TAUPO TROUT

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 122, 17 February 1920, Page 8

TAUPO TROUT

Sir,—ln the interests' of fishermen and others, we tvisli to make public certain things regarding tho trout iii Liko Taxipo. During the Inst few weeks there have been several articles in your paper regarding the deterioration of trout, including a long statement from the Internal Ait'airs Department. The opinion of the Department is plain and, definite. ■ They maintain that there are too many trout in Lake Taupo, the cause of deterioration of. the fish being lack of food. To rectify this they have started to not on a vigorous scale, the object-' being to reduco the number of fish so that' tlm trout that arc left will have a sufficiency of food, Now, Sir, we aro quite sure that the Government's experts are' in ■ error, and consequently the Departments policy is wrong. The cause of deterioration is inbreeding—that and nothing' else; If food is scarce, how is id that beautiful fat', fisli are caught every day? They are not i nearly bo big lis they used to be several year.; ago, but for their sine they >iru just as fat. With regard to the "slabs" that are caught, these are either inbred or old, worn-out fish. To remedy this, fresh ova must bo introduced into the lake. If the Government experts were to make a 1 closer study of the fish in Lake Taupo, they would come to the conclusion that netting is a waste of time and public money. At present tie trout are {retting .reduced at an enormous rate, so fast, indeed, that there is ; a chance of them being exterminated altogether, uud the Department, by netting) is helping towards this end. Tho cause is a small fisli, two or three inches ;long, sandycoloured, with broad black stripes running across the back. So far, we have been unable to name it. ' The Maoris arc also unacquainted with it. This littlo fish has an enormous appetjto which it satisfied with trout eggs. Not only that, but it eats small trout soon after they aTe born. This was discovered and proved conclusively by opening up ft number of these small fish. Inside were trout ova, and in ,«ome of ths larger ones tiny young trout. Now, Sir, there are not thousands of these small, sandy-coloured fish in the lake, but million. 1 ;. They can besoen in . swarm's everywhere, principally in shallow water and up streams. ■ It is a mystery how they came into the lake, but they aro increasing to an. alarming, extent. If their main diet coijsists of trout ova and newly-born Irout, how long will it be before Lake Taupo loses its name lor beiii# the finest trout-fish-ing ground in the world?—Wo are, etc., MARSHALL, RYAN & CO., LT>Taupo. Taupo, February 5.