Dogfish,
Hope your not talking about my post.
Nor do I have a problem with bonking any wild fish if the runs are healthy. But the bad news is none of our wild runs are healthy. Healthy meaning up to historical levels. In my opinion none of our fish runs are even close to a healthy status, they wont be healthy untill the river's are so full with wild salmon you could walk across them. At this point our rivers are producing the minimum of their potential and are harvested to the maximum of their output. that means only the minimum is left to replenish itself. One bad thing happens or the numbers were inflated and we are in trouble. There is no room for mistakes or mishaps because the fish runs are pushed to the limit already. One year with floods or drouts or over harvest can do a run in. That is the point we have all pushed it to.
All these good hatchery salmon runs we are having are BS. In my opinion its a total waste and hurting the wild runs. Sure its fun for us to have an oportunity to go after these fish and eat a few but at the same time its putting stress on depressed wild stocks by incidental catch by sporties and nets.
Plain and simple hatchery salmon and steelhead dont do wild salmon and steelhead a bit of good.
The fact is without the wild fish you have nothin but dead rivers.