Spawning Over...PERMANENTLY !!! (Caution Graphic Images) SICKENING

Night_Stalker

Night_Stalker

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The little scuds in the stream like when this happens (they get plenty to eat)…BUT...I DO NOT.

Each year I have found dead brown trout in a certain cumberland county limestone stream that is ABUSED by a certain "quarry" that purges it's toxic crap with out enforced regulation. This stream has wild trout that reproduce. Time for some additional action.

I have found deceased large male brown trout for 4 years in a row. This one was 23"...currently...maybe add an inch pre-chewed on. I have found 16.5, 24 and 24.5-inch fish. I have discovered the fish during a post spawn time period. This one has been deceased for a while. The scuds have been busy (you can see them in the belly up photo, the position as found).

I prefer live wild fish...
 
Do you only find the fish this time of year? Does the quarry only purge whatever it is purging this time of year? Just wondering if there is a true causal relationship between the two, or if fish are simply more stressed after the spawn and are more apt to succumb to death after the spawn, everywhere.
 
All these things come down to 2 basic questions:

1) What happened?

2) What should we do?



 
I will provide follow ups in the future. I have previously pursed action on this...
 
Here are a couple others. Fish were moved out of the main current or on to the bank...in case of disease or to allow mammals to have a nice meal. Heron may well have caused the death of the 24-inchers. Both heads showed structural damage ...but may have tried for a free meal and realized they could not manage a fish that large.

Take note of the water cloudiness. Springs flow gin clear but the main flow is chalk full of crud.
 

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I was wading through a pool about a month ago and found two large carcasses in the 20" range. I thought it was very unusual. I am pretty sure the spawn was over in this particular stream when this happened. I wondered if it might have been something related to spawning...(I had seen two large fish on a redd a few weeks earlier in that vicinity. It was on a limestone cr. but not in the Cumberland Valley. Coincidentally it was below a quarry.
 
What toxic materials do you think the quarry is releasing?
 
Something like 40% of trout die over the winter after spawning as a result of the use use of fat reserves in the act of spawning. the dead fish should be reported to the PA DEP for investigation as to the cause of death, and not speculated on a message board.
 
What's with the stringer?
 
BC a stringer holds fish. It was a carry over from thirty years ago as a teen. In the past I carried one...as I have said previously. I'm not into holding dead fish bare-handed so much. I do release all fish...even dead ones. These fish were moved away from main stream flows to the banks as a safety concern for the remaining population...
 
NS, I was honestly confused by it. I thought the conversation was of trout found dead then I see pictures of fish, not very deep into decay, on a stringer. Your explanation makes it clearer.

I would've just grabbed the fish or used the net.
 
Careful Chaz, you are stepping on hallowed C&R fly angler ground here. How often have I heard the comment; "I never see any dead trout," in response to pointing out the mortality of stocked trout in warm streams...the Tully as an example...and the average 60 to 65% average annual mortality rate of wild trout across the age groups from age 2 onward in Pa.? The implication being, of course, is that it can't be true or that most dead adult trout are dead because they were harvested so the evidence in the form of a carcass does not remain.

In Pennsylvania the total mortality rate in wild trout populations is primarily natural mortality, not fishing mortality, and it is probably noticed in the streams above because the fish are so large. Smaller " standard size" dead trout would mostly go unnoticed, drifting away into deeper water, hanging up under stream banks or in snags, or being relatively quickly consumed by avian predators and other wildlife. When in the pools, they quickly get covered by a fine layer of silt in many streams, making them even harder to spot. Additionally, in warmer water they would quickly decompose. That process is slower in cold water. As you point out the natural mortality will continue through the winter, which is probably the time of greatest natural mortality, but it also occurs to a lesser extent throughout the year. Let's not forget disease, predation, floods, water temps, and inter/intra species competition.
 
troutbert wrote:
What toxic materials do you think the quarry is releasing?

Rusty stringers, obviously.

Spawning is a tough time for fish. They fight, expend massive energy and I'm not surprised that more than a few die. I suspect if quarry outflow was a problem you'd find more than one dead fish a year.
 
Sounds like a waste of a resource to me....Up next, new regs at the Letort, Open to bait, fall harvest of brown trout over 14". Lets not waste those wild trouts. We can barter them for license sales!

Lets face it there are WAY more trout that die from natural causes than from harvest. We need to harvest more to be good stewards of the resource. Why are we not utilizing these wild trout? Whats wrong with the F&BC, this could be the golden ticket to keep the hatcheries open!
 

Letort's outside my jurisdiction, Mo. I can only comment wildly on it until pressed by accurate questions, then I'm afraid I will need to refer you to corporate.

 
I fished post spawn on the Missouri in Montana,which holds many large trout above the lakes and never saw a salmon like die off.Could be the scavengers got them but if numerous remains are found in a small area below a suspected source it's worth looking into..
 
Pete, et. al:
A fish kill that only affects a few larger fish and no other fish of that species does not suggest a pollution event to me, and I have been around many. Additionally, given the timing it suggests a post-spawn die-off. Additionally, note the poor condition of the fish shown on the grass as an example.
 
Mike- I've noticed from many of your comments, especially lately, that you don't seem to be a fan of Catch and Release fishing. Could you explain why you do not like C&R?

I've always been a believer in C&R and have converted many friends and family. What am I missing?

 
Also, don't forget, those big fish are also OLD fish....they don't all grow to be 30"+

And I'm also curious about the possible issue with the quarry. If there was a pollution event, I'd expect you to find many, many more carcasses than a select few old fish that probably had one last gasp during the spawn.

And Maurice, don't forget that the lower Letort is open water, so no changes to the regs need to be made...the Letort is 9.4 miles long, only 1.7 miles are under special regs. ;-)
 
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