Several members have suggested gutting fish immediately to preserve taste and tablefare, and I just wanted to confirm that this is legal while still on the water.

The FWC regs state that many regulated species must remain in "whole condition" until you get to the dock, and then it states "head and tail intact".

So I'm interpreting this to mean that gutting/bleeding is allowed, as long as the head and tail are not separated.

Please confirm. Thanks

Correct

Yep, keeping them intact (head on) allows for law enforcement to measure the catch.

Great. Thanks much for that confirmation.
Time for some Mango Sashimi :yay:

Here's a question sort of along the same lines.

What if you have caught a fish that is drastically bigger than any cooler you have on the boat. There is no amount of spine breaking and bending that will coax the 70+ lb cobia into the 100qt cooler. Therefore, said boaters gut the fish, cut the head and tail off, but keep all three together in the same cooler. Also, the 'plug' of the cobia is still plenty larger than the 33' required length. Is this legal or would the lawman be handing over a ticket regardless?

I think "technically" that would be illegal, but most FMP are pretty cool and they understand the intent behind landing the fish whole is to verify it was indeed a legal fish. In this instance, their is no questioning that fact.

Ok, another question. It's clear that fish shrink on ice. Does gutting the fish enhance this effect vs leaving it whole on ice?

Well, my personal opionion on that is that if the fish is that close, you should probably pass on it and hunt a bigger fish. But to answer your question, I do not think gutting makes much, if any, difference.

Here's a question sort of along the same lines.

What if you have caught a fish that is drastically bigger than any cooler you have on the boat. There is no amount of spine breaking and bending that will coax the 70+ lb cobia into the 100qt cooler. Therefore, said boaters gut the fish, cut the head and tail off, but keep all three together in the same cooler. Also, the 'plug' of the cobia is still plenty larger than the 33' required length. Is this legal or would the lawman be handing over a ticket regardless?

Good question...on occasion I've had to cut a fish in half in order to fit it in the cooler. I thought that common sense should prevail in these instances...but you never know.
One time I cleaned some fish on the way in due to the long ride and thought that as long as I had the fillets that matched up the carcasses everything would be good. I was informed this would probably never fly so I haven't done it since. I then thought about cleaning them almost all the way..keeping everything intact...but that is probably pushing it too.

Good question...on occasion I've had to cut a fish in half in order to fit it in the cooler. I thought that common sense should prevail in these instances...but you never know.
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You know Marcus, as you get better at this, you can start bringing something bigger than your playmate cooler on the boat....:smthumbup:

You know Marcus, as you get better at this, you can start bringing something bigger than your playmate cooler on the boat....:smthumbup:


I don't think he bothered with a cooler for the SPO, he put his fish in a big gulp cup.

You know Marcus, as you get better at this, you can start bringing something bigger than your playmate cooler on the boat....:smthumbup:

Yea...so long as I'm not spearing off your boat. :D

Since I'm fairly new to this, my take is that unless you follow the letter of the law, your taking a chance. I for one, am not willing to take the chance with a LEO's interpretation or mood on any given day, so I'll just follow the rule and keep the fish whole. I agree with spearchucker. If the fish is so close to reg that cooling it down will push it one way or the other, I'll just let it go and come back for him another day.

Honestly, I'm in this not only for food on the table, but more to have fun. To me, it's all about the fun factor. If I take the fun away stressing to much over whether what I'm brining in to the dock is legal or not, I killed my fun, not just the fish.

Additionally, my attitude is that part of the fun is the thrill of the hunt. I want to be successful in bring in a kill. If some LEO decides that my kill is invalid, then my hunt has been unsuccessful, and I loose.

Just my 2 cents. Again, I'm fairly new to this, so I want to start out right, with the right attitude and goals.

So you're going to let your fish rot in the sun, or not shoot fish bigger than your cooler?

I'm fairly sure 'whole' means 'not filleted'. You can get creative and cut them almost in half- enough to fold them I guess. Unless you have dozens of fish and can't match bodies, I think the 'cut the one big fish in half' should be fine. Worst case, go to the judge and explain.

Simple solution, Cut the head or body 99% through and leave some skin and meat as a hinge. Do the same for the tail. The fish, while hinged but not separated, is still "whole."

All that sounds reasonable to me. I can't imagine them arguing with that, but then again, you never know.

If anyone ever gets checked while attempting one of these concepts, please post your experience.

Beerbatter, what you need to do is put marks on your speargun so you can measure the fish in the water, this way you will never ever get in trouble.. http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s170/da4095/Bolt.gif