huge gar

[Me-Ki-Gal]

*looks around nervously*
Um, you do know what I am, right?

*Pulls up asbestos underwear*

I don't think gar is usually eaten...I mean, if they eat the fish, that's different. But I find killing stuff for trophies alone...kinda revolting.

No Worries Chimpkin . We will burn them first . Cook em with the fish fry. Me I don't go in for trophy hunting or fishing . I do it for the meat . Me buddy caught a 50 pound cat fish and gave it to Me one time . I cleaned it and cooked it . Tasted like mud from the bottom of the slew . Nasty , Could not eat it . Ended up in the garden as fertilizer . Nasty . It was yellow in skin color . I don't think it was a channel cat , but don't know for sure . That one could go back in the water next time . Nasty

 

[MacGyver1968]

story doesnt give much information if it was caught in a river as long as water is passing over his gills he would live

couple things here 1 if you fished youd know you can grab a large toothed fish by the gills and pull it aboard this usually does not hurt the fish

There's a video of an interview with the fisherman...the fish was alive when caught. I am a fisherman, and I do know you can pick up a fish that way...I'm just saying I wouldn't pick up an huge alligator gar that way. Obviously the guy has bigger balls than me. That's why I proposed the fish may have already been dead when pulled into the boat.

Edit: Something I read in another article about this catch:

Editor’s Note: Alligator gar stories often cross our desk, and we generally refrain from publishing them because too often these amazing, prehistoric fish are caught and killed for nothing but a trophy photo. This story is an exception; the record gar in these photos became tangled in a net and was beyond recovery when a fisherman hauled it in.

Still want to shoot the guy?

2 lets assume theres is only 100lbs of meat on there no way anyone could eat all of that

You have heard of these new modern inventions called "freezers" haven't you? They're really cool. (literally) You can actually freeze food and eat it weeks or even months later.

 

[Cifo]

problem is why kill the biggest one ever documented?

I think I know what you mean. Humans seem to have a "trophy [fill-in-the-blank*]" mentality along with a king-of-the-animals mentality that simply begs people to capture/kill/eat/etc the largest of anything.

* Examples: husband, wife, fish, deer, elephant, tomato, pumpkin, wild boar, etc.

Now here's a BIG wild boar (and the 11yo kid who shot it):

Fox News

 

[chimpkin]

Wild boar shred up the environment for other animals; their rooting destroys grazing for native animals and domestic grazers.
And they reproduce like crazy
Very good argument for making menu items of them.

 

[Orleander]

If the big ones don't die, young ones have a harder time adding their genetic matl to the gene pool.
Its just a fish.

 

[Me-Ki-Gal]

If the big ones don't die, young ones have a harder time adding their genetic matl to the gene pool.
Its just a fish.

The bigger fish are the breeders . That is why there are size restrictions on some of the game fish . Here in Montana the general rule ( as it takes an attorney to interpret regulations around here ) is one fish over 18 inches cause that is the brooding stock . West Coast Sturgeon is the same way . There are size minimums too in some species. Like Strip bass you might have to catch one over 18 inches to keep it . Fish and Game does a pretty good job of evaluating fish populations and change the regs to fit the conditions . They typically lag 2 years behind thou as the scientist to rule change is slow . Red tape is a bitch

 

[MacGyver1968]

I guess scifreak should have done a little more research on this fish before he called for the execution of the people that caught it.