Catching Crawdads Just for Fun

July 7, 2011

Question: Do I have to have a license to take a piece of string and some liver and fish for crawdads for fun? I don’t want to keep them. I don’t want to eat them. I don’t want to use them for bait. I just want to catch them. (Jim M.)

Answer: Yes, a fishing license is required even if you don’t keep them. It’s the same premise as “catch and release” fishing for trout.