Halibut - barbed hooks / Lingcod - barbless hooks

If I can legally fish for one species with a barbed hook, for example halibut, and inadvertently catch a barbless-hook-only species, like lingcod, what do I do?  How do I explain myself if I get checked hauling up the illegal species on my legal gear?

Barbless hooks are required for all species in Marine Areas 5-13, except forage fish jig gear.

Emphasis mine.  You need barbless for halibut too.

Not sure there is much you can do other than hope the warden is a fisherman and can tell based on your gear setup that you were targeting halibut instead of lings.
But from a legal perspective they have the right to fine you. It all depends on how big of a jerk they want to be.
Sort of like the law requiring that one has a trash bag of some sort in their vehicle at all times to help control littering. Cops only ever cite people on that when they feel like being jerks or when people are disrespectful during a traffic stop. 


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Not sure there is much you can do other than hope the warden is a fisherman and can tell based on your gear setup that you were targeting halibut instead of lings.
But from a legal perspective they have the right to fine you. It all depends on how big of a jerk they want to be.
Sort of like the law requiring that one has a trash bag of some sort in their vehicle at all times to help control littering. Cops only ever cite people on that when they feel like being jerks or when people are disrespectful during a traffic stop. 

Sorry, that's not applicable at all.  As Sumpnz posted, Area 5-13 in WA is no barbs allowed except forrage fish, and that would be:  Forage Fish Includes anchovy, sand lance,
herring, sardine, and smelt.

Barbless hooks are required for all species in Marine Areas 5-13, except forage fish jig gear.

Emphasis mine.  You need barbless for halibut too.

I HATE the way the WDFW publishes its regulations.  I looked in the pamphlet.   In the "Marine Area Rules" section it specifically mentions barbless for sturgeon and salmon, but not for halibut.  You have to keep reading to find, the other statement 2 columns over.

But, Thanks!  Got more crimping and grinding to do.

Not sure there is much you can do other than hope the warden is a fisherman and can tell based on your gear setup that you were targeting halibut instead of lings.
But from a legal perspective they have the right to fine you. It all depends on how big of a jerk they want to be.
Sort of like the law requiring that one has a trash bag of some sort in their vehicle at all times to help control littering. Cops only ever cite people on that when they feel like being jerks or when people are disrespectful during a traffic stop. 

Sorry, that's not applicable at all.  As Sumpnz posted, Area 5-13 in WA is no barbs allowed except forrage fish, and that would be:  Forage Fish Includes anchovy, sand lance,
herring, sardine, and smelt.

If demonick happens to be fishing somewhere that barbs are allowed for the targeted species, but disallowed for likely (or even just potential) by-catch the only way to ensure legality and avoid fines is to use barbless only for everything.

Barbless hooks are required for all species in Marine Areas 5-13, except forage fish jig gear.

Emphasis mine.  You need barbless for halibut too.

I HATE the way the WDFW publishes its regulations.  I looked in the pamphlet.   In the "Marine Area Rules" section it specifically mentions barbless for sturgeon and salmon, but not for halibut.  You have to keep reading to find, the other statement 2 columns over.

But, Thanks!  Got more crimping and grinding to do.

My pleasure.  I had looked that up when someone else on here had made an offhand comment about needing to mash barbs for lings (I think it was Lee in his Sucia thread).  Otherwise I'd never have noticed it myself.

I can't speak for WDFW, but in other places where the gear restrictions change between species in the same area you can only retain the fish that are legal to fish for with the gear you are using.  For example, assuming both lingcod and halibut are in season and you are in a depth where it is legal to fish for both but you accidentally catch a lingcod on barbed halibut hooks you'd have to release the lingcod.  Alternatively, you could fish for halibut with barbless hooks and keep lingcod by catch.