Don't Throw Your Leftover Bait Away in the Lake!!!!!

[ibcamn]

Its being reported on South Fork Resort's Blog that several people have now seen Asian Carp in Mark Twain Lake. This will be a horrible blow to the lake. It could have been avoided, but it's now too late, if the reports are true. Once that gate is opened up, there's no closing it.
Very, very sad development.

[vic n]

Agents are trying to do spot checks at bait shops, but the shop owners have to do their part by not purchasing certified bait. And anyone who goes out and seines their own bait is seining asian carp. I know guys say it is their right to seine minnows, but they are ruining our lakes.

[perchplucker]

I hope they are mistaken. We bring all our minnows home and put them in our pond. Small pond we use just for minnows. Haven't had Asian Carp show up yet. Young Asian carp don't look anything like regular minnows. I hope those were big drum they saw and not the carp.

[ibcamn]

I hope they're wrong as well...we plan on retiring in Perry and spending the rest of our lives fishing this lake...it would really be a shame.

[south point]

I Hope these reports are wrong, but all it will take is one guy who doesn't know better, to Seine some "minnows" out of pretty much any creek near any of our major rivers. Even if he doesn't dump his left over bait, there will be a few that either slip out of his hand and make it in or maybe even one that gets off the hook but somehow manages to survive.
One person made a comment on the south forks blog, something like every time he bumped the trolling motor, small fish would jump out of the water. Another made a comment that they were hanging out in a school, just under the surface. I have spent a lot of time bowfishing, mostly for silvers, and this is exactly the type behavior I see in Asians.
As much as those comments bother me, some friends of mine bow fish there and haven't run into any silvers, yet. If they are in there you can bet it won't long and someone will show proof.

[CrappieHead]

Agents are trying to do spot checks at bait shops, but the shop owners have to do their part by not purchasing certified bait. And anyone who goes out and seines their own bait is seining asian carp. I know guys say it is their right to seine minnows, but they are ruining our lakes.

Why is it bad to seining for minnows in the same lake you will be fishing? I do not seine for minnows, buy mine.

[LOzark]

I think you might be freakin'out for nothing. Asian carp are a riverine fish, they need steady current for long distances to reproduce. As far as I know there are no "lakes" with an Asian carp "problem".

Free flowing Rivers connected to the Missouri and Mississippi will likely be the extent of the invasion. A small population may exist in the upper reaches of reservoirs but I don't think they'll ever be a problem.

[going deep]

They are probably just shad jumping. I seen this happen several times fishing truman last week they would jump out of the water when I hit the trolling motor.

[Semo]

"LOzark

I think you might be freakin'out for nothing. Asian carp are a riverine fish, they need steady current for long distances to reproduce. As far as I know there are no "lakes" with an Asian carp "problem".

Free flowing Rivers connected to the Missouri and Mississippi will likely be the extent of the invasion. A small population may exist in the upper reaches of reservoirs but I don't think they'll ever be a problem."

Reelfoot Lake is a prime example of this being a problem. This 40lb Asian carp jumped over the back of my boat, cleared the motor and back deck completely, and landed between the seats. If it ad landed on someone it would have been a much worse problem. Reelfoot is 40 miles upstream, of the Obion river, from the Missisippi. With this lake being a fishing lake and not a recreation lake, its less of a problem, but I would never pull my kids on an innertube or let them ski on a lake with Asian carp. That recreation is a huge summer income for most inland lakes like MT..

[Hank,J]

The problem is not so much guys buying minnows and dumping them. The carp got into a lot of places when ponds that had been stocked with "grass" carp flooded and they got into places no one thought about, Rend Lake for example.