Would you eat a pot bellied female bass full of eggs in the spring?

[Tin]

The answer to the rhetorical question posed in the thread title should be, "No."

Why? As long as its a legal fish I see nothing wrong with keeping and eating it if thats what the person chooses to do

Me either, if your pregnant wife is craving bass and pestering you to catch one for her, or if the economy has left you homeless and starving. I see no problem with catching and eating a fish in one of the spawn phases...

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

The answer to the rhetorical question posed in the thread title should be, "No."

Why? As long as its a legal fish I see nothing wrong with keeping and eating it if thats what the person chooses to do

I'd rather educate him, or buy him a big mac in trade for the fish

[ROCbass]

The answer to the rhetorical question posed in the thread title should be, "No."

Why? As long as its a legal fish I see nothing wrong with keeping and eating it if thats what the person chooses to do

If you answered, "Yes, " then the second half of the question doesn't apply to you, and there is no need to answer the thread. Read th initial post again, and you'll see what the OP is getting at. I never said anything about whether it was right or wrong for you to keep and eat bass, as you said, its legal.

Legal issues and moral issues are two different things. The assumption is, that if your answer to the title is, "Yes, " then there is no need to explain bed fishing, since you'll keep and eat those as well. As its legal. The OP is referring to a bigger moral question, and possibly trolling in the meantime.

Gotcha. I understood the point you were trying to make, but this particular part of your post that I was questioning seemed as though you were making a moral judgment and stating it as a universal truth the first time I read it.

[J Francho]

Its all in the context (or out of, LOL).  

No problem shaner, if you read higher up, I made my point earlier: http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1236212631/38#38.

[Grey Wolf]

You sure like to stir the pot.      (Jigman)

[Eddie Munster]

I spoke with the management company that runs our HOA after they ran the last survey of our subdivision lake and they said harvest away on the small to medium size ones. In fact, after I told him that I wouldn't eat fish out of the lake that may have people's septic fields draining into it, he said 'then just dispose of them.'

So for my lake, it's more advantageous if the fry gets eaten a little more.

[retiredbosn]

In order to effectivenly answer the question if bed fishing is additive to the mortality rate of the bass, you would need a long term study on similar fisheries, a control group where no fishing was allowed and then compare the results. The same thing that is done when hunting is considered, many places close the late season saying that it may be additive to the mortality rate of the specie, however at the conclusion of a 7 year study the late season had no additive affect on recruitment of young birds or overall population. I live in a state that has no fishing seasons, a fishing season on a fish is a foreign concept to me.

That said how could taking a guarded male off of a bed create an additive effect on the population of the fish population. The same bass that guards the eggs eats the fry, speaking of bass which is what this discussion is about. If you want to help the bass population curb the bluegill population, then if you do that you remove a necessary food from the chain that the bass later depend on. The reasoning that catching a or several bass during the spawn will have a negative impact on the fishery is short sighted and doesn't take into account of the mortality rate of the fishery to begin with. Example: grouse, rabbits and many prey animals suffer a 70% mortaliiy rate annually hunted or not. What is the base line for bass, how many eggs actually hatch, of those that hatch how many survive more than 6 months, a year, 2 years etc. Here is an article examining these questions, basically when the hatch was good bass fry represented 68% of adult and juvenille bass diet (cannibalism). The number of adult males may result in more eggs being hatched but will also result in more fry being eaten. This part of the life cycle is still being researched and the opinions vary, however at the present time from what I can gather it seems that catching a bass of a bed and releasing it doesn't hurt the fishery, neither will not catching a fish of the bed. It isn't the number of eggs that hatch that produces an increase in population of bass rather the successful recruitment of the fry once they hatch.

Forgot to put the link in for the article http://www.yale.edu/post_lab/pdfs/post%20et%20al%201998%20(CJFAS).pdf

[Redhed]

i dont make a habit out of doing it. esp is its a really nice size girl ill let her go. however on occasion i do keep one and i fry the eggs up.. its good stuff.

[rickster]

If the female is still on the nest, they are weak from not eating so I will give em a break and fish for something else until they move off the nest

[UrbanRedneck]

I wouldnt kill a big fish but I have not problem taking a 2-3 pound female full of eggs and eating her.  I like to take the egg sacks out carefully so you dont tear the skein, then just drop them in hot oil.  Try it you might like it.

[Gatorbassman]

I wouldnt kill a big fish but I have not problem taking a 2-3 pound female full of eggs and eating her. I like to take the egg sacks out carefully so you dont tear the skein, then just drop them in hot oil. Try it you might like it.

I prefer mine poached.  

[Triton21]

I prefer mine poached.

[zaraspook_dylan2]

This post makes me mad... NO WAY! That is just WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

> > :'(

i agree its just WRONG

[tyrius.]

I like to take the egg sacks out carefully so you dont tear the skein, then just drop them in hot oil. Try it you might like it.

You cook them in a deep fryer? Is that the only way to cook them?

I've never even heard of eating the eggs. The idea intrigues me a bit though as I like to try new foods.

[502largemouth]

I think if I am not mistaken, that here in Ky last year, the water was waaaaaaaaaaaay up at the begining of the spawn and sometime during the spawn went back down.

To me that would mean exposing some of the nests and ruining a good portion of the hatch.

Im no marine biologist but that makes sense to me.

But in answer to the question posed, no I would not and I do not think that removing a male always negatively affects the guarding of the fry.

Just last year at a small pond, we saw a large group of fry and my buddy Jude ran his spinner bait right into the heart of them and got bit by a decent sized male that was guarding them.

He threw it back in and we watched it swim right back over to where the fry were, which tells me they are fully capable of going back and guarding the fry after being caught.

I am sure that every situation isnt going to be like that one but, what if........

And I do not eat bass unless its a striper. If I wanna fish for something to eat I am gonna nail me some crappie. mmmmm

I wont mess with carp or cats....yuck, the dumpsters of the lake IMO.

To each his own tho.

Cyas,

D

[UrbanRedneck]

I like to take the egg sacks out carefully so you dont tear the skein, then just drop them in hot oil. Try it you might like it.

You cook them in a deep fryer? Is that the only way to cook them?

I've never even heard of eating the eggs. The idea intrigues me a bit though as I like to try new foods.

Yeah, just drop them in a deep fryer.  Only takes like a minute and you really dont want to do this with a bass over 3 pounds.  Crappie and bluegill eggs are even better.  Years ago a roomate showed me how to do it and at first I was like "no way am I eating those eggs, that gross".  But he convinced me to do it and I really like it.

[bigmountaineer]

Only she was injured during the retrieval and it was gonna die either way. I catch and release all.

[Fish Chris]

Ehhh....

So many people are always so much more concerned about a "trophy sized" bass > full of eggs < than they are, about a trophy sized bass, after the spawn.

But IMPO, that trophy sized bass herself, is SOOO much more valuable than all the ggs in her belly combined. Sure, their is a 'chance' that 1 egg out of all of those thousands 'might' get to be a big as her someday..... but then 1 of those eggs might never produce a bass that big too.

The only "for sure thing" you will ever have, is the one trophy sized bass that > has already beat incredible odds to get to be as big as she has.

Anyway, anytime you kill a big bass, it's always "before the spawn". The only question is, whether it's 1 month before the spawn or 11 months..... or 23.... or 35......

Oh.... but would I eat a pot bellied sow ?

Sure if;

1) I was really hungry,

2) I liked the taste of bass.

I just enjoy catrching them more..... and a Carl's Jr. fish sandwich will always suffice ;-)

Peace,

Fish

[fourbizz]

About time you resurfaced!

Been busy with the truck eh? ;D

[Fish Chris]

Yea'.... all sucked into the truck thing...

Good to be back though :-)

Hey, just one thing I wanted to add to this thread though;

If a guy want's to hurt his own fishing for trophy sized fish, while I help to keep mine good, be my guest. Seems kind of odd to me, but hey, their are guys who hang themselves from fish hooks, and lay on beds of nails. Who am I to stop them ?

The bottom line is, it would be exceedingly rare for somebody here to hurt "my trophy bass fishing", as the vast majority of the anglers here are all fishing different waters anyway.

Don't release a big bass for me..... Do it for yourself. Or not. Probably won't have a direct effect on me either way.

Peace,

Fish

[J Francho]

I like to take the egg sacks out carefully so you dont tear the skein, then just drop them in hot oil.  Try it you might like it.

You cook them in a deep fryer?  Is that the only way to cook them?

I've never even heard of eating the eggs.  The idea intrigues me a bit though as I like to try new foods.

Skein from yellow perch is very good.  Just cut it cross ways into little disks, roll them in egg then flour and pan fry in a little vegetable oil.  Make a sour cream and chive dipping sauce.  This was a great treat when I was younger.

[J Francho]

But IMPO, that trophy sized bass herself, is SOOO much more valuable than all the ggs in her belly combined.

This is SOOOOO true.  That fish is here and now, and will only get bigger.

[Fish Chris]

Hey J F, my Mother is from the deep South, and so of course she would fry (along with the rest of the fish) the egg sacs of Bluegills. I ate them a few times.... but to the best of my memory they were..... uhhh.... fishy ;-)  LOL

I'll stick to Carl's Jr fish sandwiches :-)

But then again, fresh fried fish eggs would HAVE to be better than those fish they bury in the ground for 3 or 4 months until they get good and rip ! Yikes ! You ever see that on the Discovery channel ? They say its real good.... unless you do it wrong.... then their is a good chance you will get sick and die......

.....then the old Eskimo guy says he doesn't like to get close to his wife for several days after she's been eating the stuff   ;D ;D

Uhhhh... Pass.

Peace,

Fish

[Bob Lusk]

I was asked to chime in on this topic, so here goes.

Strictly answering the question....I think about several things, in this order.

Morally...if that bass were larger than 2 1/2 pounds, I wouldn't eat it. I would release it. Large fish have large ways and carry the genes of large fish. They are a proven commodity and deserve to live longer.

Ethically...sight fishing is sometimes the only way some people stand a chance to catch big fish predictably.

Biologically...you can eat every bass you catch off a nest and it won't make a difference about reproduction. Remember this, each pair of fish is just trying to replace themselves when they spawn. It's a physical improbability to catch every bass off every nest in any given body of water. If one pair of bass successfully reproduces, there's enough young of the year to replenish an entire system. Keep in mind that most public lakes carry as little as 25 pounds of bass per acre and some carry as much as 60, maybe 70 pounds of bass per acre. That's not many fish. One spawn from an 8 pound female could statistically yield 30,000 baby bass, enough to restock 600 acres of water from scratch.

Here's my bottom line about this question. Biologically, the answer is it makes no difference about reproduction. The biggest biological difference is the time, effort and food chain a big fish needed to grow to larger sizes.

The answer, in my book, is ethical and moral, rather than biological. That makes the answers controversial and lends to such a fun thread as this.

My answer is simple. If that fish were smaller than 2.5 pounds, I would be pleased to eat it.

[Spanky SC]

As my Dad said, if your lucky enough to afford to fish for fun and not food, let em go for others to enjoy catching and if need be, eat with their family.

I am blessed enough that I can let them go and purchase fish for dinner if need be . I can understand if it means food on the table for some and this is becoming more common. We all pay for a license, it's up to you what you keep and how you fish as long as it is legal.