why does nj allow snagging while ice fishing?

[trophysteve58]

That's just crazy 400 hundred cats must be selling them to the local resturants, and lets not forget the ones that get away will most likely die with holes in the side of there body and yes they are sticking other species too carp, bass and eyes ripping fish apart. But that's the way people are they just don't care about a healthy fishery and the game comm lets it go on.

[JigAwhopper]

I saw the 16 WNP ice "fishing" video...bunch of guys on a PA side...snagging.  One shot shows a guy pulling out catfish with a rapala stuck in its side...I hope the put new regs in place...this is disgusting

[Icemark247]

hye jig im looking to watch that video you got a link?

[perchskinner]

I think in all honesty if the catfish were thinned out it would leave more room for other species of fish to thrive. These catfish are 20 ft thick in places, that would explain why they aren't pulling out bucket loads of anything else, these fish prey on lots of other species including trout and walleye. I say thin em out they are way to abundant in this river system .  If you haven't been there and seen it with your own eyes then you wouldnt understand just how many cats there are , they are in every eddy like this not just the one in particular that everyone one is focusing on. Please thin them out you will notice larger other species .

[delawareriver]

I think in all honesty if the catfish were thinned out it would leave more room for other species of fish to thrive. These catfish are 20 ft thick in places, that would explain why they aren't pulling out bucket loads of anything else, these fish prey on lots of other species including trout and walleye. I say thin em out they are way to abundant in this river system .  If you haven't been there and seen it with your own eyes then you wouldnt understand just how many cats there are , they are in every eddy like this not just the one in particular that everyone one is focusing on. Please thin them out you will notice larger other species .

the cats travel long distances to find deep wintering holes. Come summer they are spread out no reason to keep more than a meal or two at a time

[perchskinner]

the cats travel long distances to find deep wintering holes. Come summer they are spread out no reason to keep more than a meal or two at a time

Do you eat the carp you shoot??? And why is there no limit on them, not to mention all the other species that get shot while bow fishing.The cats are by all means not native to the river system that is a fact , they were introduced years ago . At one time Atlantic salmon used to run the river before dams and commercial fishing was in place, to bad man has ruined that fishery , and I'm sure all the introduction of warm water species has part to do with it as well.

[delawareriver]

I don't eat a single carp I shoot out if the delaware or any other water body, but does that mean they go to waste? I give plenty away to guys that do eat them, and the rest are given away to commercial turtle trappers, racoon/coyote trappers, guys use them for crab bait, shark chum, have given some to a birds of prey rehabilitator, or the local farmers that either feed them to his pigs or gets mixed in with his compost.

Yes it's a shame what we have done to our local water bodies, just about every major gamefish has been introduced, smallmouth, channel cats, walleyes, muskie, pike, largemouth, flatheads, rainbow and brown trout. Yet we consider them gamefish and other than the catfish and carp the delaware has limits on all those species. Scientific studies have shown how much damage the common carp do to ecosystems and their affect on both gamefish and native species. Out of the 12 states I've bowfished in, jersey hitself has a 25 fish limit, Pennsylvania has 50 fish limit, and the other 10 states have no limits on carp like the delaware river. It is what it is, the ecosystems are no where close to what they were 200-300 years ago and all we can do at this point is try to manage them to the best of our ability.

[perchskinner]

I don't in any  way think that you can hurt the cat population in the river , there is just way to may of them, I've seen them stacked in to many places with the help of the flasher to conclude any reg changes, but if someone wants to give a biologist an ear full of ideas , believe me there's much better things to complain about than some anglers ripping raps through schools of cats .
Like why would the state stop stocking trout in spruce and not replace it with an alternative species like Waldo's . there are way to many other things that should be changed if you wanna complain, I will be at the next freshwater fisheries forom to voice my opinion. You don't see me getting all bent about bowfishing because someone accidentally shot a non target species at night and just say well I thought it was a carp.
We as fishermen of the state should be more united to better understand one another's beliefs , if someone's having the time of there lives snagging cats so be it we may not see another winter like this in our lifetimes!!

[KenBeam]

It's called gigging unfortunately and it's not breaking any rules or regs. It's weird to watch people do this to our fish. I can't stand it but it happens. The boys down in Califon on the SB have a sucker gigging party every year on the ice. They don't even use rods. They make long gafs that make it to the bottom of the river channel, they mark the fish and rip up and down until they snag something in the stomach or wherever. It's sick and I just don't get it. Very strange thing to be legal. Unreal!

Hiya fellas...... well, now, then, there,............ Seems like you boys are riled up `bout sucker giggin` eh? Now first off Eddie-boy, "They make long gafs that make it to the bottom of the river channel, they mark the fish and rip up and down until they snag something in the stomach or wherever"---- That`s kinda close..... but! Nah we don`t "mark the fish"....... We cut holes in the ice & then send eight or ten guys down river with baseball bats/axe hands or some other sort of club........ Then they pound the ice as they slowing walk up river towards the "giggers"......... Guys over the holes watch for the suckers to swim by & gig `em. Now....... we only gig suckers in the winter as the flesh is firmer because of the cold water.......... then we smoke `em. We don`t gig trout or bass........ only suckers. And you know what? ............ I grew up doin` this in Califon as a kid with my father & even grandfather......... so in order to "cross my T`s and dot my I`s", I contacted NJ Fish & Game and explained what it is exactly that we do....... to make sure it was legal nowadays. And it is indeed 100% legal.
 

So for all of you "Keyboard Commandos" on this thread.......... Please. Enough.

Ken Beam