Harpooning Bass

Hi lads. Ive been angling all my life and took up spearfishing 5 years ago. My main target species is bass, pollock and flatties. I have never taken more than 2 bass in 24 hours and never will. If i have enough in the freezer i dont shoot but look for other species or lobster and crab ect. It is unfortunate that some spearo t***s are ruining the name of a very selective and sustainable method of fishing. I reported a guy for flaunting bass laws after spotting him taking 7 from a spot we showed him.
A guy i know has reported an angler at the same spot for taking 17 bass(who told him to mind his own business).
All the spearos I know stick to the law religiously and we only do it for a feed. Spearfishing and angling are similar from a selective point of view but its the guys who just dont care about our waters are the problem, be it anglers or spearos.
Gas powred guns require a licence but band guns dont so do report people with gas guns who have not got a licence to carry it. hope this clears up the confusion.
Tight lines,
Johnny.

hi lads
i am irish, a regular spearfisherman (when the weather and sea state permits) and an ocasional sea angler.
firstly rubber powered spearguns are legal in ireland, pneumatic ones are not.
shooting fish on breathold is legal doing so on scuba isnt.
taking shellfish and crustaceans on breathold is legal once outside licensed areas. i seldom take crab or lobster because i seldom see them and i never take them if there are pots around.
when i go out spearfishing i primarily do so to get a couple of fish for dinner. if i have fish in the freezer i might not shoot anything, unless i see a particularly large specimen or a species that spearos dont see much.
i primarily take pollack but sometimes head south and bag myself a bass or two.
i agree with most of what the lads have been saying, if anyone sees spear fishermen with lots of bass then their reg should be taken and they should be reported to the relavent authorities.
these guys give all spearos a bad name, we are all fishermen at the end of the day and all the spearos i have hunted with abide by the laws regarding closed season and size limits.
thanks for listening guys.

Hi All, I too read the post “Harpooning Bass” and I just had to join up to reply. First off, let me say that I do not agree with anyone taking bass in excess of their 24 hour quota and I would have reported the incident also if I had come across it. I am a new comer (within the last few months) to the sport of spear fishing, I took it up for recreation and because I love seafood. I am quite amazed at some of the comments (unfair, racist and untrue) that I have read here on this forum.
I did not join up to criticise individual members who I know nothing about and I have total respect for individuals enjoying the fine sport of sea angling but I would urge anyone posting comments to post only facts that are researched or that you know personally to be true and not hearsay or rumour.

Calling the police on someone who is legally pursuing their chosen sport shows bad form and ignorance not to mention a waste of the Gardai’s time. If however, an individual (foreign or domestic), angler or spear fisher is taking more than the legal limit of 2 bass within a 24 hour period (and not during the breeding ban of 15th May – 15th June) then they should be reported and have their equipment, vehicle included, seized and be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. Just to clarify, as freediveireland said, crustaceans may be fished for by snorkelling but not by scuba and normal prescribed limits apply. Any abuses or destruction of our great and envied national sea resources should also be reported to the authorities and on forums such as this by anyone who comes across it so that we can all be aware of and prevent it.

I am an Irishman and I have lived here in Ireland all of my life, the other spear fishing people that I have briefly met are Irish lads who had taken up the sport while living abroad. There is a spear fishing community here in Ireland, mosty Irish, with a small mix of nationalities too. I’m sure the same mix is found in Angling and other sports as well, which I think is a good thing. I personally live in a region that depends on foreign fishermen and visitors coming here and supporting the local economy and keeping people in jobs.

The way I see the problem is mainly one of mistrust and ignorance of spear fishing. Comparing us with individuals who indiscriminately use explosives to fish is the antithesis of spear fishing. Suggesting that if we should (legally) take a crab or lobster then we should be dealt with by people who do it commercially, that’s like saying if you’re boat fishing, the trawler men should come and deal with you....so yes, you can see where this is going, from the sublime to the ridiculous and could lead to incitement.

Some posters have said to try it before knocking it which I think is great advice. If you can’t try it then please familiarise yourself with it and know what you’re talking about before making negative, aggressive or ill informed comments. In today’s climate of political correctness I’m sure it doesn’t take much misinformation to give a sport a bad name. Maybe talk to a few Spearos and see if you can’t agree with or understand their right to fish or maybe at least see that they are a nice ordinarily decent bunch of people, most of who share your passion for the sea and angling.

I’m sure also, most will agree with you on the need to conserve stocks and who fish responsibly, sometimes taking no more than a few snapshots of the fish they have seen on a days hunting if they can not find their chosen quarry. Often hampered by bad weather or poor visibility and water temperature/conditions can limit the amount of time you can spend in the water. I too have had days where there isn’t a fish to be seen. We are all concerned about dwindling fish stocks, overfishing, conservation and fair play and these are the issues that should concern and unite all fishermen to find strategies to manage our fish and our waters. The bigger the group of people, lobbying for the same issues, the easier it is to get your voice heard and to change things.

Fair points and well made lads. Is there a forum or something you guys use? I'm just curious as I havent tried diving or snorkelling yet but am somewhat enthralled at the idea of fish not being so wary of humans its possible to get up close and personal with them. Nothing against someone using a speargun to bag a meal either provided rules are abided by and I dont think there are many anglers who would be if it was looked at properly. You can respond via PM if you dont want it broadcast to all and sundry.

let them shoot away i say, two friends of mine done a lot of spearing the memorys of 3and 4 lb plaice makes my mouth water also plenty of bass from a well known local spot.
one of these lads was actually a world champion spearfisher he ended up in south america for a few years making a serious living out of his sport and built a fine house back home in ireland on a couple of acres from the proceeds

Hi Pete jaysus all the lads came in there fairly quick huh, if your ever down Sligo way Pete I dive in Mullaghmore usually give us a shout or look up http://www.freediveireland.com. If you go to http://www.facebook.com/#!/FreediveIreland and go into the gallery section you can see some of the fish shots under creature feature album. You dont have to be a registered facebook user to view it. Theres lots of plllock and should be some mullet or elses I need to add them too.

Hi all,

There are many Irish spearo's that do it, I am one.
As I've said before I fish from shore and boat since a boy, I still fish from shore and I have a boat I go out on when I can. I was always into snorkelling but like other I never tried it in Ireland. Ireland has one of the most beautiful underwater landscape in the world with a wonderful biodiversity...

I tell everyone that all you see is bleak watersurface and dark cliffs, but take a dive underwater and its a wealth of wildlife and colours...

I started to spear to understand better the way fish behave, I can wholeheartedly buy into the solunar theory as I can see it in action daily! Understanding the fishes behaviour has changed the way I fish from the shore.

A few days ago I saw a man fishing for bass in one place I spear... I started chatting to him and he said he was there for a few hours and was drawing a blank I advised him that he was in the wrong part of the bay, in the wrong ground and he was fishing at the wrong time with the wrong tackle (despite having top quality gear! and he seemed fairly experienced)... he moved to where I suggested and he was successful almost immediately.

i never met an irish man at it - im sure there are some and i would like to know primarily what they do it for - sport or lunch

Both, like any hunting it is enough to stalk up on a a prey, line them up for a shot and not pull the trigger... you get the same buzz. Like freedive Ireland has said you can shoot with a camera to the same effect. In fact there are safari's in Africa where you hunt with an empty rifle and 'take the killshot' without the bullet... its enough to know you could! Its the same underwater, and only last week I came across a double figure mullet and did just that, I know where he lives and feeds and I will try to get to him unnoticed again. I take fish when I need to but there is no waste, and we all try very hard to efficiently kill the fish within seconds of spearing them so to minimise the stress to the fish.

I detest anyone who tries to damage our fish stock which will effect my sport (both rod and spear) if they are foreign and unaware of our laws we need to fill them in, not start an online backlash against legitimate Irish spearfishermen.

Like I said in the bass survey posts, we need to stick together to stop any malicious activity from any party, but we all need to be educated to make the correct decisions.

You can try deeperblue forums Pete, lots of info and advice there.
http://forums.deeperblue.com

Good to know that all the spearos think the same as us. I for one don't have anything against spearing as someone said it is no different to what anglers do. This thread has seemed to annoy the spearmen but honestly it was about the 16 bass taken by two guys, it just so happened they used spearguns it could have been rods and often is.
Some good info was given by you guys, sounds like an interesting sport.
It's also good to know that there are eyes under the water as well as above it

Tommy

Lads, just to clarify a few things on this, for one the spear gun i saw was gas propelled.. that's illegal isn't it, and secondly it's not the spearing of fish i objected to it's the breaking of the 24 hour 2 bass bag limit, also in my opinion it's not racist to describe the fact that the people I saw were not Irish, simple as that, see my post about helping a foreign national (french) to catch bass, made his day..and his holiday, to summarise if it's legal no probs but if it's not then report it.

In spain you need a licence to buy a speargun,and the police issue them to locals mostly ,i think that would be a good way to go here i hate the idea of people killing so many bass in one go ,is it to fill a freezer or are they selling them

Lads, It was not my intention to have a go at any individuals but rather at any misconceptions that may be generated by inaccurate comments. This is, after all your forum and you should voice whatever opinions you need to. All I ask is that fair regard is given to the majority of other sportsman in the spear fishing community who share your rightful anger and disgust at someone who flagrantly breaks the law as it was said already.
All I know of pnuematic spearguns is that they are classed as firearms and do require a license, with the rigorous requirements for firearms I'm sure most people won't bother. As for licensing all spearguns like they do in Spain, I would just see this as further revenue generation rather than any fishstock or weapon control and that could just as easily be applied to rods...so be careful for what you ask for.

Lads, just to clarify a few things on this, for one the spear gun i saw was gas propelled.. that's illegal isn't it, and secondly it's not the spearing of fish i objected to it's the breaking of the 24 hour 2 Bass bag limit, also in my opinion it's not racist to describe the fact that the people I saw were not Irish, simple as that, see my post about helping a foreign national (french) to catch Bass, made his day..and his holiday, to summarise if it's legal no probs but if it's not then report it.

Yep gas propelled is a firearm and needs a license. I don't know any Irish spearo's that use one so thats a good start to see if they are from our community.
I saw your post about the frenchman and the bass nice way to earn a bottle of Bordeaux

petekd, and everyone else, there is a popular worldwide spearfishing forum, and you can find the irish section here
http://forums.deeperblue.com/uk-ireland ... -a-53.html
have a read through and you will learn more about spearing in ireland and see how responsible spearfishermen are.