What did I catch

I had a small ( about a pound) trout on the trent yesterday and don't know what kind it was. It was multi coloured with big black spots on its side.

Can any one explain the diference between a brown/rainbow to me, or point me towards a web site that can.

Simple.

A rainbow trout has spots on its tail fin.

In addition it has a reddish flash down its flanks. It also has much smaller teeth in its mouth than the brown, and a tendency to jump when you hook it.

"Big Black Spots"

Sounds like a brownie to me.

Would it have been legal/safe to eat?

Yes it would be fine. But better to return it to reproduce. people are always asking me why we don't eat the fish we catch. I inform them that is we all took ust one fish a year thats nearly 2 million fish that need replacing.

You have to be careful with that answer Byran.

The antis believe that catching and releasing fish is cruel.

I would'nt have took it anyway, I was just curious. No way I could have clobbered it, was one of the nicest looking fish I,ve ever had.

would it have been a proper wild fish?

We can not win that one with them. If we replace them its cruel. If we take them there will be no fish. I think its better to replace for others to enjoy.

On that point Byron I would like to resurrect this thread.

I read a very interesting letter in a recent issue of a game fishing magazine. Some of the comments are worthy of note.

"Catch and release has become a thoughtless process employed by those who consider the death of an individual fish to be cruel and unnecessary. It has become a product of woolly minded thinking by, largely, urban visitors to the countryside. In the natural world, animals die so that others may live. The loss of the individual is of no matter to the race or species, in fact it is very often beneficial and necessary.

For anglers to set up catch and release as some sort of religion to support their own lack of desire to kill and eat their prey, and to justify their desire to use living creatures as playthings, is little more than human conceit."

Interesting stuff methinks.