lol at my ignorance

[wright4lfe]

okay:

i had no idea freshwater rays are illegal here in socal. really, no idea. i mean, i know asian arro's are "illegal" as well, but how long have ray's been illegal and why are they illegal? is it just more political BS or is there some logical concern regarding the rays?

 

[USMCtanker]

im guessing bc if we let some go out here they might survive. thats usually the reasons for the laws, bc cal has some warm weather all year round and some tropical fish could survive in the wild

 

[Oddball]

I think it's BS. If FW rays did get into natural waters, the damage they "may" inflict would be much less than the sportsfish species the gov't has transplanted over the years. (ex: striped bass from the east coast). In fact, FW rays could be instrumental in keeping certain populations of invading species in check, such as mitten crabs, P. alleni and clarkii crayfish, and zebra mussels.

 

[wright4lfe]

it just seems strange to me. i mean, i know of 4 or 5 lfs in orange county alone that i can walk into and, because i've been going there for the past few years, just straight ask for a chile red or golden arro, drop three grand and have it in a couple weeks.

not that i would ever, ever, ever do that.

why even have these laws if they are going to be so weakly enforced? i just don't get it.

 

[FishHeadSoup]

chile red??? YUMMY!

 

[rob408]

I think that because of CA's climate, the environmentalist feel that FW rays can survive and will kill off other fish species. From a hobbyist stand point, it sucks, but on the flip side, the environmentalist probably have some points. It all boils down to being a responsible hobbyist, afterall, not just anyone with a 75 gallon tank can raise a ray until it is full grown...Just my $.02

 

[T]

hahaha its all good. rays are rays. in my opinion i dont see it hurting a fish only humans

 

[Eric L]

I think they are illegal cause they could sting you and potencialy kill you. I read on this website about FW rays that this fishermen caught a stingray, yanked it out of the water and it landed on this kids chest and stung him in the abdomen where the sting came close to his heart and he died. Also the name stingray isnt to comforting to someone who knows nothing about them.

 

[Oddball]

You're probably 100,000 times more likely to be killed in a senseless drive-by shooting, in CA, than you would ever be of being harmed by an escaped FW stingray.

Almost forgot...'Note to self: Do NOT aim hook-caught FW stingrays at any kid's chest.'

 

[Eric L]

I know that that is for sure true but the ppl who make the policies may not. I think if a couple FW rays escaped into a waterway though, Cali would be more consered with an infestation than a couple escaped rays. There is also the effect on the environment but I would be more worried about the effect on the evironment of a breeding pair of jaguar cichlids that got into a lake than a breeding pair of motoros.