Chaz
Active member
- Joined
- Sep 13, 2006
- Messages
- 8,451
Here is a quote from the study;
“For instance, during the spring study period for stocked streams, the study data indicates anglers caught 6.7 million trout. This catch figure is 1.5 times the number of trout stocked in these same waters. A portion of the additional catch rate can be attributed to the presence of some wild or ‘holdover’ stocked trout. The fact that nearly two-thirds of caught fish were ‘recycled’ by being returned to the water is an even more significant contributor to the high catch rates we documented.”
I don't think it is recycling at all, I believe they are catching more fish than were stocked because they are catching and harvesting wild fish during the early part of the season. There may be some anglers who fish the stocked streams that care about the difference, but the majority don't, all they care about is limiting out. That's all many of the Joe Wormdunker's talk about. Pine Creek is a good example of this, it is heavily stocked and has a good seasonal population of wild trout in it until mid-June most years. After a long winter in the big creek trout are hungry and hit just about anything that looks good to them. It is only later in the year they start keying in on flies.
“For instance, during the spring study period for stocked streams, the study data indicates anglers caught 6.7 million trout. This catch figure is 1.5 times the number of trout stocked in these same waters. A portion of the additional catch rate can be attributed to the presence of some wild or ‘holdover’ stocked trout. The fact that nearly two-thirds of caught fish were ‘recycled’ by being returned to the water is an even more significant contributor to the high catch rates we documented.”
I don't think it is recycling at all, I believe they are catching more fish than were stocked because they are catching and harvesting wild fish during the early part of the season. There may be some anglers who fish the stocked streams that care about the difference, but the majority don't, all they care about is limiting out. That's all many of the Joe Wormdunker's talk about. Pine Creek is a good example of this, it is heavily stocked and has a good seasonal population of wild trout in it until mid-June most years. After a long winter in the big creek trout are hungry and hit just about anything that looks good to them. It is only later in the year they start keying in on flies.