teacher wrote:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6941262.stm
It is not just the fish.
http://www.total-fishing.com/News.asp?A ... 882A25D3FA
They have a taste for swans too!
I fish the canal round Leighton Buzzard (Beds, England) regularly and I have not seen a swan on the canal for over a year. There used to be resident pairs on nearly every section I fished. They have disappeared, and the number of ducks is down also.
Many English fishing clubs buy in large carp to be fished for catch and release. Including vets fees / certificates to allow the transit of fish between waters these carp can cost over £200 each. Along comes a poacher (they don't join the clubs - just sneak in at night) who is used to eating every carp they catch, and it becomes a very expensive fish supper.
I travel to Ireland regularly and to be honest the killing of Pike on the Upper Shannon has changed the character of the river. This is something that has been going on for the last 20 years (mainly by Germans on cruisers). I can recall catching 3 pike in 4 casts (not big fish), can't see that happening again in the near future.
I don't know what this means for sea fish stocks, but what I will say is that most east Europeans I have seen taking fish for the pot will take any stunted little fish they catch, ones that I would only use for bait included.