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LETTER: Demonstration fishery was based on false science

Fish biologist Mike Pearson says there is no evidence ‘coarse fish’ harm salmon populations
18383207_web1_pikeminnow.FILE-2009

This scapegoating really saddens me (re: “Demonstration fishery, Aug. 30, 2019, page four). There are many reasons our fisheries are in trouble, but there is only one species responsible — and it’s not a fish.

• READ MORE: Demonstration fishery puts lack of fishing opportunities on the Fraser in focus

There is no evidence whatsoever that “coarse fish” are harming salmonid or sturgeon populations. The statement that they eat millions of salmon eggs is made without any supporting evidence. In fact, any eggs they consume were not buried in gravel and were already doomed. “Coarse fish” are actually an important food source for adult sturgeon.

This just encourages people to hate indigenous species for no reason. There are lots of ways to make a political statement without killing a bunch of native fish that no one is going to eat.

Mike Pearson PhD, RPBio

Aquatic Ecologist