Magnificent...(darn I hate this word) Bucket Biologists

[grumpymoe]

I am going to start a topic that is controversial in nature due to the views that some anglers have in general regarding this subject......most of our states and provinces have regulations in place to stop intrusive species from invading native habitat.....a few of our so called sportsanglers figure that its their inherent right to stock waters for their personal enjoyment at the expense of others. AND brag about what a great job these bucket brigade renegades are doing for THEIR ENJOYMENT!!!..and be d_mned with everyone else....please....ever yone in the fisheries do their part however small its interpreted, to protect and enhance the future of our sport....it might not always turn out to be the right decision, but we live with that....all good intentions have the chance of leaving a bad taste after the fact....help protect our resource and future.....it sure alot better than debating after the fact about how to rid ourselves of unwanted species.....Grump

[bigredonice]

I hear ya Grump.  Bucket Biologists completely ruined the natural order of things in a number of lakes around here.  One lake lost its entire native population of lakers, walleyes and whitefish because of it...now they're all just stocked

[Tip-UpTommer]

I agree with you Grump.... this is one of the easiest ways to ruin a great fishery. one of the best examples i think is alwifes. The DEC and fishing laws are in place for a reason.

[big big rdg]

People are moving pike into some maine lakes that could ruin some great trout fisheries. It is sad to see and the people are so ignorant and have no idea what they are doing

[fishingking]

F them bucket biologist        milfoil, quaga clams, round goby's, zebra mussels, asian carp, snakeheads, water chestnut   an the 100 other ones that u done even hear about

[Kodiakman]

I hear you grump.  I'm not a big trout fan but we've had the same thing here.  Every once in a while we hear about someone dumping pike into the local trout ponds, lakes and streams.  We put so much tax dollars into our states fisheries just to have the plans backfire because some know it all decided he knew better.

[billditrite]

  well grump this is a very big problem in maine. coupled with the migratory birds and exotics just out migrating from existing ponds where they have been established. pike and black crappie seem to be the worst as far as species of fish go. to me what is worst is our states Dept of inland fisheries and wildlife doesnt seem to be able to tell us in any sure form, how to combat this or of its even possible to combat in the first place. there are many mixed views and feelings and it almost always tursn into a huge debate.

[Adrock]

I think this is a big problem for fisheries everywhere, especially for species that tend to be a little more sensitive to changes in the food chain.  But like billditrite said, how do you stop it?  Stiffer fines and penalties, or maybe a good old fashion public beating?  I don't know, but it would be nice to find a realistic solution to the problem.  Harsher penalties may discurage a few, but the dedicated bucket biologists aren't going to be deterred.

[adkRoy]

My hometown lake used to be awesome for catching pan fish. You could fill a 5 gallon bucket with perch by just jigging for a couple of hours. Then someone introduced pickerel into our lake and the perch and bluegills just about got decimated. you are lucky if you can catch 5 perch jigging in our lake now.  At least in our case DEC did find out who did it and the person was fined $30,000 (this was 15 years ago).

[grumpymoe]

thanks for the input all.....what suprises me, is that some of the pro bucket supporters have stayed away from this thread.....Grump...the n again....maybe not

[grumpymoe]

I think I heard they got some of them bucket biologists out in COLORADO too.    Anyway, here in NY they caused some big problems up in the Adirondacks mountains when the jerk or jerks put bass into some of the brook trout lakes and wiped out the population the "Little Tupper" strain of brookies in those waters.  Much of it was timed with the purchase of those lakes by the state from a private estate so it seemed intentional which is even worse and not just your basic jerk but a super jerk, if there is such a term. 

....thanks for jostling my memory Slipbob....I forgot about that part of the country...we've run into them here as well.....mostly winterkill prone small lakes that have had unsuccessful trout stockings without winter aeration......restocke d by the fisheries with other species....usually walleye/perch.....then some idiot comes along and dumps northerns into the mix....once that is done....its pretty much guaranteed that the predominant specie will always be pike......but the perch and walleye population takes a serious kick....one lake in particular, is stocked with fry to the tune of 2,000,000 to 3,000,000 a year.....expected survival to mature size fish, is about 2-3 per 100,000....not very good.....thanks for the reminder....Grump

[bigfish1556]

I agree with most here - leave the bucket brigades to the farm ponds with no outlets running into neighboring waterways (private manipulations on private waters).  Enjoy what nature (or the natural resource agencies have provided in mitigation) has provided in our public waterways, and if a certain lake doesn't float your boat, screw it, fish SOMEWHERE ELSE that naturally hosts your target species. We have enough problems with non-native introductions without our fellow fisheridiots contributing to the issue.  Hasn't really been tackled on this thread that I noticed, but keep an eye on where you use certain bait species as well.....all it takes it two from a bucket, they know how to do the rest.  Just takes a little common sense and a tiny bit of environmental compassion.

[trapperdirk]

Well make sure you don't forget now Grump.  Remember there are no PB there.  You know what PB are by now don't you

How could we forget slipbob after its been pounded into us that they don't exist in that state . LOL

Right now a huge concern is the round gobie as it is making its way through our southern waterways and were real concerned up here that some nutcase out of spite or just plain dumb is going to release them in our lakes here . I still remember when our local lakes held no rockbass and now any of the easy access ones do and its my belief that they are hard on our walleye pops and smallmouth pops too . I wonder if they would fall under the PB category or not but we give them to the gulls and fox as a rule regardless .

                         TD

[Barleydog]

Bucket Biologists!  HAHAHAHA   Man what a hoot!  Seriously, man would it be nice if those bucketheads at AKF&G would plant some walleye in a couple local lakes.  I mean come on!  Help a midwest boy at heart out a little.  Maybe it's because AKF&G found out there's a lack of pelagic fish in our lakes.

[JigAwhopper]

Snakehead anyone?   you can kiss your Potomac river goodbye.  I read somewhere that some guy snagged over 200 of them at one time,  so they've established themseves there  for good there.  Good thing Piranias don't survive winters or we would have to swim at our own risk eventually.           J

[wyogator]

Here out west, the Brook Stickleback minnow is causing a lot of trouble. I know that in Wyoming, if you catch a Stickleback, you are required by law to kill it. I don't think they are legal here in Montana either, but I don't think you actually have to kill them. Anyway, I went to the local bait shop for some minnows and, out on the lake, noticed that half of the minnows were Sticklebacks!. So, we need to watch what we uses for bait too, and make sure the bait doesn't get loose in the lake. You never know; that minnow you caught in your trap could be a baby Snakehead.

[TJC]

Bucket Biologist are bad enough but the snakeheads arent even from buckets. These fish are usually pets that got to big and let loose into the wild. They get to be big and will eat everything in sight, they can walk on land and breed like rabbit. Also I have seen goldfish and koi in some lakes and ponds by me, they might be related to carp but they still are still non native fish that can ruin a good fishery.