Thursday, February 12, 2009

Brown Trout

Brown Trout
Oil on Canvas by Melissa March

The play of light, the hidden life, the grace, and the fascinating inclusions of colour, are just a few things that make fish one of my favorite subjects. Their beauty is really something to behold.

There are only a few places on Vancouver Island that these creatures dwell, and I have never caught one.... which might be why I like to paint them so much. Painting them allows me to inspect them closely, and marvel at their arresting magnificence. It's a way to stroke their glimmering flesh, and dive deep into the vivid, speckled patterns, laid with precision across each scale.

I am in awe of them.

Brown Trout are a species that were introduced to Canadian waters around the turn of the century.

They are incompatible with native species such as Cutthroat Trout and Gila Trout. The protection of native species requires segregation of them from Brown Trout.

WHAT ARE THE ECOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES?

Alien species are the second greatest threat to biodiversity, after habitat loss and degradation. When alien species move in, native species' populations often decrease in parts of their natural range. In the worst-case scenario, the native species become extinct. The number of plant and animal species may remain the same in an area, as common or widespread species replace unique, local species, but the integrity and vitality of natural ecosystems is damaged.

Alien species affect native species through: competition for limited resources including space, light, moisture, food, breeding sites and pollinators; predation.

For more info see:
Ministry of Fisheries
http://www.env.gov.bc.ca

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