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Commission studying bow‑fishing impacts on red drum after public complaints; LSU study underway
Summary
LDWF said a one‑year saltwater bow‑fishing permit shows roughly 1,000 recreational bow fishers and 46 charter permits; officials said the commission has authority over seasons and limits but is still gathering data, including an LSU study of private‑dock nighttime harvest in Barataria Basin, before proposing changes to red drum rules.
Department of Wildlife and Fisheries staff told lawmakers they are still collecting data on saltwater bow fishing and its effects on red drum and other coastal species and that the commission has authority to set seasons, times and limits if the data show changes are warranted.
Cole Garrett told the committee the legislature in 2008 allowed red drum (redfish) to be taken by bow and arrow as a legal method. To improve understanding of the sport, the department implemented a saltwater bow‑fish permit about a year ago to estimate participation; Garrett said peak permit data indicate roughly 1,000 recreational bow fishers and 46 charter permits issued.
Garrett said the department does not yet require harvest reporting from charters through the bow‑fish permit and that nighttime bow fishing often occurs from private docks in shallow water, complicating observation of effort and impacts. To gather information, LDWF contracted with Louisiana State University to study nighttime private‑dock harvest in the Barataria Basin and planned to combine those results with existing recreational (LaCreel) sampling and other data.
LDWF staff described current red drum rules as uniform across methods: a four‑fish daily limit and an 18–27 inch slot, regardless of whether the fish is taken by rod and reel or by bow. Legislators raised concern about discard mortality from bow fishing—staff acknowledged that mortality of shot fish is likely higher than catch‑and‑release rod‑and‑reel mortality and said discard impacts are a central question for management.
Representative Zrang and others asked whether the commission could consider seasons, shot limits or shot‑count caps (for example, a limited number of arrows per day) as an alternative to a wide open permit; staff said that is under discussion but said they want better effort and harvest data before proposing regulatory restrictions.
No immediate regulatory changes were adopted at the committee meeting; staff asked for time to complete data collection and analysis before bringing management proposals to the commission.
