Man ponders paddlefish as friend looks on
Shown above, an unknown fisherman gazes at a paddlefish he caught in West Virginia, Paul Bender of WCHS TV reports.
Due to dam construction and pollution, paddlefish almost disappeared from West Virginia waters, but due to aggressive hatchery work they're on the rebound. At the moment in that state you have to throw them back.
However, you are still allowed to play them like guitars if you so wish.
And, courtesy of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, here's a picture of a paddlefish (Polyodon spathula) in a rather uncomfortable position:
Luckily, it's said that these fish do not store mercury. That page also has a couple pictures of guys loading them into their truck. Here's a fingerling. Here's a 1917 Iowa photo. We're also informed that these prehistoric beasts wander the mighty Mississippi oblivious to jurisdictional and state lines, although our public servants are no doubt assiduously working on correcting that deficiency. Here's Kyle R. Piller, Ph.D. with a medium sized paddlefish. And, here's a report from Texas/Oklahoma. View the rules for Missouri snagging. A representative of the Green Bay Ecological Services Office is here.
There's a study project on them here. A brochure can be downloaded from here. The Chinese version doesn't appear to be related, since it's apparently named the Psephurus gladius.
And, finally, in non-paddlefish news, here's a picture of someone who appears to be very, very happy with his catch.
