Lets try this one moor time. ITS your fish! DO WHAT YOU WONT WITH IT!

Did you mean to write: "Let's try this one more time. It's your fish do what you want with it."

Did you know that you can go back and "edit" any of your own posts to correct them? It's easier then posting again with corrections and makes the forum and you look better.

Well if you get past the moral question of giving a fish to a needy person or not, here is the legal side of that question. It appears that they don't need a license to receive the fish (though you mention they were there fishing themselves which is a whole different issue).

From the TPWD FAQ on fishing regulations:


Can I give another person my fish if I don't want to bring them home?
- Yes, but you need to give them a Wildlife Resource Document along with the fish you're giving them.

What is a Wildlife Resource Document (WRD) and when is it necessary to have one?
- A WRD is a written statement from the person who legally caught or killed the wildlife resource to the person who receives or possesses the resource. This applies to any resources that require a tag or permit to be attached or which are protected by a bag or possession limit.

What is involved in giving or obtaining a WRD?
- The WRD may be hand written or a person may use the document provided in the Outdoor Annual. The document must have the following information:
- Name, signature, address, and fishing or hunting license number, as required, of the person who caught or killed the fish
- Name of the person receiving the fish
- Description of the fish (number and type of species or parts)
- Date fish was caught or killed
- Location where the fish was caught or killed (name of county, lake, area, bay, stream or ranch)

It would be kinda funny to whip one of these forms out and start to ask the guy all kinds of personal info .....all for one fish!

hook-line&sinker...Nice post. You seem like a very wise and compassionate person.

I, like a lot of fellow TFF'ers have invested a lot of time and more money than the wife knows about to this sport. Time spent fishing is to further accelerate the skill of catching, not fishing. While some call my fishing a hobby, i correct them with the phrase "it's more of an obsession". A good analogy would be, if you spent a life savings restoring a 67 Camaro, would you let the first person who asked take it for a spin around the block? It's your trophy, put it back in the proverbial "trophy case"
(the pond of course)

I say that you tell me these spots around College Station where you catch the fish from, and reluctantly, I will try and leave the fish in there with mouths so sore they won't bite your bait!!!

Ask them to see their fishing license and when they do not have it. Quote em these regs and tell them You would be breaking the law by helping them break the law.

A person taking or attempting to take game and nongame fish from fresh water for non-commercial purposes is required to have a valid fishing license and a freshwater fishing stamp endorsement.

Possession limit is twice the statewide daily bag. The only exception to the statewide possession limits in fresh water is for striped bass from Lake Texoma. Please note that on Lake Livingston and Toledo Bend Reservoir where some daily bag limits are larger than the statewide daily bag, the possession limits remain twice the statewide daily bag limits listed below. Fish stored by a person at their permanent residence do not apply to their possession limit.

Its not his info just his name. But you have to give the "gimme your fish dude" all of your personal info, along with the fish. So he gets a free fish and knows where to find your empty house for free loot next time he sees you out there fishing

the answer is no, there will always be idiots somewhere who wont leave you alone about stuff, i myself keep fish from time to time to fry up or grill, but i catch them myself and dont bother people who arent keeping them. on the other hand, sometimes when im fishing catch and release, i offer small bass to people who are keeping, but if anyone asks me, god forbid, things can get ugly from there....

I would not give them a fish! Tell them to save their money and time and invest in some Long John Silvers.

I hadn't read this thread since it got moved and I just saw your post.

I will give folks all the catfish or trout I catch out of these ponds because they are constantly stocked by TPWD. The bass, however, are not, and most of the ponds are underpopulated (even Gabbard is pretty tough bass fishing). You will almost never see a poor bass from these ponds when you do catch one. I've caught a couple very nice bass from central park.

A healthy bass population would keep the tiny bluegill and mudcat population in these ponds in check, but the ponds can't keep up with folks taking the few adult bass in the ponds out. Central park is especially vulnerable in spring because the fish tend to spawn by all the cypress trees and you can watch folks picking them off. I watched a guy land a 6# and a couple 2's from one of the trees at central park, and he proceeded to keep all 3 (this was a white college kid, and I mention this in reference to the notorious thread that just got pulled on the freshwater board). I did say something to the guy (jokingly) about him being a sorry bastage for taking all the good bass out of the pond.

People will never catch all the bass in these ponds, but 1 fish here, 1 fish there considering how much folks like I fish these ponds can add up quickly.

I have absolutely no problem with folks catching and eating bass within the legal limits in larger bodies of water. The last 2 times I've had my kayak out, I've taken some bass home to eat (a 1-3 lb bass is my favorite fish to eat).

Who's to say he comes looking for me and ends up at Wrigley Field.

Managing LM bass in any small lake is always tricky and is probably why the TPWD doesn't stock bass in community lakes very often. I suspect the LM bass are also more expensive to raise compared to catfish or trout. TPWD stock fish in community lakes to be harvested by fisherman. Often times this is not the goal when dealing with LM bass. Just look at the amount of money a bass frantic C&R fisherman will spend on the sport compared to every other freshwater fisherman who actually keeps and eats the fish they catch.