AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine fisheries officials are encouraging anglers to take large-mouth bass of all sizes from certain Down East waters starting Sunday.
The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife says a new law allows licensed anglers to assist in the taking of illegally introduced invasive species in an effort to protect the resource.
Biologists have identified fish caught in Grand Falls Flowage as large-mouth bass, indicating the illegal introduction of the species to the area and prompting the effort to eliminate them before they can gain a foothold and endanger the small-mouth bass population already there.
Some waters in the St. Croix River drainage included in this effort are Grand Falls Flowage, Lewy Lake, Long Lake, Big Lake including Grand Lake Stream, and parts of the St. Croix River.
Wonder if they will have more concern, when Northern Pike get beyond Howland.
I know someone who has encountered muskies just outside Augusta area.
Where was that at?The state of Maine will be unhappy about fish eating their stocked bass.
Same question… if you knew of an illegal activity why didn’t you report it. If you know and don’t report it your just as guilty.
How can they be illegaly stocked when the state of Maine has been stocking both smallmouth and largemouth bass themselves for years?
Where are we (legally) stocking large mouth bass in areas they did not orignally inhabit?
All bass are not native to Maine.Google how black crappie were intoduced to Maine waters.Yep they were intoduced by mistake when mixed in with largemouth bass stocked by the state of Maine
I
find it interesting that the Grand Lake Stream Guide’s Association was
adamantly against the effort to restore alewives in the St. Croix watershed.
The guides claimed that the alewife restoration was going to destroy their bass
fishery. After a 10-year program of successful alewife restoration, thanks to
the St. Croix Waterway Commission and Lee Sochasky, the waters now have too
many bass. And there is no doubt in my mind that some Downeast guide illegally
introduced the largemouth bass into the waters. Many Maine fishing guides are
not to be trusted. It was a self-serving Maine guide who I know that illegally
introduced bass into the Moosehead Lake and Indian Pond waters of the Kennebec.
My big question is… if you knew of an illegal activity why didn’t you report it. If you know and don’t report it your just as guilty.
Statute of limitations I believe is 7 years, no real evidence and I only knew about it because he bragged about doing it to me and others way after the fact. And besides, I am not a warden rat.
These selfish idiots who do this give all bass fishermen a bad name. Maine has a fantastic abundant bass fishery. There is absolutely NO REASON to transport fish and put them in other lakes.
I am waiting for the day when someone is caught doing this…..
Why was the state of Maine stocking bass to begin with?They seem to be hypocrites to me.
This is a government request I can get behind.