That's true. But it's not the issue here. Fishdoc and some others are missing the point I think. In buying eggs from non-Indian and Indian gillnetters you are supporting their activities with both a vote and dollars. This creates more dead fish that you keep refereing to as inevitable dead fish. But as I've presented in other netting issue threads, I don't mind the Indians getting their Federal Court mandated 50% share of fish. But all of us mind them getting much more than that. Those issues are discussed in Salmo G.'s good 'Solutions' thread, and in one of my netting threads, so don't need repeating here. What I think a boycott of buying netted eggs does is send the message that a large part of the populace is against gillnets that take native fish. And it takes away the hypocritical image of sportsmen.

As for the eggs you see being bought at tackle shops and from bait dealers, they are a majority of excess eggs purchased from hatcheries. This money helps fund hatchery improvements. The comm. netters mostly sell the eggs to dealers of overseas markets for caviar. They get more money from those sales than from the flesh sales. The Indians sell eggs roadside to fishermen.

And I agree that properly rigged sandshrimp tails along with colored yarn and/or corkies are on the same general level of catching steelhead that eggs are. Close enough anyway. And there has been an over abundance of sport caught hatchery salmon and steelhead hens for having some eggs to use anyway. I also find it somewhat more sporting and fun to try different non bait lures to catch these fish. That's just how I fish. Might catch a few less, but it's sure fun to feel or see a hard bobber down when fishing with a jig or pink worm, for example. Lots of other very productive lures to use also. ... My 0.02 opinion