I think this email summarizes quite nicely why NANFA issues a blanket
statement. Run a word count :) Then take every other time we've debate
this scenario, and run a word count. Holey frijoles!
In your scenario, no, I personally wouldn't have any problem with a release,
unless it's against the law in your state (another type of blanket
statement). But that's my personal feelings, and someone else might
disagree, and so I concede to the blanket statement for continuity among
many.
I personally wouldn't release a fish because I entered an ethical CONTRACT
with that fish and it's source ecosystem when I took it home. In essence, I
told that fish that I would care for it until the end of its tenure, the
best ways that I could. I had biologically killed it by removing it from
the stream, the mileage afterward will vary. To reintroduce a biological
"zombie" of sorts back into the ecosystem with some potential problems for
the "living"... Well, that may give a different perspective before I took it
home in the first place. Keeps me honest when the bucket goes back to the
van. Something to consider.
I also, personally think that seines should be sold at bait stores, not
minnows. I sport fish frequently, and I always gather my own bait from the
locality. I do this because I feel an ethical obligation to the resource to
do as little harm as possible. I don't fancy myself as any better than the
next guy... I've just read up on the subject a little more and have a
different perspective. And amazingly, the safest way with the best product
costs waaaaay less!
But again, it's just my personal feelings, and look how much extra wording
I've added to the situation... I'm a true believer in the beauty of gray.
But many cases, it's best to just issue a blanket statement.
Todd
The Muddy Maumee Madness, Toledo, OH
It's never too late to have a happy childhood.
http://www.farmertodd.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jase Roberts" <nanfa_list-in-jaseroberts.net>
To: <nanfa-l-in-nanfa.org>
Sent: Thursday, August 24, 2006 1:55 PM
Subject: Re: NANFA-L-- (Re-focus) Releasing native fish back to the wild --
EVER acceptable?
> Hi All,
>
> So to refocus a bit, here's the basic question(s):
>
> 1) We're all going to run into situations (think of a move) where the only
viable options are to release a native fish back where it was collected, or
to euthanize it. If you're dealing with exceedingly common species (think
sunfish or perch) and don't live near other native fish nuts, sending them
to live with someone else isn't practical (and may not be legal if they'd
need to cross state lines). I'm not an animal rights nut, but I don't
relish the thought of euthanizing a healthy fish simply because I can't keep
it.
>
> 2) Thus far (3 years into this hobby), I keep only natives (no aquarium
fish), and only from near my home. I also don't buy live food, other than
starter cultures which I propagate myself from that point. The point is
that there's not a serious issue of mixing in fish/equipment from the
aquarium trade (where all sorts of exotic diseases may lurk), or from widely
separated geographic areas.
>
> 3) As has been established through discussion, there is a LOT of movement
of fish and water between nearby bodies of water anyway: A) Bait dealers
capturing stock from the wild (legal here with a $20 permit)and selling to
fishermen who transport it all over, B) Recreational/fishing boats,
livewells, and landing nets being moved from lake to lake, C) Natural
processes, including connecting streams and movement of waterfowl
(especially fish-eating ones), D) Incompletely sterilized collecting
equipment, which comes in direct contact with lots of fish, and E) Probably
several other vectors which I haven't thought of
>
> 4) Given the various vectors for disease transmission given in "2)" above,
is it likely that pathogens would still be so localized as to exist in one
body of water but not another a few miles away?
>
> 5) And, finally, is catching native fish from a few local bodies of water,
keeping them communally for a time (or imperfectly separated), then
releasing them locally somehow different enough from all the other vectors
in "2)", and significant enough in terms of volume, that is presents a real
risk? Sure, the risk of disease transmission is non-zero, but is it far
enough from zero to warrant euthanizing healthy fish rather than releasing?
>
> I'm trying to approach this with an open mind -- but as Todd mentioned,
I'm the kind of person who wants to understand if the blanket declaration
"Never release native fish back to the wild" is really based on sound
science, and applies in all cases.
>
> Dave wrote, "So, I agree that we are a smaller part of the problem than
some others are. So, if a fellow only murders one person a year, while a
mobster murders many, is the first person not guilty?" If there's a *real*
risk of spreading disease by carefully releasing fish, I agree -- best not
to do it. But are pathogens so local, and is keeping/releasing local native
fish significant enough given all the other vectors in "2)", that the risk
is real?
>
> Thanks for the discussion,
> Jase
>
> Crail, Todd wrote:
> > Do what you feel is right, you guys are adults. If you're doing that...
it
> > won't matter if someone else issues a blanket statement about what
you're
> > doing. The blanket statement should be compelling in it's own regard,
if it's
> > truth. If not... Well, it's not compelling ;)
> --
> Jase Roberts
> Lewiston, Maine
> on the Androscoggin River
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