More to natives than Bass

[TheBloodyIrish]

I wish more people would get into natives. I think it is a lot of fun and very interesting to net your own.

I think part of the problem is that some of the natives are too big to keep indoor or there are laws against keeping natives. Like around here, the only legal way for me to keep a native is... well... a dead one.

 

[Polypterus]

I think part of the problem is that some of the natives are too big to keep indoor or there are laws against keeping natives.

One of the real problems is people always equal 'Native fish' with 'Gamefish' there is more out there than just Bass, sunfish and pike....The laws regulating fish are often focused at Gamefish not Non-game. Granted there are also stupid laws regarding Non-game in some cases also but often a simple permit is all that is needed to collect and keep most native species.

 

[teleost]

So far all of the fishes in this thread cannot get over 4".

 

[sandtiger]

I'm gonna sticky this thread. Teleost, Poly, Skipjack..anyone who has pictures feel free to post em. It's time people learned to appreciate North America's unique fish diversity. One that is sadly ignored by most despite being unlike any other on the planet.

 

[drewish]

Deleted per user request.

 

[Polypterus]

To me it is not just the fish of North America alone that I find endlessly beautiful in their diversity it is also the places they come from. There is something special about these places as well.

 

[sandtiger]

Good point poly, even when I have a bad day collecting I can still sit back and just enjoy the environment I am in. I can't take decent pictures of the fish I collect but I really should take more of the places I go.

 

[TheBloodyIrish]

One of the real problems is people always equal 'Native fish' with 'Gamefish' there is more out there than just Bass, sunfish and pike....The laws regulating fish are often focused at Gamefish not Non-game. Granted there are also stupid laws regarding Non-game in some cases also but often a simple permit is all that is needed to collect and keep most native species.

It applies in my case though.... all fish, both gamefish and baitfish, need to be killed if they leave the vacinity of the water. Any non-gamefish is considered as baitfish under the eye of the law.

 

[drewish]

Black Darter (Etheostoma duryi)

 

[Skipjack]

It applies in my case though.... all fish, both gamefish and baitfish, need to be killed if they leave the vacinity of the water. Any non-gamefish is considered as baitfish under the eye of the law.

You mean you can't keep your bait alive in a holding tank until you use it? Check on that, may allow you to legally Keep some cyprinids.