Silent Ocelot
Well-known member
Thank you @jifigz. That was a good response and I agree that bow fishing for trout would be pretty non-sensical (it could work for steelhead though). I guess what I meant to say is that if bow fishing for trout were legal how would trout lovers perceive it as opposed to the other species that are hunted with a bow such as carp, which is really the only species I know of that people go after but I'm sure there is more and I suspect you could legally do it for catfish and snakehead, especially with the kill-on-site policy for snakehead.2) Bow-fishing for brown trout is a pretty dumb idea and wouldn't gain traction easily at all. The reason why? Brown Trout are much harder to wait on and spy than most all fish. Trout are stealthy, they hang out in riffles where you can't see them, etc. Certain streams this could be possible, but most streams no way. You aren't going to see the trout often enough or good enough 99% of the time for it to become a pastime. People want to shoot stuff, and they wouldn't get to shoot enough trout to keep the entertainment high. Plus, the public's view of trout would probably keep some from doing it.
3) A mandatory catch and kill on some streams for brownies would be a good idea and some folks would participate, some wouldn't. Small streams that are mixed populations would definitely be a viable management option to help give brookies the edge and I would support the regulation on certain waters. On other streams that are large and fully dominated by browns, then no way, I think it is a bad idea..
I agree with leaving the larger streams to the brown trout as eradicating them would be silly and impossible save for dropping a nuke in the creek.