I was doing some bass fishing in the canal behind my home yesterday, on the other side there are few guys tossing a castnet, at first I figure they are trying to catch bait. I get within shouting distance and see they are netting bass, all sizes and keeping them all. I didn't realize how many bass were there as I catch 2 fish and they have net full on every throw...lol. I alert them to the fact what they are doing is illegal, it's one thing to fish with cane pole and take home legal fish, I have no problem with that. I pull out my phone and call the FWC, they jump in they're car and take off, I'm sure only a report is filed and there will be no follow up, there are just too many places to patrol.

Fishing with a net? Thats weak man. Besides being illegal, wheres the fun in that? I would have filed a report too. Ya never know. Maybe if they get enough reports about these guys they'll end up looking into it. Somebody might even get a liscence plate number or something.

This isn't about fishing, it's about dinner. It's one thing to be a commercial fisherman with the proper license and selling the fish as a means of support, I know some, that isn't the issue here.

I see what your saying. A couple of sketchy guys ignoring the law and trying to fill their freezer. I was just saying that netting a bunch of fish at a time doesn't seem nearly as fun as fighting individual fish one by one. But like you said, they're fishing for food, not fun.

People do the same thing in the warm water discharge areas at one of the lakes I fish in the winter time. The warm water concentrates the shad and in turn the game fish. I don't think they really try to net gamefish but if they get one while trying to get shad it goes in the bucket. Snagging is very popular and still illegal in the same area. Thankfully it's usually big buffalo or common carp that are caught by the guys doing this.

Glad to hear you dropped a dime on those guys.

my friend once saw the same thing. a bunch of guys were cast netting a punch of sunfish in a small creek below the dam of a pond. he called the new york state DEC but nobody responded.

Yep, you did right. If more people keep calling about it sooner or later the DNR will set up a watch. They have done that several times where I fish.

You did the right thing. I like how poachers in Wisconsin have their names published.