Part 19: Use Of Bait
Contents:
Sec.
- 19.1 Definition of baits and bait fish
- 19.2 Use of fish for bait in the waters of the State of New York
- 19.3 Use of bait fish
§19.1 Definition of baits and bait fish
The definitions contained in this section shall apply to Chapter I (Fish and Wildlife) of this Title, involving the taking of fish from the waters of the State of New York other than in the marine and coastal district.
(a) Definition of baits
(1) Artificial lures or bait shall mean manmade flies, spinners, spoons, plugs, jigs and other lures, even though there may be some natural substances contained in such lures as, but not limited to, deer hair and feathers, and artificial imitations of natural bait.
(2) Natural bait shall mean all baits which entice or might be ingested or swallowed by fish including, but not limited to, fish (dead or alive), fish eggs, worms, shellfish, crustacea, amphibians (salamanders, frogs and toads), insects (including all stages of development as larvae, pupae, etc.), pork rinds, liver, meat, corn or other vegetable matter, tapioca, candy, cheese, bread and putty or dough-like scented baits.
(3) Artificial fly means a hook with no more than two points dressed with feathers, hair, thread, tinsel or any similar material to which no hooks, spinners, spoons or similar devices have been added.
(b) Bait fish shall mean those fish listed in subdivision (a) of section 19.2 of this Part.
(c) Fish as bait shall mean fish used as bait, other than those listed in subdivision (a) of section 19.2 of this Part.
§19.2 Use of fish for bait in the waters of the State of New York
This section shall apply to the waters of the State except the marine and coastal district.
(a) Except as provided for in subdivisions (c) and (d) of this section, the following fish, or parts thereof, provided they meet the fish health inspection requirements as contained in Part 188 of this Title, may be used as bait for fishing in the waters of the State, except as otherwise prohibited by section 10.6 of Part 10 of this Chapter or any other provision of law or regulation:
(1) Golden shiner (Notemigonus crysoleucas).
(2) Emerald shiner (Notropis atherinoides).
(3) Fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas).
(4) Bluntnose minnow (Pimephales notatus).
(5) Spottail shiner (Notropis hudsonius).
(6) Creek chub (Semotilus atromaculatus).
(7) White sucker (Catostomus commersonii).
(8) Common shiner (Luxilus cornutus).
(9) Blacknose dace (Rhinichthys atratulus).
(10) Longnose dace (Rhinichthys cataractae).
(11) Northern hogsucker (Hypentelium nigricans).
(12) Fallfish (Semotilus corporalis).
(13) Northern redbelly dace (Phoxinus eos).
(14) Logperch (Percina caprodes).
(15) Banded killifish (Fundulus diaphanus).
(b) Except as provided for in subdivisions (c) and (d) of this section, the following fish, or parts thereof, provided they meet the fish health inspection requirements as contained in Part 188 of this Title, shall not be used as bait for fishing except in the water bodies identified in this subdivision:
(1) Alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus): Canandaigua Lake; Cannonsville Reservoir; Cayuga Lake; Cayuta Lake; Conesus Lake; Hudson River and tidal portion of Hudson River tributaries (Albany, Rensselaer, Greene, Columbia, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester Counties); Keuka Lake; Otsego Lake; Otisco Lake; Owasco Lake; Lake Ontario; Lake Erie; Lamoka Lake; Pepacton Reservoir; Seneca Lake; St. Lawrence River and tributaries to the first barrier impassable by fish; Niagara River and tributaries to the first barrier impassable by fish; Mohawk River; and all waters in Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester Counties).
(2) Rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax): Canandaigua Lake; Cayuga Lake; Cayuta Lake; Conesus Lake; First, Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth Lakes of the Fulton Chain; Keuka Lake; Owasco Lake; Lake Champlain; Lamoka Lake; Lake Ontario; Lake Erie; Seneca Lake; Star Lake (St. Lawrence County); Waneta Lake; the St. Lawrence River and tributaries to the first barrier impassable by fish; and the Niagara River and tributaries to the first barrier impassable by fish.
(3) Mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus): Hudson River and tidal portion of Hudson River tributaries (Albany, Rensselaer, Greene, Columbia, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester Counties); and all waters in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
(4) Blueback herring (Alosa aestivalis) and Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus): Hudson River and tidal portion of Hudson River tributaries (Albany, Rensselaer, Greene, Columbia, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester Counties); and the Mohawk River and tributaries to the first barrier impassable by fish.
(5) American eel (Anguilla rostrata): Delaware River and tributaries to the first barrier impassable by fish, 6 inch minimum size limit; and the Hudson River and tidal portion of Hudson River tributaries (Albany, Rensselaer, Greene, Columbia, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester Counties), between 6 and 14 inches.
(c) Any fish, or parts thereof, legally taken on a water body of the State may be possessed and used as bait on that same water body, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (f) of section 10.1 of Part 10 of this Chapter, except as otherwise prohibited by section 10.6 of Part 10 of this Chapter or any other provision of law or regulation.
(d) Any dead fish, or parts thereof excluding eggs, that are packaged for commercial purposes, and preserved by any method other than by freezing only, may be possessed, sold, offered for sale, bartered and transported overland and may be used as bait, except as prohibited by section 10.6 of Part 10 of this Chapter or any other provision of law or regulation. Each package of dead bait fish shall be individually labeled, identifying the name of the packager-processor, the name of fish species, the quantity of fish packaged, and means of preservation.
§19.3 Use of bait fish
No person shall use fish as bait for angling in the waters of the State, other than in the marine and coastal district, except as provided in section 19.2 of this Part.