10-05-2005, 12:06 PM
[cool][#0000ff]Yes, tilapia are an important commercial food fish in this country now. Although they grow to several pounds, the most popular size for packaging in the market is something under 12".[/#0000ff]
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The tilapia is an import from Africa, which lives only where the water remains above about 50 degrees. They hit a variety of natural baits and small lures.[/size]
[#0000ff]Utah is one of the only states in the union to NOT allow the use of corn as bait...even for carp. They also do not allow "chumming" or baiting an area to draw in fish. Those regulations go way back to the days when trout fishermen on some of the popular trout lakes in Utah would throw out large quantities of canned corn around their boats as chum. In some areas the corn piled up several inches deep on the bottom of the lake and degraded the water quality.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]At least, that is the story. In reality, I suspect it was just another law to protect the "hatchery pets" (rainbows). Our fisheries people have always been prone to make laws to protect their precious darlings. Heck, we can't even use live minnows in this state.[/#0000ff]
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The tilapia is an import from Africa, which lives only where the water remains above about 50 degrees. They hit a variety of natural baits and small lures.[/size]
[#0000ff]Utah is one of the only states in the union to NOT allow the use of corn as bait...even for carp. They also do not allow "chumming" or baiting an area to draw in fish. Those regulations go way back to the days when trout fishermen on some of the popular trout lakes in Utah would throw out large quantities of canned corn around their boats as chum. In some areas the corn piled up several inches deep on the bottom of the lake and degraded the water quality.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]At least, that is the story. In reality, I suspect it was just another law to protect the "hatchery pets" (rainbows). Our fisheries people have always been prone to make laws to protect their precious darlings. Heck, we can't even use live minnows in this state.[/#0000ff]
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