It is Illegal to target bedding bass in the Susquehanna right?

Susquehanna

Susquehanna

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Feb 10, 2017
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" It is unlawful for an angler to cast repeatedly into a clearly visible bass spawning nest or redd in an effort to catch or take bass as with Commonwelath Inland Waters angling regulations."

This is still a thing right?

Amazing to see a popular shop have pod casts and articles on targeting bedding bass on their facebook page.

I didnt listen to any of the pod casts or read the articles beyond the headlines.
Wonder if they say just dont repeatedly cast into it.

Lots of likes and people asking questions. Sure are training them right! :roll:
 
I could be wrong but I don't think thats true anymore. There used to be a closed season no targeting bass on the Susquehanna but that ended like 2 years ago.
 
https://pfbc.pa.gov/fishpub/summaryad/bass_cr.htm
 
bigjohn58 wrote:
I could be wrong but I don't think thats true anymore. There used to be a closed season no targeting bass on the Susquehanna but that ended like 2 years ago.
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You're generally correct (IIRC).

The old rule essentially stated that one could not target bass in these two river sections at all and any fish caught by accident could not be lifted from the water. Since these rules were essentially unenforceable they were dropped. The precipitating court case that led to this was the defeat in court of a PFBC citation against a fellow who held a bass out of the water for a FB photo (before releasing it) and sued the PFBC and won.

The no deliberate targeting of bass on redds is statewide and not limited to these two sections. That people violate this is unfortunate but not news. It's unsportsmanlike (I think it's unethical, especially when bass are guarding fry) but is also largely unenforceable.
 
"January 1 to December 31: NO HARVEST—CATCH AND IMMEDIATE RELEASE ONLY. It is unlawful for an angler to cast repeatedly into a clearly visible bass spawning nest or redd in an effort to catch or take bass as with Commonwelath Inland Waters angling regulations."

There it is. Pretty simple wording, it is unlawful. Seems pretty straight forward to enforce as well. If one wins in court it does not make it unenforceable it just means the PFBC officers investigation was lacking, the prosecutor was lacking or the judge was lacking.
 
poopdeck wrote:

There it is. Pretty simple wording, it is unlawful. Seems pretty straight forward to enforce as well.
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I don't think this is so simple or easy to enforce at all.

(These are two separate issues:casting to beds and immediate release.)

For "immediate release" - what does this mean? To most anglers it would mean that you don't put the fish in a live well, on a stringer, etc. - you release it at the moment it was caught. The court case that I mentioned earlier involved an angler who lifted a fish from the water for a photo - something many of us consider perfectly normal. He was cited under the immediate release clause, contested the PFBC in court, and prevailed.

Regarding casting to spawning beds: I can see a case where perhaps in a video (such as the OP mentions) it might be possible to prosecute someone for this. . . but otherwise this one is tough too because the number of times one casts ("repeatedly") is undefined and how close to the bed is "into a clearly visible" bed?

I'm not personally opposed to these rules and agree with their spirit. . . but citation or prosecution needs firm clarity in the letter of the law. That's why I don't think we'll see much enforcement on these two items.
 
Dave,

I agree with you. I just find it sickening that a shop with Susquehanna in the name would make videos and articles on how to do an illegal and irresponsible practice on the very watershed they claim to care about. Then on top of it all, the masses that basically applauded it and ask for more details on the practice.

All i can do is speak with my dollars because me asking if this is illegal has garnered nothing more than silence.
I wont spend my money there anymore.

Years ago i got into it with one of the shop owners who was citing PFBC studies and population data to show that these restrictions should be lifted for the purpose of tournaments. Problem was he wasnt using the newest data set which showed YOY were not doing well.

Either way, it makes me disgusted.
 
Susquehanna wrote:
Dave,

I agree with you. I just find it sickening that a shop with Susquehanna in the name would make videos and articles on how to do an illegal and irresponsible practice on the very watershed they claim to care about. Then on top of it all, the masses that basically applauded it and ask for more details on the practice.

All i can do is speak with my dollars because me asking if this is illegal has garnered nothing more than silence.
I wont spend my money there anymore.

Years ago i got into it with one of the shop owners who was citing PFBC studies and population data to show that these restrictions should be lifted for the purpose of tournaments. Problem was he wasnt using the newest data set which showed YOY were not doing well.

Either way, it makes me disgusted.
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I'm with you ^

Some shops along with some anglers don't care about the fish, they just care about catching fish. Yet they are always the first to complain when the fishing "goes south". This myopic view is common among the many anglers that are in it for themselves. Takers and never givers.

 
Dave_W wrote:
I don't think this is so simple or easy to enforce at all.

(These are two separate issues:casting to beds and immediate release.)

For "immediate release" - what does this mean? To most anglers it would mean that you don't put the fish in a live well, on a stringer, etc. - you release it at the moment it was caught. The court case that I mentioned earlier involved an angler who lifted a fish from the water for a photo - something many of us consider perfectly normal. He was cited under the immediate release clause, contested the PFBC in court, and prevailed.

Regarding casting to spawning beds: I can see a case where perhaps in a video (such as the OP mentions) it might be possible to prosecute someone for this. . . but otherwise this one is tough too because the number of times one casts ("repeatedly") is undefined and how close to the bed is "into a clearly visible" bed?

I'm not personally opposed to these rules and agree with their spirit. . . but citation or prosecution needs firm clarity in the letter of the law. That's why I don't think we'll see much enforcement on these two items.
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Immediate release is just that. However long it takes to remove a hook and put it back in the water. This does not include a photo.

Casting repeatedly to bedding bass is a seperate issue and the definition of immediate release has no bearing on casting to bedding bass. The word Repeatedly has been defined numerous times by the courts and it essentially means what we all know it to mean........ more then once.

The simplicity and common wording of this is firm clarity. I'm not sure how much clearer it could be worded. Of course every word will be debated in court but this does not make it unenforceable or in need of more clarity. The law should be enforced as is, Tickets should be written, and the DJ who hears the ticket should be held accountable if he chooses to dismiss the tickets. If the fish and boat enforcement officers can't handle a simple investigation/prosecution such as this then they should be held accountable. My money is on the local district justices as being the weak link so identify them and vote them out.

I would not support a tackle shop promoting clear unlawful behavior.
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The shops responsible for this should be named in public forums like this and the rest will take care of itself. People will put their money in the right places and the offenders will be judged in the court of public opinion
 
Fair enough.
Though i feel not enough people care to make a dent.

My contribution:
Susquehanna Bait and Tackle

Checkout their Facebook page if in doubt.
 
Susquehanna wrote:
Fair enough.
Though i feel not enough people care to make a dent.

My contribution:
Susquehanna Bait and Tackle

Checkout their Facebook page if in doubt.
Click to expand...

Found it on FB > "Big Girls on Beds" :roll:

https://www.facebook.com/susquehannafishingtackle/videos/771744563516763

 
Dont forget "Bedding Baits"

Check out 41:45 and hear how this windbag targets spawning bass and for how long.
https://youtu.be/GkHNVq_GLCA
 
I am not surprised by this from this crew. I stopped going to this place a long time ago due to some unethical business stuff I encountered with them. Also they defied the mask order during the worst of Covid and they continue to do so.
 
So then what do you think about fishing over Bluegill beds? I learned to strip fish in on those beds. Iplan to teach a couple Grandkids there in a few weeks. We're not keeping any but it is very instructive for a spell.
 
Baron,
2 questions first.
Are those fish struggling in what used to be a world class bluegill pond and is it unlawful to fish bluegill beds?
 
There is certainly no shortage of big gills and oodles of inaccessible spawning areas on this lake and Im releasing them right away. I'm also not aware of any rule that forbids this type of fishing. In a 20 minute span the kids learn more about fly fishing than in any other method. none killed.
There is no struggling on the fishes part.
 
https://topwatertrips.com/marsh-creek-bass-fishing/

YUM DINGERS!
 
https://bassonline.com/lake-erie-bed-fishing/

Never noticed how wide spread this really is.
 
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