How many fish is enough?

[joejv4]

Something that has not been taken into consideration yet.

Creel limits and possession are two different birds. At least in my state.

We are allowed one day limit of 25 with no more then 50 in possession.
That is including what is in the freezer. I guess that means, so as to inhibit hoarding the resource. It's no different with fish, deer, squirrels or pheasants.

In NY, possession limits apply to the number of fish that may legally be transported. Our magic number for transporting is two days legal limit of the species in question. So, with crappie, daily limit is 25, you can't transport more than 50.

As far as I know, there's nothing wrong with having a venison roast or two left in the freezer from last year when this year's deer goes in with it either.

You may want to double check with your DNR about their definition of possession. Chances are, they don't care what you've got at home in the freezer, but have possession limits in place regarding what you can transport - the reasoning for this type of law is to cut down on the kind of guy who might go for a day trip or even a weekend to a body of water where the game police don't usually go (I'm sure we all know some of these waters) and illegally keep five limits in one or two days, put them on ice in the cooler and head for home. This keeps this poacher from being able to say "heck, I fished all week to get these". If you can't transport more than 2 days limit, you won't want to be keeping 5 days worth.

Now the reason I say folks should check isn't to disagree with you, but because I know that I like to store up a mess in the freezer so I can have a big fish fry for the neighborhood every year. Makes for a good get-together.

I also like to put up enough fillets so we can have some every week or two through our six-month long winter. Here, both are legal, and I don't want folks who do the same sort of thing to be scared off if they aren't sure about their state's possession regulations. When in doubt, give your local conservation officer a call and ask.

[FishCrazy]

Well someone pointed me to the regulation in north carolina and there is a possession limit of 3 limits at "any place" so I guess that can include your freezer. It seems like a intrusive law to me. They gonna go around checking folks freezers?

[rushcreekoutdoor]

I believe that FisherMike is correct. The purpose of this law is to regulate those who try to illegally sell game and fish. It is still a problem in many parts of the country (including here). These violations are hard to catch and establish. It is actually easier for us to prosecute drug traffickers than people who sell fish/game.

OK here was the result. I dismissed the charge against the donee. He had no clue and there was no evidence that he was a game trafficker. The hunter came to court and gave an emphatic statement that the donee was innocent. The hunter said "punish me, not him."

The hunter's charge was diverted on the condition that he do 10 hours comm. service (coach the 4-H shooting sports archery kids this summer). No court costs/ no conviction.

Basically, nobody, including most experienced hunters and fishermen, knows about donation rules. The only people who really face these questions are taxidermists. Ask a taxidermist how serious these rules are for them.

The Hunter in this case felt very guilty that he got the donee in trouble. In the end, it worked out well for everyone. Not all officers will cite for this, but I can't be critical of one when he does. Their job is to investigate, some times it is my job to look to the equities and try to reach the right result.
No one meant to break a law, and to punish the hunter really went against the policy that the state was trying to promote.


other general rules:
- possession limit equals 2 times daily limit in most states. In my household with Reelfoot crappie, that means 4 legal fishermen * 30 fish per day * 2 = 240 crappie in the freezer is legal maximum for those who "stock up" like me. Thats a lot of fish under any standards.

- there are a lot of posts about searches of property. possession of a fishing license is not a waiver of your constitiutional rights. officers must have a search warrant, probable cause, consent, search incident to arrest, "plain view", or some other legal right to search your property. Fish and game cases are no different in this regard than drug cases, murders, or other crimes. One difference is that fish and game officers often witness enough evidence to establish probable cause. However, most search cases occur because most people freely give consent to search cars, houses, freezers or other property. as a people, we are generally law abiding and cooperate with police when confronted.



Its always better to just take a notebook and write a note listing the donation and give it to the donee. If you have the paper, it will be tough for any officer to give you a problem if checked.


rco

[FisherMike]

In NY, possession limits apply to the number of fish that may legally be transported. Our magic number for transporting is two days legal limit of the species in question. So, with crappie, daily limit is 25, you can't transport more than 50.

As far as I know, there's nothing wrong with having a venison roast or two left in the freezer from last year when this year's deer goes in with it either.

You may want to double check with your DNR about their definition of possession. Chances are, they don't care what you've got at home in the freezer, but have possession limits in place regarding what you can transport - the reasoning for this type of law is to cut down on the kind of guy who might go for a day trip or even a weekend to a body of water where the game police don't usually go (I'm sure we all know some of these waters) and illegally keep five limits in one or two days, put them on ice in the cooler and head for home. This keeps this poacher from being able to say "heck, I fished all week to get these". If you can't transport more than 2 days limit, you won't want to be keeping 5 days worth.

Now the reason I say folks should check isn't to disagree with you, but because I know that I like to store up a mess in the freezer so I can have a big fish fry for the neighborhood every year. Makes for a good get-together.

I also like to put up enough fillets so we can have some every week or two through our six-month long winter. Here, both are legal, and I don't want folks who do the same sort of thing to be scared off if they aren't sure about their state's possession regulations. When in doubt, give your local conservation officer a call and ask.

I had just done a little research on deer possession. I'll check again later on the fish.
We can only possess a deer (I believe) 90 days after the season closes. (LEGALLY) Frozen, cut up or not. Then we're supposed to keep the license with the meet until consumed. Atleast I think thats what I remember.

[gabowman]

Seeing as the hot summer months is the only time I dont fish for them I usually keep the best 12 or so when we want some fish to eat. It's about all my family eats unless we invite the grands over for fish. Fresh and froze is no comparison for us so we usually eat 'em fresh. I dont put up more than a doz. messes to get me thru the summer. I'll still catch a hundred if they'll bite though.

[crappiekiller2]

in Iowa there is no limit so we can keep all we can catch.
I am sure some people do but most don't. Our lakes are still going strong, they cycle thru 8,9" fish to 11-12" with a few bigger ones.
The lake has thousands of crappie removed per year and keeps going strong.
The life cycle here is not like it is farther south.
I might be wrong but I think its around 6 years for crappie here.
If they were so easy to catch we wouldn't have any left in our lakes.

[poppop]

I actually called the North Carolina Wildlife commission on the creel limit question. Their answer to me was, a limit is for each person on the boat. 2 adults= 40 crappie. Then my question expanded to children who are to young to buy a license, their answer was each child is also entitled to a 20 fish limit. So when I go fishing with my wife and two grandchildren according to the Commission we can legally keep 80 crappie 8" or more. There is no way I would keep more than one limit of 20 fish for all of us, they are to much fun to catch and not nearly as much fun to fillet.

[Bullsprig]

I agree with both sides of the argument, the problem in Iowa is the regulations, there isnt any size or creel limit. problem 2 is every state around us is under 25 and a 10" fish. I witnessed 6 guys cleaning a large cooler full of fish in the 7-9 inch range. When I retuned to the ramp area a couple hours later to pull the boat out they were on there 4th cooler. just because its legal doesnt make it alright. this was middle of the week so how many days had they or were they going to do this before the left.

The reason they were 7-9 inches long is there are too many. Instead of throwing crappie back you should keep them.40 pounds per acre looks better when it comes in 20-30 fish rather than 1000. Crappie are prolific spawners and overpopulate quickly.

[Tom O]

i LIVE IN MICHIGAN AND THE LAKES I FISH ARE VERY FERTILE BUT WHEN WINTER PRESSURE AND CATCH RATIO IS HIGH IT TAKES A FEW YEARS TO RECOVER THEN IT HAPPENS ALL OVER AGAIN. i USUALY ONLY KEEP 6 TO 10 EACH TRIP AND IF I'M STOCKED IN THE FREEZER ITS CATCH AND RELEASE. WENT OUT TUESDAY AND CAUGHT 20 13"+ AND RELEASED ALL TO RESTOCK THE LAKE. FIGHTING BIG CRAPPIE ON A 24" UL IS JUST FUN.

[yellow hat]

I have read on this board stories about anglers having 40 or more fish in the cooler. The last recent thread I read was about night fishing and catching so many the cooler was full to the top. I know crappie fisherman keep some fish because they taste great. My question is how many is too many? Reading about 40 crappie in a cooler disturbs me. Are we fishing to feed our family or the town? I release 80% of my fish because I love the fight and keep only the prime fish. So, how many is too many????

It depends on the location. Keeping or not keeping will make a big impact on the quality of fish in the future. the place I fish on KY Lake in TN I catch 100 just about every time I go and keep 60 with a 10 inch size limit. Overpopulation could become a problem and stunt the growth. Thats why limits are set every year based on the spawn and populations. Plus I feed my family with what I catch.