" no polish fishermen "

the obligitory synopsis :



an idiot has errected a sign at his fishery - that says " no polish or eastern bloc fishermen allowed "

his alledged " justification " for this is the claim that :

" eastern europeans habitually remove coarse species for consumption "

a pissed off pole is now suing him - and the legal authorities are also taking an interest in the case

reportage

just WTF ???

i have no idea how this sign is going to prevent fish theft

yes - it is a cultural norm to eat coarse fish in certain countries - but if its pointed out to people - that such practice is banned in most UK fisheries - then most comply

and more important - those that wont - will not take any notice of a " no poles " sign

What is a "course" fish?

I once went camping with a group of Eastern Europeans. We only caught carp, they cooked them up and it tasted amazing

a reply to: ignorant_ape

replying to sef - cos forgot one point :

most UK coarse fishing waters already have signs or clauses in the rules // permits that state :

" all fish must be returned to the water alive "

a reply to: ignorant_ape
I take it that this is an older man. "Eastern bloc" is an expression dating from the days when the Iron Curtain was still standing.

a reply to: Kalixi

the simplistic answer = :

" game fish " = trout , salmon

" coarse fish " = all other freshwater species

i haveeaten pike " as an experiment " - it was caught durring a cull

but lkie i say - most british fishermen return everything except trout and salmon to the water alive

caveat :

eels are an exception

and culls of pike and zander are common [ but its still rare to eat them ]

a reply to: ignorant_ape

oh that evil Eastern Europe, first they taking the jobs, then they taking all the benefits now the fish??? Can't have that...
How stupid this nation is becoming slowly?

Wait...so Brits dont eat bass, catfish, pike, etc?


What is wrong with you people? Its delicious

a reply to: ignorant_ape
In 1972 I had a vacation job at a riverside pub in East Anglia, and still remember the morning spent serving the annual meeting of the Pike and Eel Club (pink gin by the gallon). Evidently they at least regarded the two fish as on the same level.

It is not illegal to take fish from many fisheries.

If people take the legal amout:

1 pike (up to 65cm)
2 grayling (30cm to 38cm)
15 small fish (up to 20cm) including barbel, chub, common bream, common carp, crucian carp, dace, perch, rudd, silver bream, roach, smelt and tench

Then fish stocks will be decimated.

It is also true that the Brits don't take the fish, Africans don't take the fish, Asians (full spectrum) don't take the fish.... It is the eastern Europeans who mostly take the fish.

But not all of them.

However.... It really pisses me off when I see them take fish, when confronted they do not give a sh*t.

So I understand why this sign has been erected but it may not be the best approach.

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
Wait...so Brits dont eat bass, catfish, pike, etc?


What is wrong with you people? Its delicious

We don't have bass (except in the sea) and catfish are normally in privately stocked ponds, specifically the wells catfish. Some are found in canals now since their introduction.

We're funny with fish, the eastern europeans eat pike, perch, carp - everything really. We're much more picky and tend to stick to trout and salmon from the fresh water.

The problem in UK is anglers are very passionate and care dearly for the fish. For example we have perch, which are similar to your bass - but if a photo online shows a UK angler holding a perch by the lower jaw like the Americans do... all hell breaks loose.
We have mats to unhook our fish and squash barbs on our hooks so they are easy to unhook and cause less damage. Catch and release is a big thing here and in my opinion is enviable.

However if we fish to eat, like fly fishing for trout then these ideas go out of the window. However in most places stocks are still tightly controlled.

a reply to: and14263


I completely agree. It seems to be a culture thing. They use fixed lines which is illegal and fish solely for the pot and they can decimate fish stocks which greatly annoys anglers like me. I have seen this for myself on waters that are private where they have no right to be there in the first place.

I fish for carp which can get quite large and can be quite old. On many waters the carp have names. It costs a lot of money to replace lost stock.

We use padded unhooking mats, carry special antiseptic kits to treat any wounds (from spawning, etc) and take the greatest care of the fish we catch. I even take off my watch and rings when handling fish.

What with this and otters taking apart many waters it is a problem. At my local club lake members can ask to see the club book of anyone they find fishing and if they don't have one they can ask them to leave. I have heard of this getting a violent reaction.

Carp is a bit of a staple for a lot of Eastern Europeans.
I know quite a few people who have gotten into rows with Romanians etc who were killing and taking fish.
I don't think it was a good idea banning specific nationalities as he is now getting sued, but there is definitely a problem with them as a group refusing to release what they catch.

a reply to: SprocketUK


I think in Germany they have Carp at Christmas. Never have tried it myself and never would but I can confirm that Pike tastes like dead birds with added pointy bones. Not nice but then in France it is a delicacy (but then the French will eat anything).

A bit off topic, but I have always found it odd that my fellow countrymen make fun of the French because they eat snails but see nothing odd about eating whelks, which are basically sea going snails anyway. And if prawns lived on land and you found one scuttling around your living room would you even think about eating one?

I agree that it was not the best of ideas banning specific nationalities as clearly he is out of order on that score.

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
Wait...so Brits dont eat bass, catfish, pike, etc?
What is wrong with you people? Its delicious

Yup...to a North American, this is a bit of a weird discussion. Mind you, I did throw back my 9 1/2 lb pickerel a couple of years back.

a reply to: JohnnyCanuck

yeah. Well, pickerel's have nothing on Rainbow Trout. : )

a reply to: JohnnyCanuck


You threw it back? I hope you mean that you carefully put it back in the water after carefully unhooking it on a padded mat and then let it go when it had recovered and was ready to swim off....

a reply to: oldcarpy

I have eaten pike and it was lovely. zander also, when I used to fish a lot killing zander was actually part of the rules for that stretch. Not sure if it still is though.


Eels are gorgeous eating. That's about it for me and coarse fish, though my granddad used to tell me how much he liked perch when he was a kid, but that may have been the side effect of catching them himself.


I notice a lot of trout fisheries have gone catch and release in recent years, and, much as I would love to eat a nice, wild brown I was never able to bring myself to reach for the priest when I caught one.
I love snails, I even bought a big at of coquilles so they look right when I serve them up

Anyway, the French don't call us Les Rosbifs for nothing

a reply to: SprocketUK


Eels I like too, jellied eels not so much.

I fish for Sea Bass also and though I take the odd one for the pot I mostly do catch and release. My fellow fishermen on the boat often give me funny looks but the skipper is all for it. The same with mackerel.

originally posted by: oldcarpy
a reply to: SprocketUK


Eels I like too, jellied eels not so much.

I fish for Sea Bass also and though I take the odd one for the pot I mostly do catch and release. My fellow fishermen on the boat often give me funny looks but the skipper is all for it. The same with mackerel.

You ever tried smoked eel? Absolutely gorgeous.
I love Mackerel too and always take a few for the Barbie when I catch some. One day I plan on taking a fly rod to try and catch them on, cos they fight like buggery and it should be a lot of fun catching one on light gear.

Well I can't say much about sea food as I absolutely hate it, I don't mind being around sea food or go to fish markets .. the smell is horrible but I can deal with it

I'm from the UK and I fish in lakes around my area. I understand people when they say "you catch the fish and let it go? You don't eat it?" Because at the end of the day that's what fishing use to be you were catching your dinner. Fishing is an odd game here in the U.K. you can go sea fishing catch what you want and bring it home for dinner. However fishing in lakes, especially private lakes the lake owners go to extra lengths and spend a lot of money importing or buying fish to stock their lakes. So you have to understand why lake owners don't want their fish being taken out and eaten. Not only that the lakes are the owners business, anglers don't want to go to lakes with no fish in, if the owner has no fish then their business will vanish

When I fish I enjoy the fight on the end of the line and the reward when you finally net the fish and get it on the bank.

Some lakes I have been to have had the odd 'Eastern European' anglers and they haven't been a problem, whether or not the owners keep and eye on them I don't know.

As regards to th sign, perhaps the owner needs to keep better check on the anglers putting that sign up is a little naughty though. I've became good friends with a few Europeans over the years who like to fish and they are all good people