Sad day

[BLACKFISH88]

Well I recieved a call this morning and my brother said that the natives were on the Moira river last night and instead of the traditional spearing which I have no problem with, they were using nets increasing their pull of giant walleyes from the fishery. It's almost like I am grieving for a good friend I have never seen them attempt to put a net in the river, in the bay yes but not in the river this will put a stranglehold on spawning walleye this year. Sad day indeed......

[Headhunter]

Do their "rights" allow them to net the rivers as well? I'm wondering if these folks are keeping the fish for personal consumption or are they making it to the cities, unregulated and illegally? If it is the latter, who's jurisdiction would law enforcement be? OPP, native police or the MNR?

I don't have a problem with them spearing if it's within their rights, but they should not be profitting financially from the raping of the resource.

HH

Edited April 18, 2007 by Headhunter

[Roy]

I have trouble identifying a person's race in the dark of night. Some are good at it.

[Terry]

I don't know

but I bet money if I went there with a net tonight and tried to net walleye I would be in jail

 

when we saw the guys taking them on the talbot , it was the cops that told us they were natives and he would not be doing anything about it...

even though he didn't know if they had the right to or not

[misfish]

don't know

but I bet money if I went there with a net tonight and tried to net walleye I would be in jail

 

A good night sleep would do ya good anyways.

 

Good one Roy.

[BLACKFISH88]

well usually the tyendinaga police shows up for a bit never seen him check anyone for credentials and roy your prolly right there are people in there who are not native and nowadays they are so mixed you can't tell unless they show a status card which I'm sure just doesnt happen. They tried to give one to my brother the other day was a 10lber plus he didnt accept it and they said well it will just bring us more money when we sell them.......they were using hoop nets or gill nets not take A fish from the water net like anglers use

Edited April 18, 2007 by BLACKFISH88

[POLLIWOGG]

The theory that you need lots of huge spawners hasn't produced for Quinte so I would think its time to look at habitat. It can't help the food supply for the local population to have schools of 12lbers move in like locus every year so I 'd like to see them take out about half of them out and maybe we will have eyes in the bay all year again. Quinte bounced back in 75 without a huge spawning population, you don't need them.

[Headhunter]

I agree Polliwogg, but what I do have a problem with is the poisoning of innocent people who like the taste of Pickeral and buy it from a store, with the assumption that the fish has been properly checked by the apporpriate government agency!

I don't suppose the restaurants or grocery folks are marking their fish displays with warnings not to order or purchase pickeral fillets if your pregnant or under a certain age!

HH

[BLACKFISH88]

point being the net is probably stretched from one side of river to the other so there are small spawners as well as big ones but they will not be able to get to the spawning grounds since they are practically doing this at the mouth of the moira so be it big or small they will not get through these nets = less spawning fish and there are walleye here all year I caught them everytime I went out last year didn't keep them all either but the fish are there if you know where to get them. I fear that this year will be different time shall tell.

[bucktail]

Maybe an alternative would be having some people milking the fish after they are caught and releaseing the mixed spawn into the river?

At least ypu would get one extra spwan out of it.

If the natives did that I would have no problem with the whole thing.

[SHAD]

I have trouble identifying a person's race in the dark of night. Some are good at it.

 

They fix your bi-focals, didn't think you could see 2 feet infront of ya

[canadian_copper]

USED TO BE A STELLER FISHERY THERE!!! TIME HAS TAKEN ITS TOLL!!! USED TO GO TO MY BUDS TRAILER 15YRS AGO ON THE RESERVE AND CATCH EYES ALL DAY OFF THE SHORE!!!NOW????????????

SAD PART IS I HAVE SEEN BARREL AND BARRELS OF WALLEYE FILLETS JUST ROT IN THE SUN!!!

[majorlifts]

If everyone remembers correctly, back in 94 or 95 first nations in North Bay were angry with governmental ruling somewhere in the fisheries act. So to protest and get back at fisheries they netted hundreds maybe more, trout and other fish from local lakes and dumped them in dumpsters and in the streets.

 

If you boast traditional rights because of cultural identity, and you are clearly acting as your neighbor by committing the same abuses, where is the purity and divinity in such tradition and culture? When told buy first nations that the waling industry has placed a great strain on wale populations, a waling ban was in place for all. 2 months later we hear the first nations are waling because it is a known tradition and their right. Where is the logic?

 

This is not a race issue, this is one of cultural and traditional rights. I have a great respect for the first nations. You have to, anyone who can tough out our winters hunting and fishing for food and clothing to survive a hundred or so years ago, deserves it. But when you are held in such high esteem by others you must walk the walk. Keep your band card in your pocket and show me where your real loyalties are, to great mother earth or to the almighty dollar. Everyone knows you cannot serve two masters.

[BryceBurzynski]

Isn't there a law against this?

[TJQ]

Ahhh... this thread again.... seen this once oh once or twice a year since ... my take on this is two fold... #1 if they have the treaty rights which is something OUR government gave them, then thats thier rights.. (like it or not) its our Govts fault for signing treatys and such with no expiration date.... #2 If there was no market for the fish there would be no demand.... boycott the places that buy the fish.. make sure everyone knows where the fish are going if ya don't like it... my 2 cents...

 

 

...

[Roy]

We're still assuming they were natives. I'll play the devil's advocate for a second. If I wanted to poach walleye right now, I'd go to the Moira or any of the many other rivers and net or spear them. Cause hey, we all know that the authorities wont move on a complaint of this nature after dark. in those rivers.

 

Did your brother call the MNR TIPS line?

 

Gimme a break....

[GbayGiant]

Let them spawn or no one will have any future fish, it's common sense.

 

I herd the Nippising Natives are going to start controlling the spawn, good for them if they do.

 

Our little community takes turns watching the fish and through rocks in the water near the fish to spook them away when the natives show up trying to spear or net. The police come, do nothing, but with the pressure of the community the Natives usually just leave. To top it off these are fish sanctuaries as well, doesn't matter.

 

And if the Natives don't think there doing anything wrong than why do they show up at 3 or 4am, driving with their lights off the majority of times, why not go in the day ?

 

The Walleyes here just came up today, I will be taking my shifts to protect the fish as much as possible. I also have a lot of Native friends around here and I say the same things to their face, some agree, some don't.

[BLACKFISH88]

not much happens with mnr tips........

[tonyb]

Agreed Roy, all you can do is call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) and hope that the non-native fisherman get fined. The native people do not need to abide by MNR regulations, provided they are in their treaty area. That means there is no posession limit, angling method restrictions, etc, regardless of how the act may put at risk future populations of fish species.

 

Considering the bigger picture...who are the businesses buying illegal fish? The natives would not overharvest if there was not a demand for it ($$$), so perhaps that is the place to direct our energy to be productive in reducing harvest by the natives. Locate and identify the businesses involved in the illegal fish trade.

 

Let's not turn this into a Native bashing thread folks

 

Tony

Edited April 19, 2007 by tonyb

[Puckhead]

Ahhh... this thread again.... seen this once oh once or twice a year since ... my take on this is two fold... #1 if they have the treaty rights which is something OUR government gave them, then thats thier rights.. (like it or not) its our Govts fault for signing treatys and such with no expiration date.... #2 If there was no market for the fish there would be no demand.... boycott the places that buy the fish.. make sure everyone knows where the fish are going if ya don't like it... my 2 cents...

...

 

Couldn't have said it better myself. I've passed on many a pickeral filet at grocers soley due to this reason - it's nothing new and will be the same issue ten years from now (assuming there is anything left by then).

[Hookset]

The problem as I see it, is the refusal to deal with the situation by the federal and provincial governments.

Let's be realistic. We all know the practice is entirely based on greed. There is no respect for the resource, nor can you believe in any group that harvests spawning fish and at the same time preaches resource management.

95 % of the elected eggheads in this country have never spent a day in the woods or on a lake and could care less about this issue. They worry more about their blackberries than they ever would about this issue which is crucial to most fishermen. The more we fight and argue amongst ourselves the less pressure is placed on them.

You need not look any farther than Caledonia to see how cowardly and inefficient our politicians are. As Sportsmen we are probably some of the most complacent groups in our country. We yell, holler, and carp but rarely (if ever) do we organize en masse to say "WE HAVE HAD ENOUGH". Call the MNR Tips....lol come on,

Our MNR are severly understaffed, and their hands are tied if they wanted to make an issue. Who is responsible for that ??? POLITICIANS !!!. Any issue even remotely related to the Native community is treated as if it is radioactive. No Politician wants to deal with it. Cowards. Even issues benefitting Natives such as living conditions, clean drinking water, preservation of their way of life, etc. are mishandled by guess who? That leaves the problem with those it means the most to. You and me. Until we organize in a manner that makes it impossible for us to be ignored, the issue will not change. Boycotts won't help, whining won't help, petitions and violence won't help.

Getting organized and grabbing Politicians by the proverbial throat is the only answer. So far anything that has been organized has not worked. Could be that complacency thing again. I sure don't know how to get the job done but I bet someone out there does, maybe even someone on this board. Question will be, do we as Sportsmen support them or do we continue to do what we have always done. Sorry for the long rant.

 

Hookset.

[Golfisher]

Sign of spring: first, a great hoopla over OOS picturess, followed by another controvery on spearing & netting by first nations. Works like a clock.