Angler DQd for culling

[Kyhl]

I think tourneys usually set the bag limit two fish below legal limits to allow for culling, if the law allows culling.

Itt is also common to carry a spare fish, within the legal limit, to weigh.

Legality is the first set of rules. Breaking a law is usually grounds for DQ. Tourneys can set more rules above legal rules. For example, self imposed no wake zones around tourny HQ.

FYI, a few were DQ'd from the walleye contest on Vermilion last month for trying to weigh slot fish. It happens. I'm sure it wasn't intentional.

[nofishfisherman]

Well, if he receives 2 I believe in a 3 year period, he could lose his fishing privileges in MN for 3 years. That is his livelihood or probably his primary income with endorsements.

Isn't playing within the rules part of his job. If he has a problem with breaking rules multiple times I'm not going to feel too bad if it costs him income or endorsements.

Should a truck driver not get a speeding ticket because it might impact his livelihood?

[Dylan33]

Maybe i am really stupid (not much of a stretch) but I need someone to explain this to me.

Is it considered culling if I release a fish that was in my livewell to keep another fish, even if I am below the limit?

Example, 6 fish limit...I have 5 in my live well...the next fish I catch is the biggest of the day. I legally can NOT keep that fish and let another go?

I don't tourney fish, but I was under the impression that this is how it worked in a tourney.

What am I missing?

[nofishfisherman]

Maybe i am really stupid (not much of a stretch) but I need someone to explain this to me.

Is it considered culling if I release a fish that was in my livewell to keep another fish, even if I am below the limit?

Example, 6 fish limit...I have 5 in my live well...the next fish I catch is the biggest of the day. I legally can NOT keep that fish and let another go?

I don't tourney fish, but I was under the impression that this is how it worked in a tourney.

What am I missing?

According to how the regs are written if you are below your possession limit you are allowed to cull fish (except on Mille Lacs and MN/WI border waters.

However, in your scenario its not 100% clear whether the 6th fish you just reeled in is considered to be in possession before it hits the live well. If its in possession the second you lift it out of the water are you still allowed to cull to remain under the limit or are you not allowed to cull because you've just reached your limit? This has been discussed a lot in the past and I don't believe any clear answer has ever been decided upon. Best bet is to keep 4 in the livewell and cull as needed until you are ready to go home, then keep the last 2 fish of the day to make a 6 fish limit.

[Kyhl]

It seems to be a gray area whether that sixth fish is considered "in possesion" until it is stored. Having it in hand should not be "in possession" if the intention is to release it immediately.

Example, you can continue to fish after reaching your limit for a species. You just can't keep any more of that species. Say you have six walleye in the live well then catch a seventh walleye while perch fishing. Having the seventh walleye in hand while you remove it from you line should not be over the limit as long was the fish was immediately released, after taking pictures of course because it was a 30" and now you can't cull.

[Northlander]

We went CPR, Catch Photo Release in our TPWA tourneys and the DNR up here loves it. No transporting fish in a live well for hours and no holding tanks etc. I think in 10 years every tourney will do it.

[DTro]

I love the idea of CPR format, but when it comes to money, the only fair way to do it is with a judge boat and a non biased third party doing the measuring, like the Musky guys do it.

[EBass]

There's a fishing show on ESPN that has anglers fishing for x amount of time. Each person has a judge and cameraman in the boat. Judge weighs it, both agree and release it right where it was caught. Small ones, little ones, doesn't matter. Who has the most weight at the end of the day. No cull, no rules are broken.

When a person catches one everyone knows as it's networked. Pretty cool, but that's gotta be expensive to have a judge in each boat, unless they volunteer.

[Gordie]

Wouldn't that of been considered "live well sorting"? I which case that is illegal in MN also. Even if you have 5 fish in the live well and the limit is six doesn't that rule apply in that case?

Don't know just wondering.

Either way costly mistake.

[nofishfisherman]

Wouldn't that of been considered "live well sorting"? I which case that is illegal in MN also. Even if you have 5 fish in the live well and the limit is six doesn't that rule apply in that case?

Don't know just wondering.

Either way costly mistake.

Maybe others can correct me if I am wrong but I believe livewell sorting and culling are the same thing. And it would only be illegal if you are already at your possession limit, fishing on Mille Lacs or a MN/WI border water.

[Gordie]

Quote:

Fishing Regs page 13 (Possessing Fish)

• Once a daily or possession limit of fish has been reached, no culling or livewell sorting is allowed. No culling is allowed on Mille Lacs or Wisconsin border waters (see pages 41 and 72-74)

Maybe I'm reading the regs differently than you ,but I understand it to be you can cull until you have reached your daily limit and Mille Lacs and MN/WI is No culling altogether.

I also was thrown for the loop Dtro with the 5 fish limit

Sorry for any confusion.

[TR21HP]

The limit for all BASS tourneys is a bag of five fish. In Minnesota, where the tourney was held, it is illegal upon having those 5 fish in your livewell to replace a fish with another caught fish. Your first five, if in the livewell, is it. On the Wisconsin side, as in most states, you can, cull continously to upgrade your total weight but still have only 5 fish at one time in your livewell. What was crazy about this is some fishermen were fishing the Minnesota side and caught 5 fish but returned to Wisconsin waters to release one so they could then go back to Minnesota waters with 4 fish in the livewell and go for that fifth fish thus culling but not illegally. How's that for more confusion? The pro was in an area where the boundary winds all over the place and supposedly he was less than a hundred yards into Minnesota water.

[JohnMickish]

Any way these guys in a Ranger boat were culling their fish and were called on it at weigh in.

Would it have been any different if they where fishing out of a different boat, or is it just Ranger guys that cull?

[Wanderer]

The limit for all BASS tourneys is a bag of five fish.

Yup, it doesn't matter if the state limit is higher, BASS is five.

I haven't been keeping up with the culling rules for tourneys since I don't fish em anymore but I remember one of the BASS Regionals I fished in WI the rule was no culling (sounds like that's changed since). Once you put 5 in the box, you were done. It was rare to see a guy sitting in the boat doing nothing during tourney hours but if you did, you knew he had a good morning.

Too bad he lost the win and the Classic berth but the rules are the rules. Even if they're not logical.

[DTro]

Great explanation here

http://burchfishing.blogspot.com/2013/06/culling-in-minnesota.html?m=1

[walleye_jigger]

So if you are fishing a walleye tournament and you are part of a 2 man team and the tournament has a 6 fish limit. Are you able to cull if "technically" each person only has 3 fish in the box? This sounds like another big gray area to me.

[Kyhl]

So if you are fishing a walleye tournament and you are part of a 2 man team and the tournament has a 6 fish limit. Are you able to cull if "technically" each person only has 3 fish in the box? This sounds like another big gray area to me.

Not gray at all.

You have not reached the party limit so you are free to cull on waters that do not ban culling, ie Mille Lacs.

[buzbunni]

I'm confused about the different state "sides/borders" of the river in regards to angling.

It was my understanding that when angling on MN/WI border waters, any water between the railroad tracks on the WI side, and the railroad tracks on the MN is considered border waters, and one is not on one or the other state's "side", at least as it pertains to angling.

No?

I understand that the MN regs say no culling on border waters, but in the blog that Dtro linked, Burch writes:

"Just to clarify exactly how he broke the rules, he inadvertently culled just inside the Minnesota state border on the Mississippi River, which wanders through backwaters, on land, through the main channel, etc. It isn't right down the middle of the channel as one might expect."

I don't see how the proper state border matters in this case if the MN DNR regulations state that you can't cull on MN/WI border waters anyhow.

On border waters, are the regulations (DNR regs, not Tourney regs) used based on the state where the tournament was registered? And if so, then I assume that the tournament in question was registered in the state of MN?

So technically an angler fishing on MN/WI border waters could take fish to a WI backwater inland of the Burlington Northern rail line (would have to have a WI angling license of course) and cull, but could not do so on the border water itself?

Side topic: I have shore fished Lake Pepin on the WI side several time on the West side of the railroad tracks, and from my understanding of the regulations, I am ok to go with a MN angling license as I this is considered border waters for MN/WI. Correct?

My brain hurts.

[Savage Brewer]

My opinion on culling is kinda mixed.

If the fish is very lively and healthy I don't mind the idea of returning a fish to water.

But I have seen too many times a fish spent half a day in a livewell and is not doing well, and someone pulls it out for a bigger fish, even though the one in the well was a perfectly good eater.

That [PoorWordUsage] me off.

[Myrt]

I thought most border waters had their own set of rules that the two states agree upon...and they may be different from each states' regular rules, how foolish is it to have to look up the rules for the water you're on, then one side's rules, then the other, and hope you are interpreting everything correctly.

I think the border waters of Minnesota and Iowa have their own set of rules, but now I wonder as Iowa is "no culling", and Minnesota is "no culling after reaching a limit", what is legal for a person to do on which side of the border and with which license... I guess if you want people to act juvenile and/or confused...keep writing the laws in a juvenile matter

As much as it was his responsibility(and all of ours also) to know these rules, shouldn't it also be the responsibility for law makers to revisit legislation and correct confusing language and simplify where we can!

[JohnMickish]

Or a person could know what the rules are.

[Myrt]

sure, however as I've seen many times on these boards, just because you think you know a law, doesn't mean you are interpretating it correctly

and just because it's a border water doesn't mean it has to be so complicated

[DTro]

I don't think anyone knows what the rules are, even those that make and enforce them

[Eric Wettschreck]

I don't think anyone knows what the rules are, even those that make and enforce them

What he said.

[JohnMickish]

Every rules meeting I have been to they explain the local rules very clearly, and many of the rules meetings have local COs to answer any questions.

I'm not saying that this is the case here, but ONE guy was wrong and the rest of the field was right. If the rules where really not stated don't you think that more mistakes would have been made?

Every boat had an observer in it, his job is to make sure all the rules where followed. This guy just made a mistake, he wasn't paying attention to where he was. It really is no different that fishing many tournaments. Green Bay, Lake of the Woods and Lake Erie have borders that sometimes come into play where you can't cross so you better know where you are at all times.

It's another dumb Minnesota rule, but the rules where the same for everyone, and if you don't understand them it's your job to find the answer or penalty may be large.