[dave archer]

My view has been expressed very well by...

I don't have a problem with killing things if your gonna eat them after, but I'm against spearfishin just for the hell of it.

I do have real problems with people who hunt for sport then throw away what they kill

Also in total agreement with skippers "helping" divers assess what's acceptable, as they are usually better informed on the topic than your average diver, seems to me

if divers bring up a bag of scallops or a lobbie then i will go through their catch with them ...and throw back anything undersize, berried (or indeed oversized)...

:thumbsup:

Killing for fun? Nope, hate that.
Besides that's what computer games are for

Dave.

 

[frogmanfil]

if your gonna eat what you kill, i cant see a problem

 

[Lou]

if your gonna eat what you kill, i cant see a problem

How about if what you kill is that last breeding female in that area? You might eat it, but is that still ok?

 

[chrisch]

I, for one, don't know what size is too big or too small - I have to rely on a second, more knowledgeable, opinion, and for that I'm thankful to those skippers who help out.

All you need to know is here....

http://www.defra.gov.uk/fish/sea/conserve/conserv.htm

Chris

 

[frogmanfil]

How about if what you kill is that last breeding female in that area? You might eat it, but is that still ok?

your quite right, and i should have made my post clearer. if your going to kill animals whether they walk crawl or swim you have to stick to certain rules egg carrying, nursing mothers, undersize etc are not fair game.

hope thats better

 

[MATTBIN]

I'm not keen on spearfishers on a dive boat, they might miss their quarry and get me!!!

Sustainable stock etc, dont have an issue with take one for the pot types. Don't do it myself but as I eat fish it would be a bit hypocritical to condemn others. Expect the 'hunter' to only perform a clean kill (on or off land), as I dont think I'm that good I'll refrain.

Matt

 

[NotDeadYet]

One thing no-one has mentioned is that spearfishers have the choice that anglers don't. Someone spearfishing can look at what he/she is hunting and make a decision as to whether or not it should be caught. Anglers cannot do that, it is much more random. Sure they can release what they have caught (if it survives) but it still has been through a fair old trauma.

As regards minimum sizes, there is a very good guide here:

http://www.spearfishing.org.uk/aboutus/conservation/index.htm

 

[resting rifleman]

I'm the one(so far) who voted "dont do it any more" but thats only because i no longer dive!

FISH IS FOOD!:thumbsup:

 

[Freeflow]

Went for not for me...

...but I don't condone killing of animals purely for fun. If you want to kill it, do it quickly and after eating the tasty bits use the rest and only bin that which you can't use.

 

[Tonio Anastasi]

I do not object to spear fishing as long as it is not practiced while scuba diving and that strict fishing regulations are laid down to include seasonality, size, and sex/maturity. This will put spearfishermen at par with the fish and reduce the competion to professional fishermen.

 

[ardhill]

Interesting replies.

I must admit, I thought that the general consensus of opinion on YD would be against this sport, but there you go - wrong again (at this point).

Thanks to the folks who gave the links to the allowable sizes for a catch, I am sure it will be useful for some people.

... if divers bring up a bag of scallops or a lobbie then i will go through their catch with them ...and throw back anything undersize, berried (or indeed oversized) we have a system up here that lobsters that are caught in berry have their tails notched and are put back ..this means that succesfull breeding stock can easily be identified and preserved.

I had heard about Lobsters having notches cut out of them, but didn't know what it was all about - Thanks divebiatch

 

[EBT]

Personally I dont care if you do it free diving, scuba, ccr whatever. If Im grabbing my dinner I dont see it makes a difference.

All this business about it being more sporting on breath hold is true, but then are you doing it for sport, or to select what you want to eat?

 

[Snash]

I'm the one(so far) who voted "dont do it any more" but thats only because i no longer dive!

FISH IS FOOD!:thumbsup:

agree - and that reminds me of the immortal line, uttered by a mate when faced with a plate of salad...

"salad isn't food.....

it is what food eats"

Cheers

Snash

 

[Narced at sea level]

I did a few dives around Swanage Pier this summer - where as a teenager I used to spend lots of time freediving and spearfishing - back then there wasn't much to shoot.
Since they upgraded the sewage plant to process the sewage before dumping it in the sea, the 2 piers are now teaming with life - I saw loads of lovely big seabass - some well in excess of 2ft in length, and lots of good sized grey mullet.
The thought of getting a speargun and taking one or two for the pot did occur to me, but then I figured that if that became the norm and every diver who visited the pier did the same, they'd be mostly gone in the space of one short summer - spoiling the diving for future visitors.

 

[Ken]

I'm not too crazy about spearing unless the sport is in the hands of careful practitioners who know how to select, catch and finish off their food items. I've had many an occasion to see fish swimming with gouged out backs in addition to many topside near misses with stray spears. There is nothing like some dummy shooting across a teenagers back UW. This happened near a boy scout camp where each lad was given a trident spear, or sling device to hunt small shiner perch. Usually they camp back with impaled sea hares instead. Ugggh.

 

[Scuba Monkey]

I used to fish regularly, keeping only what I would eat. If I didn't want to eat it, back it went (often to the amazement of others when I was the only person to catch something in a session!)

I knew the minimum sizes for the fish I was after and respected them. I also made sure that if someone else caught an undersized fish in my presence that went back too.

I decided, when I took up diving, that I wouldn't take anything from the sea for food when I was diving. It seemed like I was a guest in their house I don't mind other people taking stuff for food, but if they are going to, they should know the size regulations and not just take something because they can.

 

[Mr T.]

For me it all depends on precisely what is being speared? Some fish are in such profusion that a few taken here and there won't really hurt their overall numbers - others are endangered, so need protection.

I don't get as bent out of shape about fish as much as I do about whales and the bloody Japanese and Norwegian whaling fleets' activities :angry: :thumbsdow:

 

[Ken]

For me it all depends on precisely what is being speared? Some fish are in such profusion that a few taken here and there won't really hurt their overall numbers - others are endangered, so need protection.

I don't get as bent out of shape about fish as much as I do about whales and the bloody Japanese and Norwegian whaling fleets' activities :angry: :thumbsdow:

Agreed. This new push for "scientific" whaling on the part of the Japanese is really a disguise to launch into larger scale whaling. It's really a pity that they (Japanese, Norwegians and Icelanders) have to resume hunting for really what amounts to very little food on the table. Whales are such magnificent creatures...why not just leave them alone to the point (20 years) where an actual harvest does not have to be debated by a weak chinned IWC. By then, the next generations of kids will have no desire for this strange flesh - hence no market. :thumbsup:

 

[Mandlebrot]

I don't mind people hunting just as long as they eat the catch, I detest people who kill for killing sake and just waste there prey. I personally don't kill anything but must admit to enjoying the thrill of stalking a lobster etc, I know this is probs wrong but at least I let it go once the excercise is complete.

Also I wouldn't dive with anyone who carries a speargun as I don't want to -

A) Be on the receiving end of a spear.
B) Be eaten by anything like a shark that might be attracted to the kill.

 

[sch]

I work on the theory that since I like shellfish I'd rather catch my own - just what I'm going to eat that day. Having seen the devastation caused by scallop trawling I'll only eat diver picked ones (the diver in question normally being me)

Similarly I've got nothing against people spearfishing for food if they know what they're doing and only take what they need.

Simon