I am going to stick to my guns on this one though and prefer to spear without scuba equip, as for me the fun is in challenging myself.
I prefer to freedive too, but I'm just not condemning those who use scuba.
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I am going to stick to my guns on this one though and prefer to spear without scuba equip, as for me the fun is in challenging myself.
I have hunted on scuba. I say nothing about others but I will never do it again.
I think a quota system , if respected also in place for every one, may have prevent what happen in those places. We have that in Alaska, you can only take 5 black rock fish no matter how you fish, scuba, line, free dive. Two halibut, etc
There are the same regs for all methods of fishing here in Florida, unfortunately those spearing on either scuba or without are not allowed to shoot many great species (i.e. pompano, permit, tuna, snook, billfish etc.) Maybe scuba spearos and freedive spearos should be working together to try and change that and keep more fish off that growing list. The hook and line guys want to keep all the fish to themselves they are of way more concern then the scuba guys.
Guys diving 200 ft plus down to wrecks are earning the right to shoot those big fish by all the training, money, equipment and time they spend to get there and it's a job for them. They aren't out on charter boats, they have their own..... getting into Porches? They are lucky if they make a decent living paying the gas to go 100 miles out (Gulf) and bring home enough fish to cover their nut and live on. Those are the guys who post those pics of the big monsters. They are a community and like to post their catches and share them with other spearos commercial and not. Does that make them less of a sportsman? Well they'll admit it's not as big a thrill shooting fish day after day as when they started for fun, but a lot of them go on dive vacations (breathhold) for their holidays. Again Robbo you admitted you don't know anyone who spears on scuba so don't stereotype them everyone is different.
Respectfully, Jim
You managed to omit the minor factor of the difficulty in 'holding your breath' in your hunter/bow/gun analogy.
Scuba does harm the population...the fish population ......as was indicated by Spaniard. Hence it's been banned in many countries in Europe.
It's nothing to do with being a purist, it's to do with being ethical and both in terms of the environment and the sport.
Bill
Is there a quota system in California ?
I think he means "bag limits". In California I believe, and I ought to look in the regs before I answer but don't have them with me, that the limits are the same for angling and for spearfishing. Isn't that right, Bill?
my feelings exactly
I've learned to hold my tounge and stay civil in this types of threads. I'd ask those participating in this discussion do the same please. some of these posts riding a fine line of debatable deletion.
Amphibious, I recall you being more than a little vocal on this subject previously, IMO we're all being civil, abstaining from personal attacks etc