Spiel

That's a great looking brown Rich but I'll reserve comment on the flower.

If I may, with all due respect to eze76 I believe that the fish in his avatar is a Tri-colour Shark.

Big cat fish is no match for Jess Jul 15, 2009 JAMIE PYATT / thesun.co.uk TEENY schoolgirl angler Jessica Wanstall netted a new record when she hooked this monster 200lb fish — which was more than TWICE her own weight. Jessica, 11, was fishing for carp when a giant catfish took her bait and dragged her so violently towards the waters edge that her shocked dad had to grab her. The plucky youngster spent 20 minutes fighting the beast and needed a helping hand from dad Mark to finally heave it out of the water and on to the riverbank. At nearly NINE FEET long and weighing 13.7st the impressive specimen dwarfed shaking Jessica who stands at just 4ft 10ins and weighs only 5.7st. She now holds the record for the biggest freshwater fish caught by a child in Europe. Jessica, from Sittingbourne, Kent, who hooked the fish during a trip to Spain's River Ebro, said: "I didn't realise just how big it was until I saw the photos afterwards. "My dad thought it was going to be a small one and I told him it didn't feel small when I picked up the rod and then it just pulled so hard I thought I was going in. "My arms turned to jelly while I was trying to land it and I have never been so exhausted but luckily my dad was there and was able to lift it on to the riverbank. "It was massive and I felt tiny standing next to it!" The catfish tipped the scales at an impressive 193lbs. Jessica is normally used to catching "tiddlers" and it was 13 times bigger than her previous record of a 15lb carp. It was 150lbs bigger than her 13-year-old brother Spencer's best catch and 10lbs greater than her dad's best effort in forty years of fishing. Mark, a 49-year-old engineer, said: "Jessica normally catches tiddlers and she was fishing for carp although we knew there were catfish in the river as well. "Then she got a bite on her rod and she was off towards the water so I grabbed hold of her. "As the fish got near we could see how big it was and then its tail came out of the water and it looked like the Loch Ness Monster - everybody in the bank was gasping. "I'm so proud of her - it could have eaten her whole!" Mark, Jessica and family friend Gary Peet landed 51 catfish during their trip but Jessicas was by far the biggest. Their fishing guide Bodo Kunkel, who runs Bavarian Guiding Services on the River Ebro, said: "It was a large fish, much bigger than Jessica. "She couldn't close her mouth afterwards, she was, how do you say, over the moon. She is the only child to have caught a freshwater fish that big in Spain and probably Europe." Jessica was fishing with bait pellets for carp and returned the fish alive to the water after weighing it.

GOWGANDA AREA ANGLERS NET HEAVY FINES July 6, 2009 Three men have been fined $750 each for angling walleye during the closed season. In a separate incident, one man has been fined $1,500 for possessing an over limit of both walleye and smallmouth bass. Ivan Yarkie, George Dudgeon, and Cody Lessard, all of Englehart, Ontario, pleaded guilty to angling during the closed season. Court heard that the three men caught seven walleye on the evening of Friday, May 15, 2009, the day before the opening season for walleye in the Gowganda area. Returning to their camp, the anglers were apprehended by a conservation officer. Yarkie was also previously fined an additional $200 for operating a boat without personal floatation devices on board. Heinrich Nimz, of Washago, Ontario, pleaded guilty to possessing six walleye and four smallmouth bass over the legal limit. Court was told that Nimz was enroute home on Saturday, May 30, 2009, following an angling trip in the Gowganda area, when he encountered a Ministry of Natural Resources check station east of Elk Lake on Highway No. 65. When requested by conservation officers to inspect his fish, Nimz showed officers three walleye in a cooler. During an inspection of two other coolers in Nimz's vehicle, the conservation officers found seven additional walleye, 10 smallmouth bass and a quantity of whitefish. Anglers are reminded to review the 2008-2009 Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary for information regarding catch and possession limits, gear restrictions, open seasons and fish sanctuaries for the specific waters they plan to fish. Justice of the Peace James Bubba heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, City of Timiskaming Shores, on June 25, 2009. To report a natural resources violation call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll free any time or contact your local ministry office during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). See all the latest MNR related charges here

This catfish had eyes larger than its stomach July 10, 2009 Steve Pollick / toledoblade.com A decomposing 20-inch bass was too much for the 38-inch, 40-pound catfish rescued from the Maumee River at Waterville. This is a fish story to gag over — sorry — but imagine almost choking to death while trying to swallow a 20-inch smallmouth bass. That is exactly what was happening to a 38-inch, 40-pound flathead catfish in the Maumee River above Waterville when Eric Renzhofer, of Whitehouse, and his wife, Chelle, happened along. “My wife and I were near the river across from Indian Island when she spotted a ‘dog???’ swimming in the water about 200 yards out,” Renzhofer begins. The creature appeared to be in distress so Renzhofer and a buddy who was along, Mark Thompson, of Pemberville, hopped in a rowboat with rescue in mind. “We quickly rowed out and found a huge catfish struggling to submerge but couldn’t,” Renzhofer said. This was about 1,000 yards below Weirs Rapids. “We got him into the boat after five minutes and went ashore. The upriver rowing killed us. The cat smelled awful and I thought it was dying because it gave no fight at all. “We took him on shore and opened his mouth to see what the problem was. We noticed his stomach was full of air and huge. We found a tail protruding from his throat. A pair of Vise Grips was used to pull the fish out. It was a 20-inch smallmouth bass, partially decomposed — the ‘smell.’ It was lodged in his throat. “After removing the fish, the cat’s stomach was smaller and he was relieved. I immediately put him back in the water and off he went.” Renzhofer and Thompson did take time to measure the fish and photograph the victim-cat and culprit-bass, side by side in the sand. As for the big cat, he added, “I can gladly say he is now back in the river, and I’m sure he is rethinking the size of fish he will be swallowing. He bit off more than he could chew.” As for Renzhofer’s buddy, Thompson, “he was dead when we got back; he rowed like a crazy man.” Reflecting on the incident, it actually is amazing how big a prey a predator fish will swallow. Witness the annual Canada fishing-trip tales of guys finding a 20-pound northern pike that choked to death trying to swallow an 8- or 10-pounder. It also raises an eyebrow about where some of the Maumee River’s trophy smallmouth have gone. Which certainly is not to lay all the blame on big flatheads; fishermen, of course, can take their share credit or shame for that. On the other hand, the Renzhofers and Thompson surely know the fate of one 20-inch Fish Ohio-size smallie. It tried to choke a big flathead and lost. Nicole Jiminez shows off the 18¼-inch, 4-pound pacu she took from Maumee Bay off Edgewater Drive in Point Place. Another unusual fish take surfaced this week, this time in Point Place, this one an escapee, or reject, from someone’s pet aquarium. It was a 4-pound, 18¼-inch pacu, a vegetarian cousin of the ferocious meat-eating piranha of South American rivers. It was taken by Nicole Jimenez, who shore-fishes regularly on Maumee Bay off Edgewater Drive, according to Dave Ray at Edgewater Bait and Tackle. “It took her 20 minutes to land it.” Jimenez caught it on a nightcrawler rig. Ray said the teeth in the fish’s lower jaw almost looked human, but its uppers were sharp and pointed. That is perfect for feeding on fruits, nuts, and other vegetation in its native waters. Pacu can reach 60 pounds in the wild and in home aquariums can quickly outgrow their welcome, which apparently was the case with the one taken by Jimenez. Someone appartently dumped it in the bay. Ray rightly wondered whether it would have lasted the winter. By the way, it says here that dumping of unwanted pets — from tropical fish to dogs and cats — is about as irresponsible and unethical as it gets, and that is putting it as mildly as newspaper decorum allows.

We stayed at a camp on the south shore as you head west out of South Bay, the name of the camp escapes me. We fished exclusively from the camp to the extreme west end, never wet a line in South Bay.

It was a good week. The brookies actually came from the lake.

I believe we have a winner.

My thoughts are with you today.

I disagree, I caught lots of lakers there. It was a few years back and it was my first and only time on the lake but heck, I caught plenty of 2 to 5 pound lakers vertical jigging spoons down deep. Also a few walleye, big walleye and a friend managed to find some brookies, go figure. Given the chance I'd fish it again.

Sure looks like an F-18 to me and it's a great shot! I'm on the flight path F-18's always take off Lake Ontario for thier annual, somtimes twice annual runs over Ivor Wynne Stadium for Ticat games. You always know when they've buzzed by, the roar is nothing like that of a commercial jet airliner.

Let's get Brian to the top folks. Vote, vote, vote!

Crazy! I'm glad no one was hurt. If I was closer I'd cut it up for you Cliff and haul it away.

Great Lake fish alert: Watch what you eat Jul 10, 2009 04:30 AM Kenyon Wallace / thestar.com As Ontarians flock to the Great Lakes for a little summer fishing, a new report is warning some categories of fish are unfit for consumption due to high levels of toxic chemicals found in their tissue. "Fish are still great for our diets, but you need to watch what you eat," said Mike Layton of Environmental Defence, an author of the report. "For the most part, eating a few small fish every month isn't a big deal but you should be cautious with larger fish that have had more time to accumulate higher concentrations of dangerous chemicals." The report, entitled "Up to the Gills: 2009 Update on Pollution in Great Lakes Fish," brings together data from fish advisories published by the Ontario environment ministry between 2005 and 2009. In many Great Lakes areas, high levels of mercury, PCBs, pesticides, dioxins and furanes were found in medium-sized and large fish (55 to 75 centimetres long) such as salmon, trout and carp. Lake Huron catches showed some improvement but even there, cautions remained for larger fish. Lake Ontario was less lucky, with 40 per cent of advisories saying eating certain fish in any quantity is unsafe. Many cautions targeted small and medium-sized fish, considered a disturbing trend. "In the last two years, however, advisories for smaller fish in Lake Ontario levelled off," he said. The "Up to the Gills" report can be seen at Environmental Defence's website.

I don't know what to say Wayne, I'm sitting here absolutely dumbfounded. Condolonces if course to you and your family.

Trouble maker. Well I have more than most but less than Rodwrap.

My little 2 year old girl Brook loves the boat, not so much the water.

:thumbsup_anim: :thumbsup_anim:

I'd definitely be looking for other quotes!

Can't say I agree with this Rich. Sheephead (Aplodinotus grunniens) are members of the Sciaenidae family and not related to White Bass (Moronidae) in any way that I'm aware of. As for eating/freezing them, I've tried neither.

I'll submit a vote for you every morning whilst I have my morning coffeee Brian.

This may very well be the most disturbing picture I have ever seen! I'm glad you like them. Did you catch the musky on them? Great report, love the pictures!

Decew Falls generator to test chemical-free zebra mussel killer Experiment will be a first in Canada June 26, 2009 Matthew Van Dongen / stcatharinesstandard.ca An eco-friendly bacteria that kills invasive mussels will be tested for the first time in Canada at the Decew Falls hydro plant. Ontario Power Generation will monitor the specialized microbe’s ability to kill zebra and quagga mussels, which threaten power production at the combined 170-megawatt power stations on Twelve Mile Creek in St. Catharines. Normally, the power producer uses up to 20,000 litres of chlorine every year to control the tiny mussels at its Niagara generators, said Tony Van Oostrom, a senior environmental adviser for OPG. “If we don’t treat it, our cooling systems get plugged and the plant shuts down,” Van Oostrom said of the fast-multiplying mussels, which are notorious for plugging water-intake pipes, ruining underwater machinery and coating the underside of boats. Chlorine kills mussels, but it can also poison fish, plants and other aquatic life. Van Oostrom said OPG has managed to cut down its total chlorine use from 100,000 litres a year over the last decade. “But if this works, we could stop using it completely,” he said. It has worked incredibly well in smaller-scale tests so far, said Daniel Molloy, a scientist with the New York State Museum who discovered the potential of Pseudomas fluorescens. “We tested this bacteria in many small scale trials,” Molloy told a crowd at the announcement at Decew Falls Generating Station Tuesday. “It kills zebra and quagga mussels, but even more importantly, no other aquatic organism died. This is extraordinary.” Molloy has teamed up with a California company, Marrone Bio Innovations, to market the bacteria as a product. “This is not only the first Canadian trial for my little bacterium, but the first worldwide trial ... on this scale,” he said. The mashed-up microbes are introduced into the water as a food source for the bacteria-loving mollusks, which won’t clam up to protect themselves as they do with chemical killers. “They eat the stuff, they’re happy and then they’re dead,” said Van Oostrom, who plans to have a full-scale test of the bacteria running by August. Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment has approved the one-year pilot project, which could ultimately make the product legally available to other industries. Niagara Region, which zaps mussels with chlorine at intake pipes for its many water treatment plants, will be watching the experiment with interest, water and sewage director Betty Matthews-Malone said. Environment Minister John Gerretsen and St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley came out Tuesday to applaud the experiment. “We may be doing ourselves not only an economic benefit, but also an environmental benefit,” Gerretsen said. Gerretsen also announced Ontario Power Generation has joined the provincial Environmental Leaders program, which recognizes organizations with good compliance records and a commitment to reducing the environmental impact of their operations. The minister visited Walker Industries in Thorold Tuesday morning to give its revamped compost operation the official sniff test. The Thorold facility had previously composted all 40,000 tonnes of regional yard and food waste in enormous open piles. Now, the company has covered the piles in hi-tech GORE fabric and is dumping all incoming waste in an enclosed building. “I can barely smell it, quite frankly,” the environment minister said after giving the air a judicious sniff at the official facility reopening. Gerretsen praised the company for its innovative solution to the “nuisance issues” often associated with turning rotting food and yard waste into soil additives. A now closed composting regional facility in Port Colborne caused odours several years ago that angered residents and prompted provincial charges. Walker Industries has also had to deal with neighbour complaints, vice-president Mike Watt said. The new coverings should keep the air cleaner, he said, as will mechanical aeration from beneath the piles.

I have a dog like that.