Msa's Blue Ribbon Panel Update

[Gary Lange]

I want you as part of the organization in any capacity you can be. I told you that a Kansas Smallmouth Alliance would be a good idea and I believe that it would be. One persons voice by itself will not be heard but 100 people or more will be listened to. Our strength is in dedication and numbers. If enough of us want Catch and Release only together we have a better chance of getting it then standing alone.

Now my wife is calling someone rescue me from Spring Cleaning!!!!!!!!!!!

[drew03cmc]

Gary, tell her the garage needs cleaned and that you have to take the fly rods to the river to be able to do that Who knows, it might work.

[hank franklin]

I can't speak for Dan, but I'm sure that those who keep them are being given equal consideration, as they should. Regulations can benefit them too once the fish gain the new length requirement. Theoretically there will be just as many fish, only the average will be larger.

Something not often mentioned, in regard to increased creel size, is that there's also the added benefit of increasing the spawning group which can speed population recovery after negative environmental events.

My point is if MDC implies that there's significant support for 12/6, I'd like to know who they are. I know people up and down the river (landowners, clubhouse / jet boater types, farmers and your more conservation oriented guys) and nobody I know would quibble with 15/3. It's very reasonable.

[Wayne SW/MO]

I'm sure they are few and far between hank, but I've lived in this state long enough to know there are those who would quibble about 10/20!

[fishgypsy]

Andy-

Why wouldn't a 15 MLL benefit the neosho strain? I understand they're genetically distinct, but in their biology or life history indicates that they would suffer from the 15" MLL?

If they're very old fish at 15 inches, what makes you think they're going to make it to 18"? If MDC is 100% against adopting the 18" rule, what's the point in continuing in advocating for it?

I guess if it were up to me, and I had the option to protect 50% of the population with a 12" MLL, 90% of the population with a 15" MLL, or 100% of the population with a 18"MLL with no chance of getting adopted...I'd have to get behind the 15"MLL.

And if a 15" neosho is a trophy, wouldn't a 15" MLL on them be analogous to the 18" trophy regulations on the nominal smallie strain?

Are you opposed to the 15" MLL rule because it won't work for the fishery, or because you don't like the idea of blanket regs?

[eric1978]

Gary, we have spoken and you know where I stand.

Well I have no idea where you stand. To be perfectly honest Andy, you make absolutely no sense to me. I think you need to galvanize your position or something. You're for regs? You're against regs? You're for regs but you're against MDC? You're for protection but you're against MSA? You C&R but you don't want C&R? They rarely grow over 15" but a 15" MLL won't help? I'm baffled.

What regs would you like to see for your home streams? If you say none, fine, but then you have to stop whining that no one pays attention to your part of the state. If you say you would like SOME kind of tighter regs, then a statewide 15/3 would be a good start, no? Sounds like you want your cake and you wanna bitch about it, too.

[Wayne SW/MO]

Here's one for you Andy.

"Research done at Oklahoma State University found that the native smallmouth in northeast Oklahoma, in the foothills of the Ozarks, are a little bit different genetically than smallmouth native to southeast Oklahoma, in the Ouachita Mountains," Gilliland said. "And both of those groups are different from smallmouth bass in other parts of Oklahoma and Missouri."

I thought you would like that one.

While I have your attention what leads you to believe that the Neosho doesn't grow as large as other native, stream smallmouth.?

[Gary Lange]

Gary, tell her the garage needs cleaned and that you have to take the fly rods to the river to be able to do that Who knows, it might work.

She made me help her do that Spring Cleaning thing then suckered me into making Pizza for Supper tonight. She is a sly little fox that girl! :rolleyes:

[fozzie.]

She made me help her do that Spring Cleaning thing then suckered me into making Pizza for Supper tonight. She is a sly little fox that girl! :rolleyes:

Looks better and more productive than what's been going on here....

[Al Agnew]

Geez, guys, I agree...just where the heck DO you stand in regards to regs for SWMO?

Look, in an ideal world, EVERY section of every stream would have the regs that are optimum for that section. I'd be all for that. In fact, that's kind of what I proposed a while back, but others didn't agree, probably rightly, because it was seen as far too complicated for anglers to learn and agents to enforce. Like it or not, blanket regs with limited exceptions are ALWAYS going to be more appealing to the powers that be at MDC. That's reality. The Neosho smallie streams in that case would have to be some of the exceptions--in other words, special management areas. I have no problem with that. In fact, I'd certainly like to see special management areas on more SWMO streams. Did we make a mistake in not proposing them to MDC? Maybe. And if so, perhaps it's not too late to do so. Since we have some credibility with MDC and the regulations committee, I don't think it would be a big problem to broach the subject to them by correspondence.

But like the others, I don't see the rationale behind opposing blanket regs in the meantime. Nor do I see ANYBODY bashing your wishes to preserve Neoshos. Sorry to shout, but JUST WHAT THE HECK DO YOU HAVE AGAINST THE 15/3 IDEA? And other than Chief not being able to post on the website without being a member, what the heck do you have against the SMA? And...just how do you propose to get anything done about your passion? Start your own organization? I'll be one of the first to join. But it makes absolutely no sense to me to attack the ONE existing organization in this state which stands to have your best interests in mind...if you'll just air them.