Statewide
Regulations
These methods are legal
for taking both game and nongame fish throughout the year, statewide, unless
restricted under “SPECIAL RESTRICTIONS.”
DEFINITIONS:
ROD AND REEL: A person may use up to seven (7) rods while fishing unless
restricted further under “SPECIAL RESTRICTIONS.”
TROTLINE/THROWLINE: Trotlines/throwlines
are restricted to no more than three (3) lines and 100 hooks per person. A
legal trotline/throwline has:
• no glass or metallic floating device on the line;
• no metallic posts in water for attachment;
• lines made of nonmetallic material only;
• hooks at least 24 inches apart;
• owner’s name and address attached to each line;
• been attended at least once every 24 hours;
• not been set within three (3) ft. of surface of water at any point beyond
six (6) ft. from either point of attachment, except at Great Salt Plains and
Ft. Supply reservoirs where water is less than three (3) ft. deep.
JUGLINE: Juglines are
restricted to no more than five (5) hooks per line and 20 juglines per
person. A legal jugline is a vertical line suspended from a nonmetallic or
nonglass floating device, drifting free or anchored and has:
• owner’s name and address attached;
• been attended at least once every 24 hours.
LIMBLINE: Limblines are
restricted to no more than two (2) hooks per line and 20 limblines per
person. A legal limbline is a line attached to a limb, branch or other
natural object and has:
• the owner’s name and address attached;
• been attended at least once every 24 hours.
YO-YO: Yo-yo’s are restricted
to no more than 20 per person and shall:
• have the owner’s name and address attached;
• not be left unattended for more than six (6) hours;
• not be strung or suspended from any horizontal line across any channel or
navigable waterway;
• have no more than 10 yo-yo’s attached from any one line or support;
• not have metallic material in lines used for attachment;
• have lines no greater than 50 feet in length and must be placed or
suspended without restricting or impeding boat traffic. Lines must be
visible to boats at all times, day or night.
THESE METHODS ARE LEGAL FOR
TAKING NONGAME FISH ACCORDING TO THE FOLLOWING PROVISIONS unless restricted
under “special restrictions.”
BOW AND ARROW: Bowfishing may
be used to take nongame fish only, throughout the year in all waters unless
restricted under “SPECIAL RESTRICTIONS.” Legal bowfishing is restricted to:
• long bow only (any bow except a crossbow);
• arrows having no more than three (3) points with no more than two (2)
barbs on each point.
GIG, GRABHOOK, SPEAR AND
SPEARGUN: Gigs and spears are legal for taking nongame fish and white bass
only. Grabhooks (handheld hook or handheld pole or rope with a single hook
attached used in the initial taking of a fish) are prohibited in all state
waters, except SCUBA divers in Delaware and Mayes counties (excluding
tailwaters which are closed) may use grabhooks to take nongame fish only
from June 15 through July 31. Spearguns used by SCUBA divers are legal for
taking nongame fish, blue and channel catfish. Gigs, spears and spearguns
shall:
• not contain more than three (3) points with no more than two (2) barbs on
each point;
• be lawful in all rivers and streams from Dec. 1 through Mar. 31, and
year-round in all reservoirs, unless restricted under “SPECIAL
RESTRICTIONS.”
• Gigs shall be lawful year-round in rivers and streams in Delaware and
Mayes Counties, unless restricted under “SPECIAL RESTRICTIONS.”
SNAGGING: Snagging, the
dragging of one single hook or one treble hook attached to a fishing line
through the water to impale fish, shall be lawful in all waters year-round
for nongame fish only unless restricted under “SPECIAL RESTRICTIONS.”
NOODLING: Noodling is the
taking of nongame fish only by use of hands only. Possession of hooks,
gaffs, spears, poles or ropes with hooks attached while in the act of
noodling shall be proof of violation of the “hands only” noodling law.
Noodling shall be lawful year-round in all waters unless restricted under
“SPECIAL RESTRICTIONS.”
NETTING (Noncommercial): Only
nets defined as gill nets, trammel nets, hoop nets, or haul seines may be
used to take nongame fish only, except prohibited April through May. No fish
taken by these methods may be transported from the state or be sold. All
nets must be attended at least once every 24 hours. Each license holder is
limited to 300 feet of net or a total of 4 hoop nets in the water at any
time. Each unattended net must have owner’s name and address attached.
Legal hoop nets shall be:
• no longer than 10 feet in length;
• no smaller than 3-inch square mesh;
• constructed of nonmetallic mesh only;
• constructed with no more than seven (7) hoops, three (3) feet in diameter
or smaller.
Legal mesh size for gill or trammel nets or seines used in noncommercial
netting shall be:
• no smaller than 4-inch square.
The following lakes and reservoirs are closed year-round to all
noncommercial netting for any fish:
• all Wildlife Department Fishing Areas (see pg. 28);
• all Corps of Engineers, State Parks, GRDA, OG&E and Bureau of Reclamation
lakes;
• Lakes Atoka, Carl Albert, Carl Blackwell, Ellsworth, Eucha, Lawtonka, Lone
Chimney, Spavinaw, Taft, Hefner, Overholser (including tailwaters and
downstream to NW 10th St. bridge), Draper, all waters within the Wichita
Mountains NWR, all lakes and ponds within the Ouachita National Forest and
all Oklahoma City “Close to Home” fishing waters (see pg. 17).
The following rivers and creeks are closed year-round to all noncommercial
netting for any fish:
• Baron Fork Creek
• Black Fork Creek
• Blue River
• Caney River
• Deep Fork River upstream from Lake Eufaula to Arcadia Lake dam
• Glover River upstream from Hwy 3 & 7
• Illinois River
• Kiamichi River above and below Hugo Lake to the Red River
• Lee Creek
• Little River tributary of Lake Thunder-bird above Franklin Road in
Cleveland County
• Little River upstream from Hwy 98 bridge
• Lukfata Creek
• McGee Creek
• Mountain Fork River upstream from Hwy 70 bridge
• Pennington Creek
• Poteau and Fourche Maline rivers in Leflore County
• Red River from Choctaw/Bryan county line upstream to I-35 bridge
• Sans Bois tributary of R.S. Kerr Lake
• Washita River upstream to Hwy 77 bridge south of Davis
• all cutoffs, oxbows, side channels and tributaries of the above named
rivers and streams
• all of the old oxbows and cutoffs of the Arkansas River in LeFlore and
Sequoyah counties
• Canadian River from Lake Eufaula dam downstream to the confluence with
Robert S. Kerr
• Arkansas River
• Cimarron River and its tributaries
• Neosho River from Kansas border downstream to the confluence with Webbers
Falls
• Salt Creek in Osage County
• Salt Fork River
• Spring River
• Verdigris River
SEINES, CAST NETS, TRAWLS AND
DIP NETS (Noncommercial): Seining, cast netting, trawling and dip netting
bait for personal use is lawful in all waters year-round except Lakes Taft,
Lone Chimney, Overholser (including tailwaters and downstream to NW 10th
bridge), Hefner, Draper, Close to Home Fishing Waters (see pg. 17), the
Wichita Mountains NWR, and in Department of Wildlife Fishing Areas (see pg.
28), however cast nets may be used to take bait for personal use at Lake
Carl Etling.
Any person may seine, trap or transport minnows for their own use as bait,
provided the seine does not exceed 20 feet in length and 1/4-inch mesh. Cast
nets, trawls and handheld dip nets are lawful for taking nongame fish only
as bait for personal use. No person may take and/or export out-of-state via
land based transportation more than one hundred fifty (150) nongame fish,
including shad, for potential use as bait. Cast nets shall have a mesh size
no greater than 3/8-inch square. Trawl nets pulled by motor driven boats may
not exceed three (3) feet in diameter and 3/8-inch square mesh. A resident
or nonresident fishing license is required of each person using these
methods, unless exempt.
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