Live on Pool 10 every weekend in the summer-last week Sauger’s were hitting at L/D 10. Just got off the cell with my fishing partner(on the river) and things are slow. The limits pan fish are needed and I would like to see length limit on Sauger (live in Iowa)We fish up river for the next month and see alot of pencils going in boats.
I see people keeping those little sauger all the time on the river. I say let them grow up so it stengthens the sauger fishery.
Couldnt agree more. Anyone that keeps a sauger under 15 inches is well, I just dont want to even say. Just because its legal to keep them under 15 does not make it right. I hope Beav doesnt read this, there is no way we will get by without his sermon on this subject and its long! I think he and I are going to the state capitals and start protesting if they dont change this law. We remember the days on pool 7 when saugers were plentiful. Im starting to see some legal sized saugers on pool 8 this year so there is some hope.
Steve Hougom – FTR Webstaff
Opening that can of worms again are we? Seems every year we have the discussion about it but it falls on deaf ears. No size limit on sauger is one of the dumbest things I have ever seen in my life.
I know Steve promised you a long sermon, but I`ll give you the Readers Digest version.
If you want fish to eat, fish for panfish.
If all you can catch is little saugers, learn to catch better fish.
If you kill a 12″ sauger, it`s chance of making 15″ is 0%.
No size limit and 10 bag limit is stupid.
Get your head out of your a$$ if you think that the river is like Jesus Christ and will continue to feed the masses without us doing something about it.
SELECTIVE HARVEST SELECTIVE HARVEST SELECTIVE HARVEST!!!!!!!
That`s the short version.
If I have to explain any further, you probably wouldn`t understand or you just don`t care.
Saugers don`t reproduce like perch, so don`t treat them like they are.
Beav
Amen Brother.
I will agree 100%, it is to bad we can’t post a sighn of beavs statement at every lock and damm up and down the ol miss to help get the message across to those who do not know any better!
See ya on the river!
Dustin
Well said guys!! People might get tired of reading this thread, but I really don’t think enough is being said about it. I hope it continues for the benefit of the fish. I’d really like to see what Mr. Pitlo has to say from a biologist’s standpoint, and then after he’s done with his scientific end, give us his personal opinion on the subject.
What do you say, John??
herb
I think that we should take a poll on the subject. Do you favor implementing a size limit of 15″ on saugers?
Then send the results to the tri-state DNR`s and let them know that we, the fishermen of the Mississippi River, want saugers to have a chance to grow up.
I`ve heard replies on this before with concerns about food availibility, angler success, loss of interest by some fishermen…..I say saugers less than 15″ are long, skinny cigars that haven`t grown up or matured. It makes me want to puke to see meat hunters shoving 10,20,30 of them into a 5 gallon pail and then coming back the next day to do it again. I`ve fished some areas of pool 9 where I couldn`t catch a fish over 13″ in a day, but that didn`t stop guys from filling up on them. Those 13″ers would make it to 15″ by the next year. And don`t hand me the [censored] that there is an abundance of them and that they should be thinned out. Let them grow up so we can have a good population of 15″+ fish. I know that most of us avid river anglers are not the culprits. We know what is acceptable and we practice selective harvest. Let`s get it to be a law so we won`t have to be sickened by watching juvenile fish being stuffed into baskets for another year. Take that poll and the one about the walleye slot limit and send it to the appropriate people so we can get some changes made to protect the small saugers and the big walleyes.
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