Sweetwater River Trout

[Terry Beeson]

Click here

[troutchaser]

Wow. That's a downer.

Makes me appreciate what I've got here in the ozarks.

[Danoinark]

A very interesting read Terry. Just another reason to remember how delicate and fragile our fisheries ecosystems are. Its really a sad story.

Dano

[Terry Beeson]

One point that stood out to me was the fact that the fires were so intense and hot that the river basically "evaporated" and then the ash choked the leftover pools. Wow... One little campfire and - "BAM" - environmental disaster....

[Crippled Caddis]

I don't think calling that a tragedy overstates the case. Another case of the activities of man shallowing the gene pool. And I'm certainly not referring only to the lost hunter who started the fire.

Troutchaser wrote:

<Makes me appreciate what I've got here in the ozarks.>

Yes but--------

While we have a LOT of trout fishing we have no natives at all. Even resources such as the few tiny spring creeks in MO that have remnant populations of pure strains stocked many decades ago are constantly on the brink of extinction. Crane Creek and its' head of McCloud Rainbows teeter constantly on the brink. So far it comes back, even when reason says it shouldn't, but some day it won't. A drouth will persist too long or a bad winter following drouth will produce anchor ice that takes the last few survivors. One is left to wonder why MO DNR isn't propagating the Crane Creek strain and spreading them to other suitable watersheds to guard against total loss.

[Andrew Schaefer]

thats too bad... the sad thing is that those fish are just one in a very long list. A similar situation is/was facing the snake river sockeye salmon.

It sorta reminds me of Iowa's native strain of brook trout. They were thought to be extinct for many years until a sustaining population was found in a tiny spring creek in the northeast corner of the state, its less than a mile long and rarely more than 3 feet wide. Resoration efforts have been underway ever since to get them sustaining in other watersheds, but the results have been mediocre at best. Last time I was at the hatchery I was talking to the manager and he told me that they had to stop collecting eggs and milt from the native strain fish because their population was down after a couple low water years, and now they fear that the population will die out completely.

[MrsDucky]

It is sad. Have you noticed that people are more likely to help species that are pretty, tasty, or funny? Few people want to help bugs or snakes, but fish, bears, and dodo birds get a lot of publicity! OK, maybe not dodos, but you get the idea.

[Terry Beeson]

I ain't helpin' no dog-gone snake, mosquito, tick, or chigger...

OK... OK... OK... I ain't helpin' no stinkin' cottonmouth, copperhead, or rattler...

No... I ain't a-skeered o' no steenkin' snake.... Well, OK... yes I am... But don't bring one for me to pet... unless you want him to be a DEAD snake...

All Noah had to do was take out one lousy cottonmouth, one skeeter, one tick, and one chigger... But nnnooooOOOOOOOOOoooooo!!

Now I WILL jump on the bandwagon to help the scud, sowbug, caddis, mayfly, and any other fish food you might name...

[MrsDucky]

You big baby! Nearly all snake related fatalities in Missouri have all come from some moron (usually a young male) saying "I bet I can catch him!" or something along those lines. Snakes are very useful, and help keep the rodent population under control! What we need are more anacondas, to keep the human pests under control.

Seriously...never approach any wild animal...you never know, you might look more like it's dinner than you think! Or worse, it's mate!

[taxidermist]

Yes but--------

While we have a LOT of trout fishing we have no natives at all. Even resources such as the few tiny spring creeks in MO that have remnant populations of pure strains stocked many decades ago are constantly on the brink of extinction. Crane Creek and its' head of McCloud Rainbows teeter constantly on the brink. So far it comes back, even when reason says it shouldn't, but some day it won't. A drouth will persist too long or a bad winter following drouth will produce anchor ice that takes the last few survivors. One is left to wonder why MO DNR isn't propagating the Crane Creek strain and spreading them to other suitable watersheds to guard against total loss.

Ok, what species did these STOCKED RAINBOWS REPLACE?

We must always remember when humans get invovled with nature and stock NON-NATIVE species something must die, nothing can coexisit. Its natures design.

So why is the MO DNR not propagating and stocking? Like releasing horses into the wild basiclly they are feral like hogs and cats feral of sorts.

I agree I ain't helping no snake, tick, chigger, or skeeter, matter for fact I killed a large cottonmouth on White River yesterday, close to four feet in length!!! The first I have seen on the White above Buffalo City, it was in the water and moving very well. So I am sure it was not an accident that it was there.