Trash fish or Forage?

[OscodaAsh]

I've notice that quite a few perch fisherman take the small whitebass they catch and leave them on the ice. Is is a good thing? Due you guys feel that they are a trash fish? It seems to me that these fish could be great forage for the big walleye's in the bay. Also, isn't that illegal to leave them on the ice since they are actually a game fish? Just wondering your feelings on this.

[adam bomb]

i think its a waste anytime someone deliberately leaves a fish of any size/species laying on the ice or on the shore to die. its a waste of a resorce, gives the sport a black eye, and its illegal. its called WANTON WASTE. if ya dont want to eat it, throw it back. all the species that inhabit the great lakes, that arent evasive species, each play a role in the overall health of the bay. so, if ya dont want it, THROW IT BACK !! :mad: ...its the right thing to do.;) ....i see this all the time with small perch, and their not considered a "trash fish" in michigan last time i checked. so, it isnt just "undesirable" species.

[stinger63]

I never understood the mentality of people leaving small fish on the ice to die.Small fish make bigger fish:rant:

[walleyeman2006]

gobys zebra mucles and carp should be removed ,,,if i catch a carp i take it home and use it for fertilizer or possable smoking if its small..but i still dont leave fish lay to rot for the next person to walk through....usually the guys that leave yellow perch lay and the same ones griping theres nothing around but small ones

[dr.duke]

Any fish you should take should be used for food, if not return it to the water and the cycle of life. The maddest I ever made my father was when I shot a sparrow with my BB gun. He told me, "if you take a creature's life, you better eat it." I still live by those words. Our place in the food chain is dependant on our conservation of those species below us, we need to respec that.

[tedshunter]

Usually the guys that leave yellow perch lay and the same ones griping theres nothing around but small ones.{Quote}That is the truth.I tell them like it is when I see that crap.I tell them to trow them back then maybe someday he could come out and catch Perch and not have to sort through 100+ fish to get a meal.Nothing I mean NOTHING get's me more upset to see a bunch of small perch left to die on the ice and I was'nt there to give that person an earfull.