Day 223: The Sundews are back! Their floating island/raft is still in place at the location where it came to rest after a storm last fall, and although it's shaded for most of the day, the colony seems to be doing quite well.
I have so much to learn about this fascinating plant! When I checked on the island exactly a month ago (April 13), there was no sign of Drosera growth on the logs. I did not know what to expect after the relocation, but I figured whatever happened, the Sundews had undoubtedly survived similar episodes and alterations in exposure and it was now up to me to document any changes that might occur. Interesting to note is the fact that there are none on the log where I first discovered them, the log still in place at the north end of Sundew Arm.
This, of course, was my main reason for going out on Lake St. Clair today: checking on my babies. I also found another paddle cache and did some fishing, which is to say that I caught and released an amazing twenty-eight trout in the 11-14" range!
Would you comment in a future post about your fishing. I gather you don't eat the trout (I don't fish and don't know if there are any rules involved...) and wonder why you would fish? Why hurt the fish for??? Sport? Curious. Wondering.
ReplyDeleteI used to do a lot of fly-fishing before I met the man who became my fishing buddy and one of my best friends. I enjoyed the taste of native fish, but I also enjoyed catching them, so my policy was "keep enough for dinner and let the rest go." However, my fishing buddy is substantially older than I am and couldn't navigate the slick rocks in streams or hike into the alpine lakes where native fish are prevalent. He doesn't mind the taste of hatchery-raised fish (I think they taste like PowerBait), so we fished together with bait, and I usually sent mine home with him. Now that he's no longer able to fish, I'm on my own again, hence the catch-and-release. The fish I've been catching lately are all hatchery-grown. They are the product of what is referred to as a "put-and-take" fishery program instituted by the Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. They are largely doomed, one way or another. The ones I hook and put back may actually stand a better chance of survival because they've learned to be a bit more cautious. I don't mean that to sound glib, but you have to agree it's better to swim away with a sore mouth than wind up in a frying pan.
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