Comments on: Cooperative Solutions Needed to Save Our Native Fish
By Craig moore on 12-18-10
Seems removal of macks will create greater predation opportunities for non-native bass, perch, walleye, and northern pike that are in the greater Flathead drainage system.
Now can someone succinctly and cogently argue, without the emotional appeal, the value of one species over another in a changing dynamic environment? For example why is a cutthroat deserving of greater respect than a rainbow which is more sustainable and survivable under a wider range of environmental conditions?
By Lucky on 12-18-10
I don’t know about succinct and cogent, and I certainly can’t argue for native fish without emotion, but I would certainly argue against having the exact same fishery everywhere across the nation. Rainbows are by their nature mongrels. The original genetics of the species have long been lost. They have been bred to survive in warmer, more polluted and more sediment-laden waters than our natives. Two billion rainbows are stocked in this country every year and they out-compete native fish. I like rainbows. They are easy to catch and good fighters, but they are not Flathead fish and as such they don’t get my respect in Flathead waters.
Our native fish evolved here. Their genetics are a product of this habitat. They require clean, cold water and alert us when we are losing that. I do respect fish that are genetically tailored to thrive in our local waters. I can catch rainbows, lake trout and bass in just about any water across the country where I toss a fly. That is not true of westslope cutthroat trout. They have a narrow range that is shrinking daily. We are in danger of losing local populations of native fish. There is no danger that we will lose cross-bred rainbow trout.
Invasive fish like rainbows, lake trout and perch are here to stay. Mostly they are here because of our actions. We will never get rid of those invaders and we will be able to fish for them here forever. They are not in danger. Our native fish are in danger due to our actions. Our laws, as well as our conscience demands that we do what we can to help them survive. I don’t want to have a WalMart fishery in the Flathead that looks just like every other fishery in the west. I don’t want to tell my grandchildren that we used to have native fish in the Flathead.
By Craig moore on 12-18-10
Lucky, my experience with kids is that if given a choice they will choose to catch a 5 pounder over an 8 incher and won’t care if the 5 pounder is native or not.
By Lucky on 12-19-10
In my experience, kids don’t care what kind of fish or what size they are catching as long as they are catching fish. Why can’t some of those larger fish be native bull trout or cutthroat? There used to be 5-pound cutthroat in the Flathead. There were 20-pound bull trout in the Flathead River. They are gone because we didn’t care enough about the fish we catch.
When Lewis and Clark crossed the Rocky Mountains, there were native bull trout in the Flathead River. In 1862, when gold was discovered in Alder Gulch, there were bull trout in the Flathead River. In 1866, when Nelson Story herded 1,000 head of Texas longhorns up the Bozeman Trail to Montana, there were bull trout in the Flathead River. In 1881 when Marcus Daily bought a small silver claim in Butte, there were bull trout in the Flathead River. There is still a small endangered population of bull trout in the Flathead. Do you want to be the one to tell those children that we didn’t try to save those native Montana fish because it was inconvenient or because we didn’t care?
By Craig moore on 12-19-10
Lucky, what is a child’s point of reference and understanding to ask such a question?
The views expressed in the comments section do not reflect those of the Beacon.