illegally plant them in your favorite lake.

[Bluebasser86]

Yup, those are all invasive species in that river system.  It doesn't matter if they are the "popular" fish, unless it would also be okay with you when your neighbors who like Koi to illegally plant them in your favorite lake.

Happens all the time, the bass and flathead love them and they're very sought after (and easily seen), by bowfishermen

[Lund Explorer]

Happens all the time, the bass and flathead love them and they're very sought after (and easily seen), by bowfishermen

 

Does that mean that you are okay with people dumping any fish they want into lakes or rivers?

 

The question in the original post is whether those fish were invasive.  The truth is that they are, no matter who much that truth hurts.

[Bluebasser86]

Does that mean that you are okay with people dumping any fish they want into lakes or rivers?

 

The question in the original post is whether those fish were invasive.  The truth is that they are, no matter who much that truth hurts.

No, not at all, just trying to insert a bit of humor before this topic flames out as it inevitably will. In this instance they're dealing with a very established and thriving population of 4 different species of predator fish. I'm thinking saying they'll be fighting an uphill battle would be an understatement. 

[Logan S]

Once a fish speices, or 3 in this case, become established in a large body of water it's pretty much impossible to get rid of them.  The only methods that would truely eradicate them would also (most likely) kill everything else.  I'm not a supporter of 'bucket-biologists' dumping fish into lakes/rivers...But invasive or not, they aren't going anywhere now.

 

I've seen it firsthand in my home waters of the Potomac River with Snakeheads...and now Blue Cats.  

[flyfisher]

 

Once a fish speices, or 3 in this case, become established in a large body of water it's pretty much impossible to get rid of them.  The only methods that would truely eradicate them would also (most likely) kill everything else.  I'm not a supporter of 'bucket-biologists' dumping fish into lakes/rivers...But invasive or not, they aren't going anywhere now.

 

I've seen it firsthand in my home waters of the Potomac River with Snakeheads...and now Blue Cats.  

 

I thought blue and flathead catfish were actually stocked by the DGIF at one point to increase the available sport fish to the fisherman but i could be wrong.  I am pretty sure at least for flatheads it was the case in the James as I know a lot of smallmouth anglers aren't to happy because the flatheads really like to eat young smallmouth 

[Logan S]

I thought blue and flathead catfish were actually stocked by the DGIF at one point to increase the available sport fish to the fisherman but i could be wrong.  I am pretty sure at least for flatheads it was the case in the James as I know a lot of smallmouth anglers aren't to happy because the flatheads really like to eat young smallmouth 

They might have been, I don't know the origin...I just know that they are not happy with them in the river now.  It wouldn't surprise me if DNR/DGIF introduced them only to regret it.  It could have also been that they did that on the James but not the Potomac.  

 

This is off topic so I'll just say one more thing about it.  I wish MD and VA would spend more time explaining other issues with the Potomac and quit with the impossible battles...Snakeheads and Blue Cats didn't kill off 90% of the grass in the river, but nobody in an official position wants to comment on that.   

[Master Bait'r]

Agreed, but they're established over a few decades now. Seems like it's probably a little too little too late at this point. I'd think you'd be better off trying to improve habitat for the native species and continue with supplemental stocking of them to try to improve their populations while loosening restrictions on the predator species. 

 

 

 

Let's be honest, that is way too level headed for any of our DNRs to think of.  Besides, there's overtime to be had!  

[WIGuide]

Not sure how I feel about it. I love bass fishing, but if they're invasive to the area then maybe they should be removed. Like blue said though, it's going to be an uphill battle to do that. 

[flyfisher]

I think the DNR does as good a job as they can given the limited manpower and resources available to them.  WE are all quick to judge a situation we deem as bad but neglect the others that are doing well.  

[WRB]

Sounds like California DFW who considers everything ever introduced to our waterways as invasive fish.

All fresh water bass species are non- native fish in CA.

Tom

[stkbassn]

So if the razorback sucker disappears, who loses? I've never seen any baits specifically targeted or marketed for these fish so they can't help the economy....is there a razorback sucker circuit ? I won't ask about clubs because there's a club for just about anything.... We can't save everything!! What are the benefits to saving all of those species that I've never even heard mentioned before now?  I'm not saying they aren't important or because I've never heard of them that they aren't...I just want to hear about what makes them so important and the sportfish that we covet so unimportant in that particular place....

[Abuss55]

I have to admit here in St. Louis we are having to deal with an extremely invasive species, the asian carp. Even with all of the efforts that have been attempted to stop and take them out it becomes more evident every day that this is something that either we would have to get every person out there with trolling nets and bows for years to maybe make a dent, or do what we can to try and keep their numbers in check and live with it. Quite a different scenario for their reproductive and growth rates are rediculous but if figured i could give some input on my experience with invasive species.

[CoBass]

Protecting our resources is a good thing. They don't belong and are driving unique species out. Plenty of other smallies and northerns to catch elsewhere.

I live in Colorado and the article is a little misleading to say the least. The fish were not illegally stocked, they were stocked by the dnr in reservoirs upstream and they escaped into the river system. They have been electro-shocking the Yampa river for more than ten years and killing every smallie and pike they catch. They have also been stocking the native species during that time and the populations still are not increasing.

 

The other thing the article doesn't mention is that smallies and pike are not the only non-native predators in the river, they are just the only species that are being targeted for extermination. Rainbow and brown trout are also non-native species, but they don't kill them because people come to Colorado to specifically fish for trout. Granted, the smallies and pike share more habitat with the native species than the trout do but if they truly wanted to restore the native populations, they would remove all non-native predators.

 

The whole project is pretty much useless unless they plan on shocking the river until the end of time. There is no way they are going to remove every single smallie and pike from that river system, and as soon as they stop shocking, the populations will go back to their previous levels. In the mean time, all they have accomplished is to ruin what was the premier smallie and pike fishery in the state.

[CoBass]

So if the razorback sucker disappears, who loses? I've never seen any baits specifically targeted or marketed for these fish so they can't help the economy....is there a razorback sucker circuit ? I won't ask about clubs because there's a club for just about anything.... We can't save everything!! What are the benefits to saving all of those species that I've never even heard mentioned before now?  I'm not saying they aren't important or because I've never heard of them that they aren't...I just want to hear about what makes them so important and the sportfish that we covet so unimportant in that particular place....

While I would much rather see habitat restoration and aggressive stocking used to save these fish instead of killing off as many smallies and pike as possible, the Colorado pikeminnow is the largest member of the minnow family in North America and can reach lengths of six feet, weighing more than 100 lbs. They can be caught by rod and reel too. I would love to catch a fish like that, but not at the expense of sport fish that were legally stocked in the first place.

 

For all of the money they have spent in a futile attempt to remove the non-native species, they could have stocked millions of these fish back into the river as well as creating more areas that meet their habitat needs.