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SUMMARY: Anglers' self-restraint illustrates idea of short-term sacrifice for long-term benefits.

There aren't many instances where people's opportunity to play or do business is curtailed by government decree and the people gladly comply. That makes noteworthy the general support Montana anglers display toward fishing restrictions on area rivers, imposed to protect trout made vulnerable by the hot weather and warm water conditions.

Long reaches of the Clark Fork, Bitterroot, Gallatin, Madison, Yellowstone and other rivers have been temporarily closed to fishing between noon and midnight. Along with morning-only fishing restrictions on the Blackfoot River, closures of several key tributaries take effect tomorrow. These closures are triggered by water temperatures. As rivers drop and air temperatures rise, the water temperature can rise to levels that stress cold-water species like trout. Under such conditions, the normally survivable experience of being caught and released by an angler can be fatal.

Most fishermen know this. That's why you don't hear a lot of grumbling or read letters to the editor complaining about the closures. Their compliance with the temporary restrictions is no real surprise, since the very idea of temporary closures to protect fisheries in drought conditions was promoted by anglers. Absent mandatory closures, many fishermen practice self-restraint, limiting their fishing to times, places and conditions that won't have an adverse impact on their quarry. Very noteworthy, we'd add, is that the notion of restraint out of concern for the resource is generally championed by outfitters, guides and fishing shops - by the people who depend on fishing for their livelihoods.

In all of this, anglers display a remarkable focus on the long-term. They gladly make short-term sacrifices, confident that doing so will result in greater benefit over the long term.

Such attitudes and actions are common in American fish and wildlife conservation. Sportsmen have for generations promoted regulations, imposed taxes on themselves and made investments aimed at protecting fish and wildlife - and their habitat - first, ahead of their own, individual recreational endeavors.

You remember the “Tragedy of the Commons” parable, where over-use of commonly held resources led to their demise. Sportsmen today often prove there's a flip side to that parable. Call it the Triumph of the Commons.

Cooler weather won't be long in coming. When it does, we can all wet a line. More than likely, the fishing will be very good. It won't be by accident.

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