deleted

[ALLSTAR1]

What would stop them from breaking the law is; there would be no reason to be out on the river at night! Anyone along the river or overhead can spot the activity and alert law enforcement. I think it would be an easy bust. I am sorry that some people will be hurt but they are the ones that could make a difference.

I bet many of the worst violators are well known in the gigging community.

I am not a gigger. I have done it. Love to eat suckers and love to catch em but like smallmouth more. Hopefully, this will encourage everyone out there to step up and obviate furher regulations..

[Flysmallie]

there would be no reason to be out on the river at night!

Except maybe fishing. I've been floating some at night and wasn't the only one out there with bright lights and such.

[Brian Jones]

My two big issues with gigging are length of season and lack of enforcement. If enforcement were better, then I would have no issue with the length of the season. There's no doubt in my mind that what happened in Ripley County also takes place on other Ozark rivers and could be largely curtailed with better enforcement and harsher penalties. Anyone who has fished much in the fall or winter has undoubtly caught smallmouth and other game fish with gig marks or open wounds on them as a result of being stuck and shaken off of a gig.

The problem I see with limiting gigging on trophy smallmouth water are the length of them. Generally speaking the trophy smallmouth areas tend to be longer in length than the trophy trout areas. Take Big River for example. The trophy smallmouth area pretty much extends the entire river. Though fine by me, if that were to happen it would limit the area that a person could gig to basically a couple of small sections of river around and upstream from Leadwood.

Also, not trying to pick a fight or argue but accidentally sticking a game fish is no different than someone shooting a spike buck thinking it was a doe. Though both happen, neither are acceptable. One of the ten commandments of firearms/hunter safety is positively identifying your target. That should apply to gigging as well.

[Ham]

As catch and release fishermen you must realize that your activities can hurt fish as well. It is generally accepted with smallmouth that 2-3% of catch and release fish will die due to rough handling, high water temp, deep hooking, out of water too long etc. I read posts of 50-100 fish days all the time, so you must assume at least a couple of those fish will probably die.

I agree that some fish are dying after being caught and released EVEN IF they look fine when they swim off. I don't think that it is 2-3 % on the fish I catch. Could you point me in the right direction to read those studies?

Summer time bass tournaments with release taking place after hours in a livewell IS NOT the same as me standing waist deep in a river and releasing a fish that leaves the water for about 15 seconds while I remove a single hookpoint.

IF you see guys you fish with treating the fish poorly, I sure you could speak up and educate. I hate seeing pictures of fish laying on boat carpet or on the ground for a photo op. I often leave my fish in the rubber landing net in the water while I get my phone ready and then remove the fish from the water for the photo. The fish in my pictures often have water running off of them in the photo because I've just pulled them from the water. I'm all about taking pictures, but lets not put the fish at risk to do so.

I know several people that I really like and respect that are giggers, but man the Bad Apples have ruined the barrel for me on this one.

[Justin Spencer]

I agree that some fish are dying after being caught and released EVEN IF they look fine when they swim off. I don't think that it is 2-3 % on the fish I catch. Could you point me in the right direction to read those studies?

Summer time bass tournaments with release taking place after hours in a livewell IS NOT the same as me standing waist deep in a river and releasing a fish that leaves the water for about 15 seconds while I remove a single hookpoint.

Here is one interesting study, but takes quite a bit of 'ciferin' (http://www3.carleton.ca/fecpl/pdfs/C%20and%20R%20LMB%20SMB%20MS.pdf). I would like to think my fish mortality is lower also, and I know those of us who treat fish right kill much fewer than others, but I'm sure we still kill some. The bass tournament info I found points to 5-10% mortality and in some cases higher.

I know from my studies in graduate school trying to raise crappie commercially, that delayed mortality from handling is a big problem with that particular species. In order to keep them from developing fungal infections we had to knock them out for handling and treat them with a slime coat enhancer/antibacterial treatment or they would develop infections and die several weeks later. I think this is what has led me to always try to keep fish wet and only handle them with wet hands. These fish would show no signs of stress until they started developing infections several days later.

[Old plug]

There isjust toooo many people nowof all types. In my wifes grandfathers day they did bot gig they used dinamite. I do not condone that but.I bet they did less damage then the goards that decend on the wter now days.

[Ham]

Some summertime bass tournaments have HORRIBLE release survival rates, but tournaments were a huge part of C&R fishing gaining popularity. I wouldn't personally er participate in a summertime tourny or tournaments that I didin't feel like had a good enough weigh in process.

I'll look at those studies as soon as I can. I can't look at that one now, but I'll look for others on my own as well.

I have no doubt that I kill a few fish accidentily each year without ever seeing it. I'd be shocked if I killed more accidentily than your average gigger did on a per outing basis.

[Chief Grey Bear]

Keeping fish out of season, or more than your limit? You'll never be a good enough angler to be able to pick and choose all the biggest fish or to catch a bunch of bigger fish every time.

Don't kid yourself.

It has nothing to do with picking and choosing. Poachers aren't picky. They will take all, big or little.

And then you add in all the legal fisherman and you can loose a lot of fish.

It's a pure numbers game. Legal and illegal rod and reel fisherman will by far take more fish than giggers ever could.

And I'm not standing up for poaching giggers.

[MOsmallies]

Don't kid yourself.

It has nothing to do with picking and choosing. Poachers aren't picky. They will take all, big or little.

And then you add in all the legal fisherman and you can loose a lot of fish.

It's a pure numbers game. Legal and illegal rod and reel fisherman will by far take more fish than giggers ever could.

And I'm not standing up for poaching giggers.

You are right poachers will poach anything and everything no matter the size. But it's undeniable that gigging and underwater spearfishing does give a person an advantage of being ABLE to only target big fish. Rod and Reel anglers do not have that advantage. Therefore gigging/spearfishing poachers have the ability to do a lot more damage on the big fish population than rod/reel anglers ever will.

[Chief Grey Bear]

Now you are trying to split hairs. Poaching is poaching. Size doesn't matter.

In the very photo of the poachers, there were no large smallmouth. One in fact I would say was undersized. There was one maybe two big LM bass and the rest were decent.

But you can look at FB all day long and see large fish, smallmouth and largemouth, being harvested from the rivers all over this state. I've seen and you've seen it too.

You guys are a little late with the gigging post this year. What gives?