[Blood Trail 13]

Suppose Tim caught his limit of trout and continued fishing. He caught a 6th trout and it is certainly going to die from being hooked in the guts. Is he allowed to give that trout to his buddy who doesn't have his limit yet? His buddy is fishing right beside him.

 

[psychobeagle12]

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[psychobeagle12]

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[psychobeagle12]

Ok, twice now my posts have not worked... what is going on??

 

[psychobeagle12]

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[psychobeagle12]

Ok, so copy/paste won't work so I'll just describe it. The regulation book states that you must immediately return to the water unharmed any fish in excess of your creel limit. The same reg says that if a fish is given away it counts toward the creel limit of the person catching the fish and the person receiving the fish, so that extra fish would put you over your creel limit, violating the law. Hopefully this one posts; if not, I give up!

 

[brittanyman]

Any fish placed on a stringer, in any container or given away, counts toward the possession limit of the person having caught it, and the person to whom it was given.(Catching a 6th trout after already having 5 is a violation)

Tim must not like his buddy much to give him a trout... They arent very good to eat... ha

 

[Trout Traveler]

Suppose Tim caught his limit of trout and continued fishing. He caught a 6th trout and it is certainly going to die from being hooked in the guts. Is he allowed to give that trout to his buddy who doesn't have his limit yet? His buddy is fishing right beside him.

No, that is illegal. I read an article in the PA Angler and Boater where a WCO said that the critical phrase in the law is that trout need to released "immediately unharmed to the water". Now if you have five trout already, you cannot try releasing trout already in your possession. My guess is that releasing a trout that is going to die would also be a violation. That officer recommends that if you want to keep fishing and you have four trout in your possession that you not keep any more in case you catch one that cannot be immediately released without harming the trout.

I have seen notes in the same column, "Notes From the Streams", that people have been prosecuted for catching and keeping more than their daily allotment of five and giving them to fishing companions.

I wonder if a WCO sees someone catch and release a trout that isn't going to survive in a designated catch and release area, what happens then? My guess is that it depends on what the WCO saw and the angler's behavior. WCOs have a lot of discretion and I'm sure they don't prosecute every offense that they could.

 

[tdd]

I would think if Tim wanted to engage in C&R, it might be prudent to stop keeping fish at one less than the limit so such a situation could be legally handled.

Once at his limit, he runs this risk. Deep hooks are always a possibility.

 

[Trout Traveler]

You don't have to quit fishing when you have five trout in your possession, but as was said before, you run the risk of violating the law if you catch a 6th trout that can't be immediately release unharmed.

Hopefully the people who are keeping trout keep stockies and not the wild ones!

 

[Hunterknapp16]

No, you can't give it to him. Any given away fish goes against your creek limit and the limit if who you gave it to.

 

[Trout180]

I agree with what the others have said. I will only add that Tim should have switched from bait to spinners after catching 5 to minimize the chances of that happening.

 

[Trout 2003]

The general rule of thumb is that if you plan to continue fish you should always stop one fish short of that limit or just catch the 5th and head out. Too much of a chance of accidentally getting on the other end of the law if you don't. Most people would just pass the trout along though. No different from shooting group limits of waterfowl. It's not legal but it's super common. Trout are no different.

 

[50 CAL. PRO]

So by law you can have 5 Trout in your live bag.. and still continue to fish? As long as u dont harm any trout and dont keep any more???

 

[Trout Traveler]

Yes, but you better not deep hook any.

 

[50 CAL. PRO]

Yes I understand.. I always thought after you keep 5 that you had to be done for the day

 

[Trout Traveler]

Yes, that's one of the common misconceptions. Another is that you can't fish class A wild trout streams between the day after Labor Day and the Opening Day the next year. You can, on a catch and release basis.

 

[50 CAL. PRO]

Thanks for the clarification

 

[Blood Trail 13]

Can you keep a trout that is dying and able to be scooped up with a net if you don't have your limit?

 

[Trout Traveler]

I would go to the Frequently Asked Questions page on the PA F&BC website and type in your question. If you don't get an answer, you can call your regional WCO office and ask.