I took a drive down to Peg Leg today to check out the mayhem. It didn't take long until I stumbled upon this:
Now hopefully everyone on this site realizes what is wrong with this picture. Of course there are some people who will not, hence the reason this picture was taken. The fish in the middle is a
WILD coho, which of course are closed for retention. Moreover, this fish (although impossible to confirm without looking at its DNA) is likely an
ENDANGERED interior Fraser coho.
Shortly after I took this picture, I witnessed another fish being dragged up onto the beach and sadly that fish too was another
WILD coho. The angler who caught it did not take the time to identify the fish before beaching it. Before the rock shampoo could be applied I intervened and informed the angler that it was in fact a coho he had caught. The angler refuted saying it was a spring and it had spots then went to show me how it had black gums. Of course it didn't. So as quickly as it was dragged out, I made sure the now shake and baked coho made its way back into the river. Sadly I doubt it will survive.
Its very upsetting to see someone, who supposedly knows how to identify fish, beach fish before properly identifying it. Even worse is the fact that I had several other people come to the anglers defense stating it was a spring.
The sad fact is that as long as DFO is willing to leave this 'fishery' open into the fall, there will be bi-catch. If you choose to participate, please take the time to identify your fish before you beach it and to make sure you are properly able to distinguish between sockeye, springs, coho and steelhead.
Here is a quick guide for anyone wondering:
(I don't really have any clear pictures of sockeye so if someone would like to post one that would be great)
Usually the first thing people look for are spots on the back, which could be any one of three species of fish at this time of year (4 during pink years).
The most common 'spotted' catch at this time of year are springs, which of course are open for retention. The can be identified by their black gums, spotting along the back, and spots on both the upper and lower lobes of their tails.
Here is a photo showing the black gums:
Here is a full length photo of a spring. Although this isn't the best example, you can see the spots on the upper and lower lobes of the tail.
Another possible catch at this time of year are steelhead. These can be identified by their heavily spotted square tails (top and bottom lobe), spotted backs and white gums. Also, as they mature their cheeks will turn rosy. Here is a full length photo, a tail shot and a close up of a head showing the white gums.
Finally we get to coho. The easiest way to identify a coho is by its white gums and by its tail which will only have a few spots on the upper lobe.
Here is a full length photo of a coho. You can quite clearly see the few spots on the upper half of the tail as well as the white gums.
Hopefully this was helpful to a few anglers and hopefully this will help to prevent similar photos to the one that I opened this post with. Remember,
to always identify your catch before taking it out of the water and that when you are not sure of the identity of a fish its best to release it. It is your responsibility to know your fish species do not rely on the people around you because the sad fact is, that many of your fellow anglers out on the bar don't have a clue.
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Topic: If you fish for sockeye, this is a MUST READ (Read 38561 times)