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COLUMBIA COUNTY SPORTSMEN'S FEDERATION |
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FISHING LICENSE Q & A Beginning October 1, 2009, any angler fishing for "migratory fish from the sea" (e.g. American shad, striped bass) in the Delaware River or tributaries will need a recreational marine fishing license. The New York State legislature did not build in any type of reciprocity with the State of Pennsylvania in regard to fishing the Delaware and tributaries for "migratory fish from the sea" so anglers that hold a PA fishing license will need to acquire a NY recreational marine fishing license to fish for American shad (or striped bass or hickory shad.....) from the border water area of the Delaware River and West Branch Delaware River. There will be some question as to what "fishing for" a species entails, but that is almost always the case where we have multiple species and varied open/ closed seasons on a given body of water. DEC Law Enforcement staff do an excellent job in using discretion when evaluating when an angler is targeting a species and good discretion will be used in this instance as well. If an angler is repeatedly catching a given species or using tackle that is fairly specialized (ie in this case - shad dart), then that angler should have a recreational marine fishing license. Our Environmental Conservation Officers are generally well-versed in the innuendo of specific tackle set-ups or specific patterns used (mostly) exclusively by anglers targeting a given species in a given water body/ geographic area and, thus. derive some of the basis of their discretion by knowledge of the resource and the resource users. Hopefully anglers understand and support the reasoning and rationale and don't, unnecessarily, try to complicate the issues. Can an angler catch a smallmouth bass or trout on a shad dart? - sure (have done so myself), but that is not generally the terminal tackle used to fish for smallmouth bass or trout. Can American shad be caught on a #14 Adams? - sure (have done so myself), but few anglers targeting American shad are using such terminal tackle. That is the best guidance that I can offer right now: if fishing for migratory fish from the sea, a recreational marine fishing license is required (beginning October 1, 2009); there is no reciprocity with PA; and DEC law Enforcement will use their best discretion in the enforcement of the law. Now, for migratory fish from the sea are defined in ECL and generally refer to anadromous and catadromous species as example on Long Island. The recreational marine fishing license is needed when fishing in the marine district. The Marine and Coastal District includes all the waters of the Atlantic Ocean within three nautical miles from the coast and all other tidal waters within the state, including the Hudson River up to the Governor Malcolm Wilson Tappan Zee Bridge. Therefore, someone fishing for Long Island brook trout in tidal waters would need a recreational fishing license as they would be considered to be fishing in the marine district. Douglas Stang, Assistant Director Also - Depending on the specific location of the Hudson River fishing activities, and the specific species fished for, an angler may need to have a recreational marine fishing license, a freshwater fishing license or both licenses: - If you are fishing downstream from the Tappan Zee Bridge , you are considered fishing in the marine and coastal district and will need to have a recreational marine fishing license. - If you are fishing upstream from the Tappan Zee Bridge and are fishing for “migratory fish from the sea” (such as striped bass, American shad, hickory shad, blueback herring, alewife, and American eel), you need to acquire a recreational marine fishing license. - If you are fishing upstream from the Tappan Zee Bridge and are fishing for non-migratory fish (such as largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, catfish, carp, walleye, and perch), you will need to have a freshwater fishing license. Anglers have always been required to have a freshwater fishing license when fishing the Hudson River tributaries as the exemption pertained only to the mainstem of the Hudson River proper. Now, if an angler is fishing in the tributaries for "migratory fish from the sea," they will need a recreational marine fishing license in addition to their freshwater fishing license. |