Spearing Regulations Stateside

[fishimani]

I was checking on the regulations on the D.N.R. homepage (Michigans wildlife conservation enforcer people)...the regulations are very tricky, only certian waters, certian varieties of fish and so on and so fourth... Why is it that spearos are not allowed to take "gamefish" in fresh water lakes?

Thanks,

Pete

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Don't try to find any logical explanation based on good fisheries management. Its just politics.

And Michigan is typical. I know of only rare exceptions where spearfisherman can take gamefish in fresh water. We can take striped bass in Arizona, which means the Colorado river and its big impounded lakes, and we can take striped bass in some of the TVA lakes, maybe in Arkansas.

 

[fishimani]

Your right about the logical explination, that would suggest the decision to overregulate the s@#t out of spearfishing was logical....it seems to me like they are picking on something they do not fully understand. It is just a little bit frustrating knowing that when i go back to the states the regs are going to be all mucked up for spearos. I feel bad for all the guys stateside. Good luck everyone.

Thanks,

Pete

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Your right about the logical explination, that would suggest the decision to overregulate the s@#t out of spearfishing was logical....it seems to me like they are picking on something they do not fully understand. It is just a little bit frustrating knowing that when i go back to the states the regs are going to be all mucked up for spearos. I feel bad for all the guys stateside. Good luck everyone.

Thanks,

Pete

I guess over regulation is in the eyes of the beholder. After all, many Europeans think that the US doesn't regulate enough, and can't understand how it could allow spearfishing on scuba.

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Here is at least one example of legal fresh water spearfishing.

Local spear fisherman bags the 'fish of a lifetime' - WAOW - Newsline 9, Wausau News, Weather, Sports

 

[Old Man Dave]

I guess over regulation is in the eyes of the beholder. After all, many Europeans think that the US doesn't regulate enough, and can't understand how it could allow spearfishing on scuba.

Actually Bill spearing on scuba is perfectly legal everywhere in the UK, it's just not practiced much. Many consider it "not sporting old boy". Many scuba divers collect scallops, crabs, lobsters and hand spear flatfish but for some reason they don't consider this "spearfishing". It is true though that not much scuba spearing with spearguns takes place.

By contrast spearfishing in freshwater is totally banned everywhere in the UK. This is because spearing is banned rather than specifically spearfishing by divers. In days of old poachers stood on the banks of rivers and harpooned salmon and as a result of trying to stop this, all spearing in fresh water was outlawed a long, long time ago.

Sometimes you see all sorts of rubbish written about supposed laws that don't exist. Spearfishing with scuba, spearfishing in freshwater, spearing at night, selling your catch are often said to be illegal. It's because the big 3 in Europe i.e. France, Spain and Italy ban some or all of these practices that many europeans belive these "laws" to be universal. They're not.

Dave.

PS Our own dear Spaghetti has a freshwater fish in the HOF and he's Italian so assume FW spearing is legal there.