The spring season came to an end on the Delger Murun River.  We have had an unusual weather pattern resulting in a higher amount of rain and even a little snow.  The river was quick to muddy up this year which is something we have never seen before.  From talking with locals and Fish Mongolia staff it appears that extreme overgrazing upstream is the probable culprit.  In speaking with folks in Ulaanbaatar and locals in Khovsgol Aimag instances of taimen poaching seem to be on the rise.  Unfortunately, we found evidence of poaching along the Delger Murun as well.  A flood washed the remnants of a gill net into the bushes along the bank.  

This photo shows the devastating effects of a similar net, which are becoming more and more common in Mongolia. A Mongolian angler in UB shared this photo with me, so the location of the picture is unknown, but my guess is the river may be in Khovsgol Aimag, most probably the Ider River. This river was highlighted in the fly fishing movie SOULFISH (http://burlproductions.com/SOULpage.htm). 

This series follows University of Montana graduate student Dan Bailey as he travels the wilds of Mongolia to survey and tag Taimen, the world’s largest trout.  Dan is posting to the Club EcoBlu blog as he assists with the Taimen Conservation Project . Taimen are highly endangered, have been known to grow to 6-ft long and more than 200 lbs.  The information gathered will aid in drafting a conservation plan to protect this megafish.  Trout Headwaters, Inc. is a sponsor of the project.