Bad fish

Fish can be bad if you're a fan of biodiversity in lakes. Or at least it's bad to have fish in every lake.

Scientists have found that we're killing biodiversity with our love for fish and our penchant for plunking fish in every lake, pond, puddle, or stream. In Maine, for example, scientists believe that only about 50 lakes are fishless out of about 6,000 lakes.

What happens when we add fish? Various amphibians and invertebrates get eaten up and vanish. Swing by the Journal of the North American Benthological Society if you want to read more.

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Lobster fishermen must do more to protect whales

Says who? Says a federal judge. I can't link to it because it's not yet in the sluggish traditional media.

On Friday afternoon, a federal judge ordered lobstermen to do more to protect whales. This is especially ironic right now, with lobstermen wanting to sell sustainable lobster, to capitalize on the "green" market. Strangely, Maine lobstermen haven't yet figured out that sustainable fishing means not catching whales.

Maybe Maine lobstermen will follow the lead of Massachusetts, start protecting whales, and get serious about sustainability.

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Fish go belly up for rubber worms

AFS tipped me off to the the trouble with rubber worms. It may surprise you that rubber worms are indigestible, despite their shiny colors and delectable smells. After finding a dead fish with three worms in its belly, Bill Gagnon, of Warren, Maine, started a campaign to get them out of the state's waters. He's pushing for biodegradable bait and asking manufacturers to start selling alternatives. Considering the inventiveness of fishermen, I imagine it won't take long to find the next Velveeta, especially if Cabela's started offering a few prizes for new bass bait. Gagnon would like the transition out of the rubber worm era to be peaceful and voluntary, but he's not ruling out legislation:

"If you see them in the water, for God’s sake get rid of them," said Gagnon. "It is not illegal to use them. Anyone who feels right has all the right in the world to use them. But I’m not going to guarantee that things aren’t going to change."

Here's to Bill for taking on the problem of the garbage patches of the Northeast, and to fish with rubber-free bellies.

BassAssassin's Electric Chicken goes down easy...

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Are lobster going extinct?

This question is posed by Maine blogger and cartoonist Patrick Moening...along with his take on the reaction of biologists who study lobsters. The cartoon notes a 23% decline in the last year, the decline is 40% over the last couple of years. Uh-oh.

BTW, all those floats in the water are connected to lobster traps. I wonder how it would look underwater, say to a right whale swimming by?

Cartoon source: Mainecartoons.com Check out more of Patrick's cartoons, they're funny! Here's one more good one:

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