1st off a couple of quick things to clear the air...
I am a sport fisherman.
I have no problem with people who choose to Spoonbill/Paddlefish snag "responsibly".
I choose not to snag for Spoonbill as I don't feel that snagging fish is "sporting".

With that being said...These pictures make me absolutely sick. These pictures were not staged in any way, they were composed as I saw them. These pictures are just the few whose composition caught my eye, this scene repeated itself multiple times in a 100 yard stretch of river. These pictures were taken at the "Low Water Dam" on the Grand/Neosho river below Lake Hudson (Kerr Dam) in NE Oklahoma. I very well could have gotten my ass kicked or worse for being were I was with my rather obvious camera around my neck while I saw MANY people taking well over their legal limit (2 per day).

You are looking at a couple of things here.
1) A dead bird killed by becoming ensnared in discarded mono filament fishing line.
2)Roofing tiles, discarded bottles and cans
3)A Paddlefish that was snagged, gutted for its caviar and its body (with plenty of good meat) discarded and left to rot well within the banks of the river.



The fish itself, gutted and left to rot...looks like a kid was poking it with a stick...



Dead Bird



Another fish, gutted for its caviar and left to rot

What deplorable behavior.

What deplorable behavior.

could you have reported the crime? maybe snapped a few candid shots for proof.

i think this man said it best on how this makes me feel.

http://www.youtube.c...feature=related

could you have reported the crime? maybe snapped a few candid shots for proof.

While there were plenty of people "snagging", and plenty of evidence (burned bodies, gutted discarded bodies, etc) it is almost impossible to tell who is legally snagging and who is poaching without being obvious. Once people have their limit, they go and burn the bodies or dump them away from themselves. Short of getting into the bed of someone's truck and looking in their ice chest I wouldn't be able to tell who was over their limit or there only for the caviar. I was there on a Saturday afternoon and the "circus" had died down quite a bit. I suspect the people who are there for the caviar only (which I believe is illegal to ship across state lines or have more than 3 oz in your possession) had been there either much earlier in the day or in days prior as most of the "gutted only" bodies were a day or more old. Walking around down there with a camera isn't the smartest thing to do...like anybody who is doing something they know is illegal for profit I don't think want their picture taken Now, if someone were to sit there and monitor what was going on (like...hmmm...say the Game Warden) I think a lot of this activity could be curtailed....Me, I'm not going to get myself shot.

The local game warden and the Grand River Dam Authority aren't stupid. This place is no secret, everyone in the area knows about it, I suspect Fish and Game may make stops and inspections, but I have never seen them there.

If Ok is anything like Tx, the wardens are stretched few and far between. TPWD would rather spend money on stocking fish than getting some help enforcing game laws.

BTW, how is paddlefish meat? We can't eat it (let alone find it) down here. That's such a waste...

BTW, how is paddlefish meat?

Oh, one note...I was wrong on the daily limit. The limit is 1 fish per day per person.

Tastes like fish! Seriously though, I've only had it once, and they were large "steaks" that were grilled. It's been a few years, but it was tasty, extremely mild in flavor and actually not that "fishy" at all.

Here's some Good News! http://www.tulsaworl..._B11_spanc21171

The people after the eggs only are most likely poetching, there was a show on TV a fue years ago about large poetching rings.
The game wardens and a number of state police (from different states) had under cover agents and made a huge bust. The criminals were all armed but did not have a chance when the trap was sprung.

I had hoped they stopped it, but It does not sound like it.

Mike

This is really sad, it does far less damage to take young fish than it does to take adults, I'm not sure about the status of this fish but has any one done any studies to discern the impact of such a harvest on the fish over all population? Roe is a bad reason to kill a fish to start with but leaving the meat is just unconscionable. I like to eat fish, I have no problem with catching and eating them but this is just wrong.

Eh I don't think paddlefish are endangered in Oklahoma that being said as a fisherman most game wardens are overstretched.There are just not enough of them.

Poaching just makes me sick. Its stealing.

A number of states also stock paddlefish as well.

Unbelievable....This is about as bad as all the bowfins My grandpa kills from his pond and leaves them on the bank, I can only save so many.... ...Why do people do this to these beautiful fish? It's just plain wrong.

Edited by Stumpknocker, 10 April 2009 - 12:51 PM.

...Why do people do this to these beautiful fish? It's just plain wrong.

One reason $$$$

Considering that the average sized female spoonbill has about a football sized cluster of eggs in her...take a look at the prices for "Paddlefish Caviar":

http://www.google.co...q...vision&cd=1

If Ok is anything like Tx, the wardens are stretched few and far between. TPWD would rather spend money on stocking fish than getting some help enforcing game laws.

BTW, how is paddlefish meat? We can't eat it (let alone find it) down here. That's such a waste...

I remember it being very good deep fried (and it would probably be just as good prepared any other way). The meat was delicate and white, but not brittle or unconsolidated (like a bowfin). It was not bloody and fatty at all. The fish was eaten the same day that it was caught, so I can't vouch for frozen paddlefish.

A little background on the matter: I believe that it was illegal to catch and keep Paddlefish here in Louisiana at the time. I was fishing at "3-Rivers" - the area where the Red, Mississippi, and Atchafalaya Rivers all converge. It was during mid-July and very hot. We were trolling with deep-diving rattletraps/crankbaits for schooling barfish and the occasional striped bass. Three Rivers has numerous lock-and-dam structures (like 6 or so) and a large hydroelectric powerplant that are all located in fairly close proximity to each other. All of these major rivers and navigable locks support heavy tugboat/barge traffic. When one would pass, we would fish behind it. They churn up the whole river from bank to bank and up to a mile back. This can last for 20 minutes. A lot of water from deep down is brought up to the surface, making the thermocline uneven and "patchy" at best. All of this is excites the shad/baitfish, which in turn amplifies the feeding of predator species. In this location, it is quite common to see large paddlefish (easily 6 feet long and 90+ pounds) launching themselves straight out of the water and becoming totally airborne. They often do this behind moving barges or after barges pass.

Not long after a barge had passed, I saw a big fish swimming chaotically near the surface. It was pretty much going in circles. The spoonbill evidently ran into the tug's massive propeller. I caught it with the net that we use to land larger fish caught on a rod/reel. It was about 20 pounds and it had a fresh ~15 inch laceration across its side. Although the fish was still very much alive, it was not going to survive. It couldn't even swim correctly. I still have the paddle, which is very very interesting. It is solid nerve and sinew. I only put salt at the cut end to preserve it and keep it from stinking. It never rotted. The only parts that deteriorated are small areas between the matrix of nerve. Even so, not much at all has really broken down after 17 years. It even has a finished "gloss" look to it. If you find another dead like that, consider saving the bill. It makes a really interesting keepsake/specimen. Fishermen and kids find it fascinating.

wow. disgusting. all i can say.

As long as someone will buy it, there will always be someone to sell it.


It won't stop until they find another batch of guys like David Hall (USFWS Enforcement circa 1970's-80's). He drove fear into the hearts of every alligator poacher and market hunter in Louisiana . He just went after them wide open....Rooster Cogburn in a boat instead of a horse!



nm

i dont get some people. i really dont...some people have no care or feelings towards taking lives of animals. makes me sick