Is It Legal to Spear or Harpoon a Shark?

December 24, 2008

Question: We often see sharks swimming on the surface and sometimes they even freely swim up right next to our boat. I know it’s legal to spear and harpoon most sharks, so my question is would it then also be legal to catch them with a gaff if they are within easy reach with a gaff pole? (Steve S., Carlsbad)

Answer: No, free-gaffing is not a legal method of take for any species of sharks. While the regulations allow for the take of sharks (except white sharks) with spears, harpoons, and bow and arrow fishing gear (Section 28.95), a gaff may not be substituted for a spear or harpoon. In addition to those devices, the law (Section 28.65) allows for sharks to be taken by hook and line or by hand (although “by hand” doesn’t sound like the wisest method to me).
(A gaff is any hook with or without a handle used to assist in landing fish or to take fish in such a manner that the fish does not take the hook voluntarily in its mouth [Section 28.65(d)]).

September 22, 2011

Question: If I am using a legal shrimp fly rig to fish in California waters for rockfish and a legal-sized lingcod bites and holds onto an otherwise legal-sized rockfish, can I legally gaff and possess that legal-sized hitchhiking lingcod? I am assuming the lingcod has not been hooked in the mouth on my shrimp fly rig, but has merely bitten and held on to the rockfish all the way to the surface. Would this be legal? (James O. Peterson)

Answer: Yes. The take of “hitchhiking” lingcod with a gaff is legal as long as the fish is of legal size. Gaff hooks cannot be used to take or assist in landing any finfish shorter than the minimum sizes limit. Gaffs also cannot be used to take  salmon, steelhead, sturgeon or striped bass.

Reconcile please.

September 22, 2011

Question: If I am using a legal shrimp fly rig to fish in California waters for rockfish and a legal-sized lingcod bites and holds onto an otherwise legal-sized rockfish, can I legally gaff and possess that legal-sized hitchhiking lingcod? I am assuming the lingcod has not been hooked in the mouth on my shrimp fly rig, but has merely bitten and held on to the rockfish all the way to the surface. Would this be legal? (James O. Peterson)

Answer: Yes. The take of “hitchhiking” lingcod with a gaff is legal as long as the fish is of legal size. Gaff hooks cannot be used to take or assist in landing any finfish shorter than the minimum sizes limit. Gaffs also cannot be used to take  salmon, steelhead, sturgeon or striped bass.

Reconcile please.

Feel free to reconcile it yourself. I am just posting from the Q&A database. I try my best to to eliminate any duplicate posts, of which there were many but that's as far as I take it.

That wasn't directed at you hojoman. I understand what you are doing with this forum quite well and I appreciate your posting the q&a columns by Carrie Wilson. I know I don't come across as I intend on the Internet pretty much always, but the last thing I intended here was to offend you or call you out.

No worries. I was not offended. It was meant to clarify to everyone what my purpose of posting is. Lots of inconsistencies/confusion in Carrie's replies.

If I were to guess I would say that since the hitchhiking ling voluntarily took the bait at the end of your line (a rockfish), so the gaff is only being used to assist the landing a fish that is connected to your line.  In the case of the sharks the method of take itself is gaffing, which is illegal.

No worries. I was not offended. It was meant to clarify to everyone what my purpose of posting is. Lots of inconsistencies/confusion in Carrie's replies.

It would be nice if someone from enforcement would answe these questions here.