Spearfishing
Most folks catch fish with hook and line. A successful fisherman combines skill, knowledge, and experience with a good deal of luck to essentially trick a fish into catching itself. If the fish won't bite, you go home empty-handed. However, scuba divers have a much more dynamic method available to them - spearfishing. Spearfishing is more akin to hunting than to hook and line fishing: rather than relying on a convincingly presented bait or lure, the spearfisherman enters the environment of his quarry and pursues it on its own terms.
It is a pursuit where the hunter has many disadvantages. A fish can sense your approach in ways we can only imagine, flee at speeds no diver will ever match, shelter in inaccessible holes and crevices, and sometimes even dodge your best shot. Compared to a fish, a diver is incredibly slow, clumsy, and noisy. And a fish can hide with eternal patience, while a diver typically has only 30-40 minutes of air to catch something or not. It hardly seems like a fair fight, but with the proper techniques and equipment, success can be just a dive away.
Readers with delicate sensibilities should stop here. You might prefer Photography.
There are essentially two choices of weapon for spearfishing: pole spears and spearguns. The speargun is probably the first thing that comes to mind for most readers - conjuring up images of Seahunt, James Bond, and countless other TV shows and movies. Everyone knows what a speargun looks like - a roughly pistol-shaped device that fires a two-foot steel dart. Everyone probably also has a pretty good idea what a pole spear looks like, but an underwater pole spear is a different in form and use from a terrestrial javelin. Rather than throwing it ( which would be difficult to impossible underwater ) a pole spear ( or "Hawaiian sling" ) has a loop of rubber tubing at the butt end that is used to launch it directly from the hand, the shaft sliding through the loosened hand without ever leaving it.
More: Spearfishing - Choose Your Weapon ...
on the right, and an enormous
18", 4-pound "Super-Male" on
the left. State record is 8 lbs 2 oz.
Spearfishing is really a solo activity. The presence of other divers in the water certainly does not preclude spearfishing, but the last thing you need is a buddy following you around in close proximity while you hunt, especially if he is spearfishing as well. This is in direct opposition to the conventionally accepted "buddy system" of diving and therefore makes spearfishing an activity only for more experienced divers who are capable of self-sufficiency in the water.
For every shot, assume you are going to miss. The resulting overshoot must never be a danger to other divers. This means either having visibility well in excess of the range of your weapon ( seldom ) or having a good backstop ( often the bottom is the best backstop. )
More: Spearfishing Safety ...
General
Most underwater hunting in New Jersey waters is done around some sort of structure. Surprise is often the key element to a successful hunt. "Get the drop" on a fish by rounding a corner or popping up over a wall while holding your breath. Don't use a light - this just spooks the fish. Instead, let your eyes adjust to the dark. This way you can see as well as they can, although they can still hear and feel you coming a mile away. Use your light only to peek into black holes, and keep one eye closed when you do, to avoid losing all dark adaptation.
Try to be the first person in the water. The fish will be in a relaxed and unworried state, and you will likely get the first one "for free". This is especially true if you are after trophy-sized Blackfish. Whether or not you score on your first shot, after that all the fish in the area will be spooked. This is because they produce "fear scents" - chemical excretions that warn other fish that there is danger. If you make a kill, you will put blood in the water, which is even worse. So make that first shot count. On the other hand, sometimes the scent of blood will bring in more fish, such as greedy Sea Bass, although more often just Cunners.
More: Spearfishing Techniques ...
Here are some pointers for hunting the most common food fishes in our waters. Always make sure a fish that you are targeting is of legal size and in-season - the same rules that apply to hook-and-line fishing apply to spearfishing. Unless you are sure, don't shoot it. See Catch Restrictions & Regulations for catch limits. See also Marine Biology for more detail on all of these and many others.
More: Spearfishing - Your Quarry ...
Well, that's all just great, but what do I do with it now? Many people have no idea how to clean a fish. Here are some basic instructions:
It is helpful first to understand what you are trying to do when cleaning a fish. The object is to cleanly separate the edible meat from the inedible bones, skin, and guts. Most of the undesirable fishy taste of fish resides in the skin and guts, so it is important to clean fish as soon as possible before that strong fishy taste soaks into the meat. This is especially important with Blackfish, less so for Sea Bass and other types.
More: Spearfishing - Cleaning Your Catch ...
RULES AND REGULATIONS
- Fish must be caught in New Jersey waters.
- Saltwater species taken from a boat must have been caught from a boat which left from and returned to a New Jersey port during the same trip.
- Fish must have been caught on sporting tackle, hooked and landed by entrant.
- New Jersey state records are determined by weight alone. There are no line classes.
- Fish must be weighed on a certified scale.
- A clear photograph of the fish must be furnished for identification purposes. In the case of freshwater species, a yardstick must be placed next to fish to clearly show length.
- Fish should be refrigerated to permit inspection by a biologist in cases of uncertain identification.
Catch a fish that may not be of record size but is of sufficient size and weight to have tested your skill and/or be of "bragging" size? Then enter your catch in the Division of Fish and Wildlife's Skillful Angler Awards Program.
More: Think You've Got a Record-size Fish? ...