Category Archives: Limits

Humanely Wrangling Halibut

Posted on May 5, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Ken Oda with a nice California halibut (DFG photo by Travis Tanaka)

Question: I’d like to try spearfishing for halibut. If I do find a nice one, can you tell me the best way to quickly kill the fish when I get to it in order to minimize any pain? There must be some spot on the fish where by using a knife, I can quickly kill it with the least suffering. (Justin M, San Diego)

Answer: A well-placed shot with a spear will immobilize a halibut fairly quickly and is probably the most efficient means of killing the fish. According to Department of Fish and Game Associate Marine Biologist Ed Roberts, most spear fishermen do not need to dispatch their fish after retrieving them as the actual shot usually does so. To minimize the struggle and ethically kill your halibut, direct your shots to the spine or brain. On those occasions when you may need to dispatch a halibut or other “round” fish (as opposed to a “flat” fish), bring it to the boat and strike the fish on the top of the head, in between the eyes, with a blunt instrument like a “fish billy” rather than with a knife. Trying to do so with a knife on a small boat can be dangerous.

If you are a novice, it is probably not a good idea to attempt to struggle with and subdue a large, wounded halibut underwater with one hand while holding a sharp knife in the other. If you are determined to try to kill the fish as quickly as possible while underwater, you might consider tearing out a gill arch with your hands, or severing it with a knife. Be careful doing this, however, because halibut do have sharp gill rakers and teeth that can cause injury to unprotected fingers. Blood vessels in the arches carry copious amounts of blood to and from the gills, so severing these vessels would cause the fish to bleed to death in short order.

Is putting that much blood in the water a good idea? I’ll leave that up to you, but remember that the sound waves created by the struggling, wounded fish may attract the attention of other large predatory fish. Remember too that many of these predators have highly developed sensory systems, and these sensations will probably travel farther and quicker through the water than will the blood.

What to do with Eurasian collared doves?
Question:I understand the Eurasian collared dove is an invasive species and there is no limit on them during dove season. I recently noticed a pair of them nesting by my house. Should I destroy them or let them be? (Gene E., Winton, California)

Answer: Though Eurasian collard doves are invasive, you should let them be. During the hunting season there is no bag limit on them, but that is the only period of time when they can be legally taken. In addition, section 3503 of the Fish and Game Code states it is unlawful to needlessly destroy the nest or eggs of any bird.

Okay to fish the bays with two poles?
Question: Can I fish two poles in Tomales Bay or fish any bay as long as I have the second rod stamp? (Rick)

Answer: In San Francisco and San Pablo bays you can only use one fishing line with no more than three separate hooks or lures. When fishing from a boat, fishing is restricted to daylight hours only (one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset). While fishing from public piers inside San Francisco and San Pablo bays you cannot use more than two rods and lines, two hand lines, or two nets, traps or other appliances used to take crabs.

In ocean waters other than San Francisco and San Pablo bays, you may use as many poles as you can attend to for many species, but single pole restrictions apply to some species such as salmon and rockfish. The second pole stamp only applies when fishing in fresh water.

To keep the beard, or not?
Question:A turkey hunting friend who lives in Vallejo but has a getaway home above Placerville shot his first turkey last weekend. We know that leaving the beard on to identify the gender is the law, but how about removing the beard at the Placerville location? Is it legal to remove the beard where he cleaned the bird, or did it need to be left intact until he got home to Vallejo? I have a feeling the latter, but need clarification. (Bill A., San Pablo)

Answer: During the spring hunting season, the beard must be left on to establish that the turkey is legal. It should be maintained on the bird for identification purposes during transportation to its final destination or until it is prepared for immediate consumption.  During the fall season, either sex may be taken so the beard is not required.

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Posted in Depredation, Fishing, Hunting, Limits, Lines/Rods/Equipment, Nuisance Animals & Pests, Spear Fishing, Turkey

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Beards and Spurs Don’t Tell It All

Posted on April 15, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Spring turkey (Photo by Carrie Wilson)

Question: I am fairly new to turkey hunting and hear everyone always referring to their birds by their beards and spurs. Can wild turkeys be aged based on these trophy characteristics? (Jim C., Modesto)

Answer: Yes and no. There is no absolute standard for identifying a wild turkey’s age, but there are some general guidelines that can be used to provide fairly reliable estimates.

While precisely determining a turkey’s age in years may be difficult, there is a surefire method for distinguishing between adults and juveniles using the last two primary flight feathers. In juvenile birds the feathers will be sharp at the ends. By the time the bird reaches maturity at one year of age, it will molt and the two sharp feathers will be replaced by more rounded ones.

Beyond this, beard and spur length can be used to estimate a bird’s age, but unfortunately, it’s not an exact method. Variables such as subspecies, environmental conditions, and possibly nutrition can alter the length of both the beard and the spur, resulting in a misrepresentation of the bird’s age.

In terms of beards, the general rule of thumb is the longer the beard, the older the bird. But, while a jake (juvenile) will not have a 10-inch beard, a four-year-old turkey may have a short beard due to any number of conditions. If the turkey is in “rough” vegetation, the beard may wear away on the ground more easily when it grows long. If a turkey has long legs, the beard will be able to grow longer before it reaches the ground, where it will naturally face wear and tear. The fact that the beard may have been altered at any time by environmental or circumstantial conditions prevents biologists from using this method as an accurate way of measuring a turkey’s age.

Spur length can also be used to estimate a bird’s age although, like beards, spurs can also wear down. Spur length does tend to be slightly more reliable than beard length, however, because they do not wear as easily.

While both of these methods are not entirely precise, they can provide an approximate age range. These estimates are not reliable for turkeys older than about three or four years though.

Downrigger trolling for salmon?
Question: I am planning to go salmon fishing next week with my two sons and will be setting up my downriggers to troll. The downriggers have releases and can troll four poles – two off each side of the boat. If I have three fishermen on board, can we have four rods in the water? I do have the second rod stamp on my license but do not know if it applies in the ocean. Can you help me understand the rules so I don’t violate them? (Grant E.)

Answer: The second rod stamp does not apply in ocean waters and there are specific gear restrictions that apply when salmon fishing. No more than one rod per person may be used to take salmon, and no more than one rod per person may be used on any vessel where salmon are aboard (California Code of Regulations, Title 14, sections 28.65[e] and 27.80[a][4]). In addition, once salmon are aboard, you are then restricted to fishing with salmon gear (barbless hooks north of Point Conception) for the remainder of the trip, even if you want to switch your target species (like to rockfish, for example.) If you take your salmon back to the dock to offload, though, you can then go back out to fish for other species and use the appropriate tackle.

Is bowfishing for carp considered hunting or fishing?
Question: If I want to shoot carp with a bow, do I need a hunting license or a fishing license? Are there any regulations such as seasons, bodies of water, etc.? (Vern D., Stockton)

Answer: You will need a fishing license. Sport fishing regulations permit bow and arrow fishing for the following nongame species only: carp, goldfish, western sucker, Sacramento blackfish, hardhead, Sacramento pikeminnow and lamprey (for specific areas and exceptions, see CCR, Title 14, section 2.25).

Even though DFG law might allow for bow and arrow fishing in your local area, some lakes and waterways prohibit the possession of bow and arrow equipment. You will need to check with the jurisdiction that runs the body of water, such as, State Parks, Regional Parks, local county parks, etc.

When bow and arrow fishing, the tackle must have the arrow shaft, the point or both attached by a line to the bow or to a fishing reel. This rule also applies to crossbows (California Code of Regulations Title 14, section 1.23).

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Carrie Wilson is a marine biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game. While she cannot personally answer everyone’s questions, she will select a few to answer each week. Please contact her at CalOutdoors@dfg.ca.gov.

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Posted in Fishing, Licensing/Permits/Stamps/Report Cards, Limits, Lines/Rods/Equipment, Methods Of Take, Tackle, Turkey

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“Don’t Blame Me … the Fish Did It!”

Posted on February 3, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Lingcod (©Matt Elyash)

Question: Can someone be cited for the inadvertent stomach contents of their catch? As an example, a typical cabezon belly might contain a couple of 3-inch abalone, crabs and/or octopus. Is it a violation to have the abalone (and crabs and octopus if it is in a no-invertebrate take zone) in possession? Another example would be a ling with a big rockfish in his belly. Could the stomach contents place you over the 10 fish RCG complex (rockfish, cabezon and greenlings) possession limit? (Craig G.)

Answer: This situation would be the same as if you caught an undersize or prohibited species unintentionally while fishing. According to Lt. Dennis McKiver, you are required to discard or return to the sea any prohibited species as soon as you discover you have caught a prohibited species. Although you would not be required to remove and inspect the stomach contents of all fish you catch to make sure the fish did not contain a prohibited species, if the fish regurgitates a prohibited species you would not be allowed to retain possession of that prohibited species. You must return it to the ocean even if it is dead.

In your last example, it would be the same as if you had 10 rockfish in possession and continued to fish for lingcod. If you caught a rockfish, you would have an overlimit and would be required to return it to the ocean. Let’s say you were legally fishing for lingcod with two hooks and you caught a lingcod on one hook and a rockfish on the other. You would be required to return the rockfish if you already had a limit in possession. If you are fishing for rockfish and lingcod and you catch a lingcod that contains a rockfish and then you choose to keep the rockfish from the ling’s stomach in your possession, that rockfish becomes part of your rockfish bag limit.

A similar problem occurs when anglers catch surf perch, a species that carries live young. During their spawning season a caught fish may discharge their young as they die or when handled. The angler may then be in possession of more than the 10 surf perch limit of one species, but wardens clearly understand this biological phenomenon.

Legal to hunt posted lands when inundated with flood waters?
Question: Every waterfowl season, whenever there are heavy rains and flooding, the question comes up as to whether we can hunt lands that are temporarily inundated with flood waters. Can we lawfully go into an area that has been traditionally posted but is now flooded?  (Steve B.)

Answer: According to Capt. Mark Lucero, you can lawfully pass into flooded areas as long as you are not in violation of section 2016 of the Fish and Game Code, which is the hunter trespass section. This section says that if an area is posted with signs forbidding trespass that are displayed at intervals not less than three to the mile along all exterior boundaries and at all roads and trails entering such lands, then a person may not hunt this property even if the land is temporarily inundated by flood waters.

Can I catch two limits with a second rod stamp?
Question: I have a second-rod stamp. Does this allow me to catch five fish (trout) per rod or is it per person? (Anthony M.)

Answer: The second-rod stamp only allows for a person in inland waters to fish two rods concurrently. The bag limit remains the same. Fishing two rods just helps you to maybe catch your bag limit quicker! When fishing for trout, make sure you’re not fishing in an area with special regulations requiring only artificial lures, barbless hooks or catch-and-release because the second rod stamp would not be allowed those areas.

My son just turned 16. Can he hunt the federal youth waterfowl hunt?
Question: I have a question about whether my son is still eligible to hunt the special federal youth waterfowl hunt. He was 15 when the season began but just turned 16 in December. We usually hunt at a club in the Suisun Bay. (Joe P.)

Answer: Unfortunately, the Youth Waterfowl Hunting Days regulations state that “youth hunters must be 15 years of age or younger” at the time the hunt is conducted. I’m afraid your son has outgrown this particular hunting opportunity.

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Carrie Wilson is a marine biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game. She cannot personally answer everyone’s questions but will select a few to answer in this column each week. Contact her at CalOutdoors@dfg.ca.gov.

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Posted in Bag Limits/ Possession, Hunting, Licensing/Permits/Stamps/Report Cards, Limits, Lines/Rods/Equipment, Methods Of Take, Regulations

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