Irresponsible fishermen endangering local wildlife in The Woodlands

THE WOODLANDS, Texas - Professional bass fishermen like Kevin VanDam, the No. 1 angler in the world, and Texas' Todd Faircloth, will tell you that true anglers take care of their equipment and take care of the environment, and not necessarily in that order. If the environment is not treated with respect, then the sport of fishing won’t be available.

That’s why it’s disturbing to residents in The Woodlands when they find discarded fishing line and lures left behind by careless fishermen, that’s harmful to the environment. One resident, Randy Scott, found a duck he’s affectionately named Lu, entangled in fishing line which was knotted tightly around her webbed feet and leg.

He provided the details on his Facebook page, where he frequently blogs about Lu and the other ducks she swims with.

“Lu got caught up in this today on the pond. The kid yesterday broke his line and walked away from it. Gonna have to watch the fishermen closer,” posted Scott. “Poor duck was scared and the rest of them were concerned, and glad I came to check on them. Lu was upset but let me do whatever I needed to do. She did not fight at all while I worked the string off of her foot. No knife. Had to unravel it. It was all knotted up tightly around her toes and leg,” Scott added.

Two days earlier he found another wad of filament fishing line with hooks and lures still attached. Scott’s Facebook friends were equally disturbed based on their comments.

In addition to the local wildlife, children play around the lakes in The Woodlands and may get hurt from the hooks on the lures, which could require a tetanus shot. In conversation with Scott, he was adamant in stating that whomever was leaving fishing trash behind, needed to be more responsible.

Local fisherman, Jim Copeland, who has been successfully fishing Lake Conroe for Largemouth bass and the hybrid striped bass for over 35 years, in addition to the area’s other lakes and ponds, was incensed upon seeing the photos.

“This isn’t our habitat, it’s theirs. We’re privileged to be allowed to fish it.”

Copeland states that he’s thrown back more fish than he’s ever kept in order to keep the lakes stocked with fish, but he’s never thrown his fishing trash into the lake.

“If you don’t throw your trash out your car window, why would you throw your used fishing line in the lake? A true fisherman wouldn’t do that,” said Copeland.

With a nice break in the wet weather, more residents will be enjoying the lakes and ponds in the community. Those fishing them are asked to dispose of their fishing line and trash responsibly for the safety of others and the wildlife.

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