Sad state of affairs - scuba divers spearing big Stripers.....

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

.....in the Lower American River.

Just talked with a friend who says the scuba guys are spearing Stripers to 40 pounds in the Lower American River.



**I believe that the Federal Fish & Wildlife and California Fish & Wildlife are trying to help out the salmon fisheries by eliminating as many of the Stripers as possible.

[winxp_man]

Bill, funny part that the idiots don’t seem to understand is that stripers have been around here now since late 1800’s! The salmon were just fine. Along came water shed barriers made by man! With no way for fish to go around and the decline started! Then add in more crap like water greed, and drought and fish numbers start lookin funny!

[Tony Buzolich]

Why doesn't the Sacramento Bee jump all over this ? Spearing and killing a trophy fish is a ONE TIME thing. Most, fly fishermen on the other hand, practice catch and release, and these mature trophy fish can go on to breed and continue the population.

Another thing about killing these mature fish is their flesh is already tainted and toxic with mercury left in the rivers from years of mining a century ago. If these spear-O's want to eat fish they ought to kill younger legal size fish that haven't acquired so many toxins.

If they go on and knowingly kill these big fish, what do they do with the meat? Most likely throw it away in some dumpster.

Why not spear trash fish like carp, suckers, and squawfish that eat the eggs and fry of returning gamefish ? Why not spear salmon ? They're going to die anyway! (sarcasm)

This subject makes me sick. Tony

[Darian]

Agreed that large, speared Stripers are not likely eaten. If that proves to be the case, it'd be wasting a gamefish and illegal under the DFW code/regs. Problem is it's difficult to prove what's done with those fish after they're taken away from the river.

I have to give credit to the spear fishers association. They presented a united front to DFW when they proposed the changes to the regs.... There's no real, organized opposition to spearing Stripers in freshwater. Until that changes, we're stuck with what we have....

[amoeba]

This matter has already been studied, proposed, and decided. I for one, have no interest in politicizing a scientific and management issue. Or do you think fly fishing somehow qualifies you? It doesn't, or do you think that the general Public is so brilliant that they can decide anything they want by State initiative. Wait a minute....

[Rossflyguy]

The fact that striper have been introduced in the late 1800’s doesn’t mean they don’t impact salmon. If there’s millions of salmon when they were first introduced it would take years to slowly drop the population. It wouldn’t be an instantaneous drop in numbers. Also, our native salmon species haven’t evolved with striper. They don’t have a “defense” against striper. That’s a fact. Spear fishing is legal so no use in complaining. Personally I’d kill smaller striper but anyone taking larger fish legally isn’t against the law. Dams don’t help the salmon population but striper don’t either and they’re eating endangered springers and low number fall runs. Salmon are more important than a strip set on a striper.

[Darian]

Amoeba,.... Is there a point to your statement???

Rossflyguy,.... Your points and the opposite side have been made many times in the past with the usual back/forth, neither side resolving the issue. We're really only addressing spearfishing for Stripers in rivers and potential changes to the regs, maybe. If you're OK with spearfishing in rivers then we aren't going to agree on much.

IMO, there're some safety issues in the American River where a lot of people use the river. Over/above the Striper issue, spearfishing with a whole bunch of people around just doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

[mogaru]

Spearfishing has been happening for a while, quietly, in the american river..........it's the long arm and reach of the water hogs...........once the fish are gone there will be no reason to take as much water as needed. It's a shame for fish and gamed it's a shame, once again for the politics and politician who are raping this country. Plain and simple. There aren't any "civilized" countries in the world that allow spearfishing in the river/freshwater. Politicians and their actions are the cancer of this world.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

From talking with people like Fred Gordon and Andy Guibord who have snorkeled the river a lot it sounds like the big Stripers are not even afraid of people so spearing them would be like shooting cows in a field. Not that sporting but good for trophy pictures.


Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DqeW-BNg50

[Rossflyguy]

Water management for fish isn’t based on striper numbers. It’s based on salmon population.