Huge, once-hated fish now seen as weapon against Asian carp [Alligator Gar]

AP ^ | July 29, 2016 | Staff

[Hot Tabasco]

Here's the deal: Raise the reward to $500 or I eat one sun fish every hour, on the hour. Clocks ticking.... — Alligator Gar (@TheAlligatorGar) July 28, 2016

Typical terrorist ultimatum..........The city is now hostage and in lockdown!

[RegulatorCountry]

People dislike Asian Carp because they’re crazy. They freak out from the sound of a boat motor, or any sound really, and start jumping out of the water.

They’re actually sought and stocked in smaller lakes and ponds here, though. They keep the pond scum down, eat the aquatic grass that grows the algae. Most call them Grass Carp.

[Hot Tabasco]

They’re actually sought and stocked in smaller lakes and ponds here, though

They've become a potential threat to Michigan's great lakes fisheries and need to be dealt with in terms of preventing them from entering our lakes........

[RegulatorCountry]

You could always start an Asian Carp bow-hunting business, I guess.

https://youtu.be/nc-e8EGkLMo

[NorthMountain]

OK, I would pay good money to do that ... Where’s my Benelli?

[waterhill]

https://www.facebook.com/bekagarris/photos/a.506927562655311.130532.506840415997359/1370380996309959/?type=3

This lady keeps the carp in check. She also arrows gar and eats them too. Collects the skulls of her kills as well.

[Hot Tabasco]

OK, I would pay good money to do that ... Where’s my Benelli?

Isn't that something??? I'm surprised there has been no entrepreneur who has set up morning and afternoon shooting excursions off maybe a large pontoon boat.

I saw a video of a "carp rodeo" somewhere where tons of good ol' boys cruise this river and try to catch as many carp as possible via nets then hand out prizes at the end of the rodeo......it was crazy fun!

[waterhill]

Forgot to add, she lives in Ohio. She said rivers and creeks and lakes are full of needlenose.

[NorthMountain]

Isn't that something???

It's a hoot. I feel 20 years younger just watching it.

[JoeProBono]

[Hot Tabasco]

That reminds me of a story. Back in the fall of 1968 right after I graduated from high school in northern Michigan, I was grouse hunting with a buddy when we came upon a large stream which emptied into Lake Charlevoix.

Several years prior, the DNR introduced salmon into the lake in the hopes of developing a salmon fishing sport there. Well these salmon started using the small and large streams and rivers for their spawning runs.

Anyway, when my buddy and I came up to the stream, we saw several large salmon swimming so we opened fire on them and my buddy actually got one which he took home. (shotguns shot into water have very little penetration when you're shooting fish at depth).

Keep in mind that the town I lived in was quite small by today's standards and words spread really fast. At the supper table my step-father said to me that he heard of some hunters along the Advance stream possibly shooting salmon and if I knew anything about it?.......gulp!

I lied and said nope, Bill and I were over by East Jordan.........While that ended the conversation, I don't think he believed me.

[wildbill]

My uncle used to have a place with a couple of miles of riverfront on the San Marcos river that ran up to an old dam. The fishing was terrible. He called in the Texas P&W and they seined the river. The damn gars were nearly as long as the rowboats they used. They had to shoot them to kill them.

They said the gars had simply eaten all the fish as they grew large enough to catch.