Fish Theft article AT

AT this week says that "The taking of Freshwater Fish by rod & line for an
anglers own may be perfectly legal even if many anglers do not like this
activity"
Ok now some questions.

1. Does this apply to Club lakes, commercial fisheries & syndicate waters.
Or is this known as Theft.

2. On free stretches does this mean it is not Theft?

3. I have taken the odd Pike & eaten ie 5lb Jacks certainly no bigger, has
anyone else eaten any other freshwater fish?

4. is there a limit set out for taking fish for Live or Dead baiting?

5. Dose anyone have anything else to add?

Colin.
--
East Coast Nature Guides
Lowestoft
Suffolk.
enquires to

In message , Colin Jacobs
writes
AT this week says that "The taking of Freshwater Fish by rod & line for an
anglers own may be perfectly legal even if many anglers do not like this
activity"
Ok now some questions.

1. Does this apply to Club lakes, commercial fisheries & syndicate waters.
Or is this known as Theft.

From http://www.defra.gov.uk/paw/publications/law/4_1_10.htm :

"In England and Wales the Theft Act usually applies to fish in enclosed
waters and breeding tanks where they can be classed as property and not
as wild creatures. Under section 32 of and Schedule 1 to the Theft Act,
however, it is an offence unlawfully to take or destroy or attempt to
take or destroy any fish in private waters. Any person may arrest anyone
who is committing such an offence unless they are using rod and line in
daytime. In all cases conviction for an offence may lead to the
forfeiture or seizure of the fishing tackle involved."

So as I read that it isn't technically theft on a non-enclosed private
water, but it is still an offence under the theft act.

2. On free stretches does this mean it is not Theft?

Taking "stretches" to imply "river", yes. It may still be illegal,
however, depending on who owns the water. Permission to fish for free
does not guarantee permission to take fish away, and free fishing does
not necessarily mean that nobody owns the stretch.

3. I have taken the odd Pike & eaten ie 5lb Jacks certainly no bigger, has
anyone else eaten any other freshwater fish?

I've eaten pike, perch, zander and whitefish (the latter three not in
the UK). And trout, rainbow and brown, obviously.

--
Steve Walker

In article , Steve Walker
wrote:
In message , Colin Jacobs
writes
AT this week says that "The taking of Freshwater Fish by rod & line for an
anglers own may be perfectly legal even if many anglers do not like this
activity"
Ok now some questions.

1. Does this apply to Club lakes, commercial fisheries & syndicate waters.
Or is this known as Theft.

From http://www.defra.gov.uk/paw/publications/law/4_1_10.htm :

"In England and Wales the Theft Act usually applies to fish in enclosed
waters and breeding tanks where they can be classed as property and not
as wild creatures. Under section 32 of and Schedule 1 to the Theft Act,
however, it is an offence unlawfully to take or destroy or attempt to
take or destroy any fish in private waters. Any person may arrest anyone
who is committing such an offence unless they are using rod and line in
daytime. In all cases conviction for an offence may lead to the
forfeiture or seizure of the fishing tackle involved."

So as I read that it isn't technically theft on a non-enclosed private
water, but it is still an offence under the theft act.

AIui: A fish in an open environment - connected to a river/canal or in a
water with multiple bankside owners is a wild creature and so has no owner.

You cannot steal what does not belong to someone. As and when it is caught
the fish becomes the property of the captor unless other contractual
obligations apply. If it is returned it is released into the wild.

In a completely enclosed pond they belong to the owner of the pond and so
the theft act (as above) does apply. In the UK the only such waters are
artificial - garden and farm ponds mostly. Any connection to another water,
even a tiny drain, is enough to make the fish wild btw. It only has to be
enough that the occasional fry or fish eggs *might* pass. The connection
does not have to be permanent, a winterbourne is a connection even if it is
dry 10 months of the year and a pond in a flood plain probably should be
considered connected to the adjacent river even if only at times of flooding.

2. On free stretches does this mean it is not Theft?

Taking "stretches" to imply "river", yes. It may still be illegal,
however, depending on who owns the water. Permission to fish for free
does not guarantee permission to take fish away, and free fishing does
not necessarily mean that nobody owns the stretch.

Sounds right, you might have worded it differently. The fish and the right
to fish for them are separate entities.

Don't forget that when you join a club, buy a ticket or otherwise arrange
permission to fish (*including taking any advantage of any general
dispensation) you are entering a contract and it may specify what happens to
anything you catch.

3. I have taken the odd Pike & eaten ie 5lb Jacks certainly no bigger, has
anyone else eaten any other freshwater fish?

I've eaten pike, perch, zander and whitefish (the latter three not in
the UK). And trout, rainbow and brown, obviously.

I've tried a few. Imo gudgeon are the best eating.

Cheerio,

--

I've tried a few. Imo gudgeon are the best eating.

Cheerio,

--


How do you cook Gudgeon? The canal near me is full of them

"kimbo_" wrote in message
...
I've tried a few. Imo gudgeon are the best eating.

Cheerio,

--


How do you cook Gudgeon? The canal near me is full of them


here is one I found

Gudgeons
Egg, beaten
Breadcrumbs
Flour
Hot Oil
Do not scrape off the scales, but take out the gills and inside and clean
thoroughly
Wipe dry, flour and dip into egg and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
Deep fry until a nice brown.
Sufficient: 3 for each person.
Seasonable from March to July.

Time: 3 or 4 minutes.

"Richard" wrote in message
...

"kimbo_" wrote in message
...
I've tried a few. Imo gudgeon are the best eating.

Cheerio,

--


How do you cook Gudgeon? The canal near me is full of them


here is one I found

Gudgeons
Egg, beaten
Breadcrumbs
Flour
Hot Oil
Do not scrape off the scales, but take out the gills and inside and clean
thoroughly
Wipe dry, flour and dip into egg and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
Deep fry until a nice brown.
Sufficient: 3 for each person.
Seasonable from March to July.

Time: 3 or 4 minutes.
Thanks for that Richard i`ll give it a go next year

In article , Richard
wrote:

"kimbo_" wrote in message
...
I've tried a few. Imo gudgeon are the best eating.

Cheerio,

--


How do you cook Gudgeon? The canal near me is full of them


here is one I found

Gudgeons
Egg, beaten
Breadcrumbs
Flour
Hot Oil
Do not scrape off the scales, but take out the gills and inside and clean
thoroughly
Wipe dry, flour and dip into egg and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
Deep fry until a nice brown.
Sufficient: 3 for each person.
Seasonable from March to July.

Time: 3 or 4 minutes.

Should be OK :-)

I'm not sure of the season though - they seem OK from about August to the
end of the river season - never tried them later and it seems only fair to
let them breed in peace.

In general -any- recipe that requires 'goujons' of plaice or sole is a cheap
attempt to copy real gudgeon - so substitute the real thing.

Cheerio,

--