Southern California pier fishermen: how familiar are they with the sport fishing regulations?

Wine, Vickie L. (1980) Southern California pier fishermen: how familiar are they with the sport fishing regulations? Long Beach, CA, California Department of Fish and Game, Marine Resources Region, (Marine Resources Administrative Report, 80-2)

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Abstract

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 pier fishermen a series of questions which tested their knowledge of the regulations. We discovered that on any given weekday, only 7% of the anglers on a pier kept a copy of the regulations with them for reference. The remaining fishermen had to depend upon memory for the rules; however, only 31% of the anglers knew three or more of those rules. Pier anglers are not well-enough informed to follow the size limit regulations. However, anglers on piers do not often catch size-regulated fish . Unless these anglers engage in another type of fishing (such as from a boat) they will not significantly detract from the success of fishery management programs for size-regulated fish species. (8pp.)