Anglers frequently violate sport fishing regulations out of

ignorance, by mistake, or by deliberate action. To determine

whether unfamiliarity with the regulations plays a major part in this problem, we asked anglers on privately-owned,

trailerable boats at launch ramps and boat hoists a series of questions which tested their knowledge of the regulations.

We found that on any winter weekend about 30% of the anglers

on private-boats knew none of the size limits, 50% knew at

least three of the six size limits, and 4% knew all of the

size limits. Only about 25% of the anglers kept a copy of

the regulations on their boats for reference when fishing.

The results of the survey indicate that greater effort must

be expended to familiarize sport fishermen with the fishing

regulations.  (9pp.

Wine, Vickie L.

English

Aquatic Commons

L 
UUL 22 ,, 
I 
4 
~ State of California 
The Resources Agency 
DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME 
LisRflL~y 
h h  Landing Marine LaboratDrier 
p. 0. Box 223 
* -9, GI#. rn 
1 
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PRIVATE-BOAT SPORT FISHERMEN: 
HOW FAMILIAR ARE THEY W ~ T H  THE SPORT FISHING REGULATIONS? 
by 
Vickie L. Wine 
MARINE RESOURCES 
Administrative Report No. 80-4 
February 1980 
- 
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PRIVATE-BOAT SPORT FISHERMEN: 
1 / HOW FAMILIAR ARE THEY WITH THE SPORT FISHING REGULATIONS? - 
by 
2/ Vickie L. Wine - 
ABSTRACT 
Anglers f requent ly  v i o l a t e  s p o r t  f i sh ing  regu la t ions  out  of 
ignorance, by mistake, o r  by d e l i b e r a t e  ac t ion.  To determine 
whether unfamil iar i ty  with the  regula t ions  p lays  a major p a r t  
i n  t h i s  problem, we asked anglers  on privately-owned, 
t r a i l e r a b l e  boats  a t  launch ramps and boat  h o i s t s  a s e r i e s  of 
quest ions which t e s t e d  t h e i r  knowledge of t h e  regula t ions .  
W e  found t h a t  on any winter  weekend about 30% of the  anglers  
on private-boats knew none of t h e  s i z e  l i m i t s ,  50% knew a t  
l e a s t  t h r e e  of t h e  s i x  s i z e  l i m i t s ,  and 4% knew a l l  of t h e  
s i z e  l i m i t s .  Only about 25% of the  anglers  kept a copy of 
t h e  regula t ions  on t h e i r  boats  f o r  reference  when f i sh ing .  
The r e s u l t s  of the  survey i n d i c a t e  t h a t  g r e a t e r  e f f o r t  must 
be expended t o  f a m i l i a r i z e  s p o r t  fishermen with t h e  f i s h i n g  
regula t ions .  
11 Marine Resources Region, ~ d m i n i s t r a t i v e  Report No. 80-4 
- 
February 19 80. 
21 Marine Resources Region, Cal i fornia  S t a t e  F i s h e r i e s  Laboratory, 
- 
350 Golden Shore, Long Beach, Ca l i fo rn ia  90802. 
INTRODUCTION 
Fishery management regu la t ions  designed t o  conserve o r  enhance spor t  
f i s h  resources cannot be e f f e c t i v e  unless  fishermen cooperate with these  
regula t ions .  Anglers must be aware t h a t  t h e  take  of c e r t a i n  species  i s  
regulated,  they must be ab le  t o  recognize those spec ies  when encountered, 
and they must be wi l l ing  t o  r e l e a s e  the  regula ted  f i s h  they catch. 
During a 1975-78 survey of southern Cal i fornia  private-boat fishermen 
by t h e  Department, it was not iced t h a t  many of t h e  v i o l a t i o n s  w e r e  due t o  
anglers '  ignorance of t h e  s p o r t  f i s h i n g  regu la t ions  and i n a b i l i t y  t o  i d e n t i f y  
regula ted  f i s h  species.  To deternine  i f  these  f a c t o r s  contr ibute  a se r ious  
obstac le  t o  the  success of f i s h e r y  management programs, w e  conducted severa l  
s t u d i e s  designed t o  test t h e  knowledge of two segments of t h e  spor t  f i shery:  
p i e r  fishermen and private-boat fishermen. This r epor t  conta ins  the  r e s u l t s  
of t h e  test of private-boat fishermen's f a m i l i a r i t y  with the  1979 Cal i fo rn ia  
Sport Fishing Regulations. 
The purpose of t h e  survey was t o  f i n d  out  1) i f  ang le r s  a r e  aware t h a t  
f i sh ing  regula t ions  e x i s t ,  2) which s i z e  l i m i t s  a r e  most / leas t  f a m i l i a r  t o  
t h e  angler ,  3) how many anglers  keep a copy of t h e  regu la t ions  with them f o r  
reference  when f i sh ing ,  4) how many anglers  ought t o  keep a copy wi th  them 
because they don't know a l l  t h e  s i z e  l i m i t s ,  5) how many ang le r s  don' t  need 
t o  keep a copy with them because they know a l l  t h e  s i z e  l i m i t s ,  and 6 )  how 
many anglers  with regula t ions  received t h e  copy u n s o l i c i t e d ,  and how many 
had t o  s p e c i f i c a l l y  request  them from an agency. 
I f  anglers  are not f ami l i a r  with t h e  regula t ions  and do not keep a 
copy with them f o r  reference when f i s h i n g ,  then v i o l a t i o n s  of t h e  regula- 
t i o n s  are bound t o  occur. A sublegal  f i s h  taken by ignorance i s  j u s t  a s  
31 One which is  less than t h e  l e g a l  minimum s i z e  a s  measured by t o t a l  
- 
length:  t h e  longest s t r a i g h t - l i n e  measurement from t h e  t i p  of t h e  head 
t o  t h e  end of t h e  longest  lobe  of t h e  t a i l .  
4 
de t r imen ta l  t o  t h e  well-being of a p ro t ec t ed  s p e c i e s  as a s u b l e g a l  f i s h  
taken  purposely. 
OPERATIONS 
During November 1979, through February 1980, each boa t  launching ramp 
i n  Los Angeles and Orange Counties w a s  sampled on a Saturday o r  Sunday. 
One randomly-selected person from each incoming boat  was approached and 
asked t o  p a r t i c i p a t e  i n  a f i s h i n g  survey. Those a n g l e r s  who agreed t o  par- 
t i c i p a t e  (almost a l l  were coopera t ive)  were asked a s e r i e s  of t e n  ques t ions  
(F igu re  1). The in t e rv i ewer  d id  n o t  provide any answers whi le  t h e  t e s t  was 
i n  p rog res s ,  and t h e  t e s t  was voided i f  another  person prompted t h e  a n g l e r  
be ing  interviewed.  
The 1979 C a l i f o r n i a  Sport F i sh ing  Regulat ions were v a l i d  through 
February 29, 1980 and a l l  sampling ceased at t h a t  t ime. 
Unless  o therwise  s t a t e d ,  a l l  t h e  r e s u l t s  l i s t e d  r e f e r  t o  t h e  popula t ion  
of f ishermen who would be  found a c t i v e l y  f i s h i n g  on a g iven  day, and n o t  t o  
t h e  t o t a l  popula t ion  of p o t e n t i a l  fishermen. 
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 
W e  in te rv iewed 294 ang le r s  a t  n i n e  launching f a c i l i t i e s .  Nearly every- 
one we t a l k e d  t o  (98%) was aware t h a t  C a l i f o r n i a  h a s  laws about s p o r t  f i s h -  
ing .  
There a r e  only  s i x  l e g a l  minimum s i z e  l i m i t s  which marine fishermen i n  
southern  C a l i f o r n i a  need t o  know: 12 i n .  f o r  t h e  t h r e e  Paratabrm bass  
s p e c i e s  (ke lp  bas s ,  P. ctathratus; s p o t t e d  sand bas s ,  P. macutatofasciatus; 
b a r r e d  sand b a s s ,  P. nebul i fer ) ;  22 i n .  f o r  t h e  C a l i f o r n i a  h a l i b u t ,  Para- 
Zichthys caZifomicus; and 28 i n .  f o r  both t h e  C a l i f o r n i a  bar racuda ,  
Sphyraena axyentea, and the  whi te  seabass ,  Atractoscion nobit is .  We found 
t h a t  30% of t h e  a n g l e r s  interviewed knew none of t h e s e  s i z e  l i m i t s .  How- 
eve r ,  n e a r l y  50% of t h e  a n g l e r s  knew a t  l e a s t  t h r e e  of t h e  s i z e  l i m i t s ,  
FIGURE 1. Questionnaire f o r  s p o r t  f i s h i n g  regu la t ions  test. 
REGULATIONS TEST ' 
* 
LOCATION DATE 
COUNTY WEEKEND 
ANGLER: M o r  F 
11 Now l o n g  have ydu been f i s h i n g  o f f  t h e  sou the rn  C a l i f o r n i a  c o a s t ?  
- 
less than 1 y e a r  6-10 y e a r s  
1-5 y e a r s  over 10 y e a r s  
21 llow o f t e n  do you go f i s h i n g  each year?  . 
- 
3/ Are you aware t h a t  f i s h i n g  r e g u l a t i o n s  exist? 
- 
Yes no (if "no", s k i p  to $ 10) 
41 Do you have a copy of  t h e  f i s h i n g  r e g u l a t i o n s ?  
- 
Yes no (if "no", s k i p  t o  #8) 
5 /  2s i t  a t  home, o r  do you have i t  wi th  you? 
-. 
at home wi th  him/her 
6 /  Where did you ge t  it? 
- -- -- 
71 D i d  you have t o  ask f o r  i t ?  
- 
- 
- 81 Do you know the s i z e  limits on any f i s h ?  
Yes no (if "no", skip t o  13) 
9 /  Which ones? ( L i s t  names of f i s h  and li'mits) 
- -. C 
10/ Do you have a f i s h i n g  l i c e n s e ?  
. -
Yes no 
and about 4% knew a l l  of t h e  s i z e  l i m i t s .  
The most f ami l i a r  s i z e  l i m i t s  known by private-boat ang le r s  were f o r  
t h e  th ree  ParaZabrax bass species ,  and f o r  the  Ca l i fo rn ia  ha l ibu t .  More 
than one-half of the  anglers  surveyed knew the  cor rec t  s i z e  l i m i t s  f o r  
these  f i s h e s  (Table 2 )  . 
TABLE 1. Angler Famil iar i ty  with Minimum Size Limits. 
% of anglers  % of anglers  
knowing cor rec t  with incor rec t*  
Species L i m i t  .- s i z e  l i m i t  s i z e  l i m i t  
ParaZabrax bass spp. 12 in .  5 6 1 
Cal i fornia  ha l ibu t  22 in.  54 7 
Cal i fornia  barracuda 28 in .  19 
White seabass 28 in.  8 
* An incor rec t  s i z e  limit r e f e r s  t o  any l i m i t  which i s  smal ler  than the  
l e g a l  minimum s i z e  l i m i t .  
Surprisingly,  l e s s  than one-fif th of t h e  ang le r s  knew t h e  cor rec t  l i m i t  
f o r  Cal i fornia  barracuda, which may explain why so  many i l l e g a l  barracuda 
a r e  taken each year by these  fishermen. (Between Ju ly ,  1977, and June, 
1978, 42% of a l l  barracuda landed i n  Los Angeles and Orange Counties were 
sublegal  &I). Many anglers  knew t h a t  t h e r e  was a s i z e  l i m i t  on t h i s  f i s h ,  
but  thought t h a t  it was somewhere between 22 and 26 inches. 
The l e a s t  well-known s i z e  l i m i t  was t h a t  of t h e  white seabass. Only 
8% of the  anglers  were fami l i a r  wi th  t h i s  regulat ion.  
Since very few anglers  w e r e  f ami l i a r  with a l l  t h e  s i z e  l i m i t s ,  t h e  
rest of t h e  anglers  should have been carrying a copy of t h e  f i sh ing  regula- 
t i o n s  t o  use f o r  reference on t h e i r  boats .  However, we found t h a t  only 
4 /  Southern Ca l i fo rn ia  Independent Sport Fishing Survey, 1977-78, 
- 
Cal i fornia  Department of Fish and Game. 
25% of t h e  anglers  kept  a  copy handy when f ishing.  
To determine the  proportion of anglers  who a r e  not prepared t o  obey 
I 
t h e  minimum s i z e . l i m i t  regula t ions ,  w e  assumed t h a t  anglers  who knew four  
o r  more s i z e  l i m i t s  and/or kept a  copy of the  regula t ions  ava i l ab le  when 
f i sh ing  were p o t e n t i a l l y  capable of obeying t h e  s i z e  l i m i t  regula t ions .  
Nearly one-half (47%) of the  anglers  we interviewed were thus prepared. 
The remaining anglers  had n e i t h e r  t h e  knowledge nor t h e  means t o  obta in  the  
knowledge t h a t  would enable them t o  comply with t h e  regula t ions .  
Of t h e  164 anglers  who claimed t o  have a copy of t h e  regu la t ions  some- 
where (with them, i n  t h e i r  c a r s ,  a t  home, e t c . ) ,  124 received the  pamphlet 
unso l i c i t ed ;  t h a t  is ,  they d id  not have t o  s p e c i f i c a l l y  request  t h e  pam- 
phle t .  It was given t o  them automatical ly when they purchased a f i s h i n g  
l i cense ,  b a i t ,  o r  t a c k l e ,  o r  when they ta lked with someone from t h e  Coast 
Guard o r  t h e  Department of Fish and Game. This means t h a t  many businesses 
which s e l l  f i sh ing  equipment and l i censes  a r e  doing a commendable job of 
t r y i n g  t o  educate anglers  about f i s h i n g  regula t ions .  On t h e  o the r  hand, t h e  
f a c t  t h a t  only 40 of t h e  264 ang le r s  surveyed made a s p e c i f i c  e f f o r t  t o  ob- 
t a i n  a copy of the  regula t ions  shows t h a t  most private-boat anglers  do not 
a c t i v e l y  seek information about t h e  regula t ions .  
Experienced anglers  were much more f a m i l i a r  with t h e  regu la t ions  than 
were novice anglers  (Table 2).  About two-thirds of t h e  ang le r s  who f i s h  
very f requent ly  ( a t  least once each week) w e r e  f a m i l i a r  with t h r e e  o r  more 
of t h e  s i z e  l i m i t  regula t ions .  Only one-fourth of t h e  ang le r s  who f i s h  
occasionally ( l e s s  than f i v e  t i m e s  each year)  knew t h r e e  o r  more regula t ions .  
Very few people mistakenly placed r e s t r i c t i o n s  on f i s h  f o r  which 
t h e r e  a r e  no l e g a l  minimum s i z e  l i m i t s .  However, one angler  su rpr i sed  us by 
announcing t h a t  a l l  f i s h  have a 12-in. s i z e  l i m i t ,  and another angler  s a i d  
t h a t  the re  i s  a 5-lb l i m i t  on bonito. 
TABLE 2 -  Propor t ion  of Anglers Knowing Three o r  More S ize  Limit 
Regulations.  
T o t a l  i/ of T o t a l  knowing 3 
a n g l e r s  sampled o r  more r e g u l a t i o n s  
F ish ing  frequency 
Occasional ly ( ( 5  t i m e ~ / ~ e a r )  6 1 
Regular ly (1-2 times/month) 124 
Frequent ly (once/week o r  more) 7 9 
F ish ing  experience 
Less than  1 yea r  
1-5 yea r s  
6-10 y e a r s  
10+ yea r s  
I n c i d e n t a l  Information 
We c o l l e c t e d  some information t h a t ,  a l though n o t  d i r e c t l y  r e l a t e d  
t o  t h e  purpose of t h i s  survey,  should be documented. 
The r a t i o  of male a n g l e r s  t o  female a n g l e r s  was 8.73: l .  
A v a l i d  f i s h i n g  l i c e n s e  is r equ i r ed  of a l l  p r iva te -boat  f ishermen 16 
y e a r s  of age o r  o lde r .  About 84% of t h e  a d u l t  a n g l e r s  surveyed had a f i s h -  
i n g  l i cense .  This  means t h a t  one ou t  of every s i x  a n g l e r s  on a p r iva t e -  
boa t  dur ing  win te r  does n o t  have a l i c e n s e  t o  f i s h .  
On a given weekend i n  w in te r ,  about 25% of t h e  people f i s h i n g  from 
privately-owned, t r a i l e r a b l e  boa t s  i n  southern  C a l i f o r n i a  f i s h  f i v e  t i m e s  
o r  less each year .  Approximately 45% is  composed of  a n g l e r s  who f i s h  once 
o r  twice each month, and t h e  remaining 30% is  composed of a n g l e r s  who f i s h  
once o r  more each week. 
The popula t ion  of ang le r s  f i s h i n g  on  a given day i s ,  of cou r se ,  on ly  
a p o r t i o n  of t h e  e n t i r e  popula t ion  of p o t e n t i a l  f ishermen,  s i n c e  n o t  a l l  
f ishermen f i s h  on t h e  same day. To expand t h e  f i n d i n g s  of t h i s  survey t o  
encompass a l l  pr ivate-boat  fishermen i n  t h e  Los Angeles-Orange Counties  
a rea ,  i t  is  necessary t o  make adjustments t o  account f o r  the  f a c t  t h a t  avid  
fishermen a r e  more l i k e l y  t o  be surveyed than occas ional  fishermen. To do 
t h i s ,  we  simply weighted the  number of interviews i n  each f i s h i n g  frequency 
group by the  r ec ip roca l  of each group's r e l a t i v e  p r o b a b i l i t y  of being 
sampled. Using these  weighted f i g u r e s ,  about 92% of the  t o t a l  populat ion of 
private-boat ,  weekend fishermen i n  Los Angeles-Orange Counties i n  winter  
is composed of occasional  anglers ,  25% i s  composed of r egu la r  ang le r s ,  and 
only 3% i s  composed of frequent  anglers .  
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 
This survey showed t h a t  about one-half of the  fishermen on pr iva te ly-  
owned, t r a i l e r a b l e  boats  on any given Saturday o r  Sunday a r e  not  prepared 
t o  obey the  s i z e  l i m i t  regula t ions .  This is an underestimate because we 
assumed t h a t  i f  a fisherman has a copy of t h e  r egu la t ions  on board h i s  boa t ,  
h e  w i l l  r e f e r  t o  it. 
I n  order  t o  p ro tec t  depleted marine resources and t o  conserve hea l thy  
marine resources,  the  Department must make information on t h e  f i s h i n g  regu- 
l a t i o n s  widely ava i l ab le  t o  t h e  angler .  That means p r i n t i n g  a t  l e a s t  a s  
many copies of t h e  r egu la t ions  a s  t h e r e  a r e  ang le r s  ( i n  1979, 1.5 m i l l i o n  
copies were p r in ted  f o r  2.25 m i l l i o n  l icensed a n g l e r s ) ,  and making a deter-  
mined e f f o r t  t o  d i s t r i b u t e  t h i s  information t o  t h e  anglers .  There a r e  many 
other  ways t o  educate anglers  about the  r egu la t ions ,  such a s  through news 
media, sportsmen's publ ica t ions ,  pos ters ,  e t c . ,  and the  Department should use 
any means ava i l ab le  t o  ensure easy access  t o  t h e  f i s h i n g  regu la t ions .  
The fisherman must a l s o  do h i s  p a r t  t o  conserve our resources.  He should 
l e a r n  the  s i z e  and bag l i m i t s ,  o r  e l s e  have a copy of the  r egu la t ions  a t  hand 
when f i sh ing .  Of course, he must a l s o  choose t o  comply with the  r egu la t ions .  
Anglers must r e a l i z e  t h a t  much of t h e  r e s p o n s i b i l i t y  f o r  the  f u r t h e r  deple- 
t i o n  o r  enhancement of a protected spor t  f i s h  populat ion f a l l s  d i r e c t l y  upon 
t h e  s p o r t  fishermen's shoulders. 


Southern California private-boat sport fishermen: how familiar are they with the sport fishing regulations?

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Southern California private-boat sport fishermen: how familiar are they with the sport fishing regulations?

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