Rainbows in Yellowstone

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Fishidiot

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We've discussed at length rainbows in Big Spring and non-native fishes across PA. The National Park Service is taking a harder line against bows out West, in particular, the Lamar watershed in YNP

Yellowstone Rainbows
 
they originated these plans out West and have had limited success.

cutts have a much more restricted range than brookies, and also the two striped species are very similar and interbreed - whereas bows and brookies don't and don't hold in the same type of water.

I see what their trying to do and I appreciate it, but its a moral dilemma for many - especially in this case cos likely a fall in bows would result in a rise in eastslope cutts.

tough call. i plan to visit in 2015 too. not sure what i'll do.
 
Tough to instruct anglers to "kill" fish.
 
Not really, just throw it up on the bank. My guess if Asian carp moved into the Yellowstone anglers wouldn't hesitate to kill them. However it's the romantic trout so everyone feels conflicted.

Laws like this exist in Washington with non-wild steelhead with success.
 
o/t: I'm still wondering where my Illinois River-sourced Asian carp patties and fish sticks are in the frozen food case.

I keep hearing this line that Americans won't eat bighead carp or grass carp. I'd like to at least have the option of trying it.

 
It isn't hard to do in several of the Yellowstone drainages because they could eliminate all invasives above the high falls on the Firehole, Gibbon and some of the other rivers. I was just out in Yellowstone and didn't catch a single native, shame on the dopes that stocked all those invasives.
Not a single river grayling exists anymore within the park.
I seriously doubt the doom and gloom that some say will ruin the fishing in the park. The Yellowstone Cutthoart is threatened, and the grayling doesn't exist in the parks rivers, only in 3 lakes. It may take a good marketing plan, but the cutthroat evolved there and grew quite large.
 
Many fishermen who live out West and near Yellowstone disagree with the NPS' plans.

http://chiwulff.com/2013/10/14/another-installment-in-the-wild-vs-native-debate-protecting-yellowstones-wild-trout/


 
So what is the point Carter Andrews is making? He contradicts himself and makes circular arguments.

Would we be having this same discussion if we were talking about Asian carp or Snakehead?
 
People in the indusrty can be clouded by their own self interest. That said, it would be nearly impossible to eliminate these evasive species now they have been introduced. It's very hard to convince people this could be a benefit to the enviroment etc...when it is preceived this limits their fishing and or catching opportunities.
 
I was out there this summer. The instruction to kill bows in the Lamar drainage seems like mostly a non-issue for me, because the NPS says that if it has a red throat slash, it's a cutt and you should put it back. I've caught a fair number of cutt-bow hybrids in the lower end of Soda Butte (for example) over the years, some of which looked basically just like rainbows, but never one I can recall without that slash.
 
nimrod wrote:
Many fishermen who live out West and near Yellowstone disagree with the NPS' plans.

http://chiwulff.com/2013/10/14/another-installment-in-the-wild-vs-native-debate-protecting-yellowstones-wild-trout/
Yes it is controversial, but the Park belongs to all citizens, not just a few anglers and guide who live near there. I'd suspect the guides are behind local opposition, there are behind oppoision at Big Spring too.
 
i'd suggest a compromise then - small scale experiments in typical areas, and waiting until we have the science that says cutts and gray ladies can exist and thrive there.

otherwise the whole thing is a giant waste of time.

i'd obviously prefer to catch native fish, but not at the expense of a failed attempt resulting in barren water.

and btw sea lampreys are mauling laker populations in lake champlain - maybe they should just introduce sea lampreys in Yellowstone to keep the lakers down...
 
"Reluctant anglers drafted in war on fish"

Interesting title. :-o

Not surprising, though. It's from News Corp.

Their roots are in tabloid journalism and they're sticking to their roots.
 
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