LOCAL fisherman and staunch supporter of all things ‘angling’, the late Ricky ‘Bear’ Owens will be honoured with the inaugural presentation of a trophy in his name, at this year’s Invitational Carp Comp.

Preparations are still swimming along to run the annual event for local angling clubs, after it was prevented from running the last weekend due to weather conditions.

Former Dartmoor fishing club president, Bear, who passed away earlier this year, was a friend of the Glenelg River and staunch advocate for carp eradication, going to great efforts to tackle the issue of the invasive species impacting waterways.

To that end, the fishing club which catches the most carp over the competition’s weekend – making the greatest contribution to reducing numbers in the Glenelg River, will be awarded the newly-christened ‘Ricky (Bear) Owens Memorial Redgum Shield’ and Mr Owens’ family will be hosting a free sausage sizzle after the event.

In addition to Bear’s trophy and epic bragging rights, $2000 in cash prizes are up for grabs, including $1000 for the first tagged carp caught, $200 for the longest carp caught and individual prizes of $200 for top catches in women’s, men’s, junior girls’ and junior boys’ sections.

The Casterton Angling Society’s Brian Murrell said turning an effort against an aquatic pest into a competition made it an attraction for local anglers.

“It just attracts more people – an incentive for them to come along, plus it’s a good social weekend,” he said.

Run annually since 2014, the competition is only open to members of invited angling clubs in the region, as far south as Portland and as far north as Apsley, to ensure the fishing site at Warrock is not overcrowded.

Carp is a pest species introduced to Australian waterways more than 100 years ago, which has a significant impact on local ecosystems.

Not only do they compete with native species for food, but their feeding habits – which involve sucking up the mud and dirt from the bottom, sifting through it and spitting it back out – affect the quality of the water and make it less suitable for its other inhabitants.

“It’s pretty well known what they do, how they impact the waterways,” Mr Murrell said.

“We need to try and keep tackling them – keep the numbers down.”

Carp competitions are regularly held across the country, not just for their sporting benefits, but to contribute to control efforts.

The local competition is sponsored by the Glenelg Hopkins Catchment Management Authority, as part of its efforts to manage carp numbers in the Glenelg River and its associated catchment.

This year’s carp competition will be held at the Casterton Angling Society’s home ground, ‘The Angling Block’, next Saturday and Sunday, Nov 19 and Sunday 20.