Posted by Dr Andy S Leggett on April 25, 2002 at 09:11:39:
In Reply to: Re: Shark Slaughter posted by Local sportfishman on April 25, 2002 at 07:42:45:
Your narrow-minded, selfish, exploitative response does nothing to enhance the image of sport fishermen who visit this island.
Many Captains and owners are intelligent men who understand that a healthy shark population is necessary if a healthy sport fish population is to be maintained. They recognise that there are myriad direct and indirect causal relationships between all marine creatures, and that the over-exploitation of one species will have an effect both on other individual species and the marine habitat as a whole. These are the people who support catch and release programmes, who whilst frustrated at sharks taking fish from their lines accept that the sharks are a necessary annoyance, who will release sharks that they catch rather than shooting them. These are the people who are ambassadors of the sport.
Unfortunately there also exist many captains and owners like yourself. Men who are either ignorant of the complex relationships that exist between marine creatures, or who are aware of them but selfishly ignore them. People like you give sport fishing a bad name.
The marine environment and its inhabitants can only take so much abuse. But I guess you really couln't give a damn so long as you can catch snapper off the dock without competition from a shark.