Fishing Thread

[Billy Jean King]

The clyde is virtually dead, continued dredging for prawns and scallops is not allowing the area to recover from years of over fishing.
Small Whiting, wrasse in rocky areas, the odd flounder, dogfish, a few bass and some mackerel in the summer is nowhere "as it always was" or "a different mix of species" when compared with what should be there.
You don't get large cod because the stocks were over fished and are not being allowed to recover. In a healthy fishery there should be stocks of cod all year round  (codling, fish under 6lbs) and the larger cod which used to come inshore during the winter.
Fergus Ewing has continually blocked any regulations and plans for larger protected areas in the Firth of clyde. A restored clyde would be a huge boost for the area but fish are basically out of sight and out of mind.
 
 
 

There are less than 50 prawn and scallop boats left fishing the Clyde. Not doubting the damage they did do back in the 70s and 80s but that isn't the current reason there is a lack of mature cod and haddock. Anyway there's not a lot of sport in beach casting for cod. Sea angling has evolved hugely, that form of fishing isn't that appealing any more.

[8MileBU]

10 hours ago, Scary Bear said:

Are Eastern European’s really into fish? I see people mentioning them online as the reason for the lack of pike at various bodies of water around Fife.

Some of them are absolute scum when it comes to careless and reckless behaviours when fishing. Last summer a bunch them were frequently causing problems by poaching the River Avon for trout overnight at Muiravonside Country Park. Several trees were torn to bits for bonfires big enough to heat the district as opposed to benefitting four guys on a riverbank. Throw in the additional masses of litter left behind.
However, as opposed to catching and eating the trout from the Avon, the c***s were placing the trout in a keep-bucket and walking up the steps at the back of the park onto the Union Canal aqueduct and towpath then using the trout as live/dead bait for pike in the canal. 
The worst bit - A young lad out a bike run along the towpath last summer was also assaulted by a group of Eastern European’s who blocked him from cycling by, assaulted him then threw him and his bike into the canal basin out past Linlithgow. Seemingly a senseless attack without motive at the time, but a week or two later a barge had its propeller fouled and partly damaged by an object in the canal. Following a bit of investigation by Scottish Canals it transpired some sort of home-made pike traps had been made from what’s believed to have been cut-up supermarket trolleys and tossed in the canal. It was then presumed that  the young lad who’d been assaulted had probably cycled by and ‘caught’ the Eastern European chaps throwing their  traps in the canal. 

Edited July 8, 2020 by 8MileBU