James River Report

[Sam]

White bass conservation takes care of itself for me - I throw back any white bass over about 14". I've tried all the suggested treatments - cutting off the red meat, soaking filets overnight in salt water, beer, whatever. Nope, we're spoiled by too many mild crappie and walleye filets - big white bass are just too strong-tasting, fishy, and oily for us, but the small ones are OK.

That practice works out good for the fishery, too. The biggest ones (that'll come upstream later) are the brood sows. I love to get ahold of those 19"-20", 4 lb. monsters out in the current - they put up a great fight and they'll take me around the boat a couple of times with light tackle. Those alone carry plenty of eggs to populate the whole lake, and I'm not eating them anyway.

Heading for Galena today!

[Tightline]

Good posts Dutch and Sam, I agree 100 percent.I don't care if its White Bass, Walleye,Bluegill or any sport fish,if your throwing some females back because your conservation minded and your trying to protect the specie you enjoy fishing for you are all right in my book.

Health wise,if you eat fish as much as I do during the year your better off keeping the smaller of any specie to eat as almost all fish in the United States have some kind of contamination to a degree,mercury,clordane,to name a few.The bigger the fish the more contaminates in the flesh.

Read the fish consumption advisory thats in the Summary of Missouri fishing regulations that the MDC gives out.

Its your right to keep what you want as long as its legal, no one should be chastised for keeping fish or throwing them back,regardless of the specie.

We all know,from Phils posts that he is very conservation minded when he thinks its needed.