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Posts: 714
Location: Rhinelander, WI | I was going to put this in the Chip thread but thought this maybe better as a stand alone.
Have catch and release seasons ever been looked at for Musky.
For instance there is talk of having the northern musky opener in WI open with the rest of the fish but have it be catch and release only until Memorial Day weekend. I think this may have even been a CC advisory question in a few counties last year. Don’t know if it will ever fly or if it is a good idea. Gut tells me no.
However, how about a catch and release only in October and November on lakes where natural reproduction and/or big fish protection is part of the main goal.
Couple of reason I could see it working:
I would protect the fish during a part of the season where they are pretty vulnerable, especially big fish.
Those fish have already started producing eggs, they made it this long let them live another winter.
That time of year it’s mostly hard core musky nuts on the water, voluntary C&R I am sure is very prevalent. However there are still many pictures of big kept fish in the news papers that time of year. But because most sportsmen don’t give a darn about fishing in October and November it may not be that hard to pass something like this at the hearings.
I am not saying do this for every lake, only the lakes where it fits. Imagine the effect it would have on the Fox River where those fish concentrate and are really being exploited. Heck I bet even Mille Lacs could benefit by a regulation like this.
Could mean the potential release of a state or even World Record, but what’s better in the long run.
Just something more to think about.
Mike
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| Certainly wouldn't bother me at all to have a release-only portion to the season, or better yet (IMHO) is a release only license option, or even one that would not include muskies on it. Many fishermen out there who do not target muskies would buy the normal license since muskies are not THE most popular out there in the grand scheme...
Controversial?...maybe... further exploration might find it to be beneficial, but some might find it a hinderence and just another "fee" to pay...
We are a very small bunch of maniacs that love these fish, and I would bet most of us would be willing to pay a little extra for a license that would allow us to fish for them and potentially keep one even if we DON'T keep any of them to begin with. Heck...I wouldn't even mind if we had some sort of stamp (like a trout stamp...yes..I know it has been brought up before) in order to specifically fish for muskies on given bodies of water. If the extra money is used specifically for the fish, why not?
The extra monies generated by the different licensing would specifically be used for stocking purposes and replenishment/embellishment of the resource.
This could be an interesting topic...and hopefully not one that gets heated..
Steve |
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Posts: 20212
Location: oswego, il | Mike, I fished in northern wisconsin last weekend, holiday weekend. What a different time it was compared to july-sept. I must have stepped back 30 years in time from what I have been seeing out there. Nothing I seen caught but the 30 year old mentality was there. Catch and release for oct and nov? Fine by me. |
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