§322.1. Shad seine; commercial harvest of shad and skipjack herring

            A. A commercial fisherman licensed in accordance with R.S. 56:303 and 305(B)(6)(b) may take shad, skipjack, and any other freshwater commercial fish of legal size with a shad seine in accordance with this Section.

            B. Only shad (Dorosoma sp), skipjack herring (Alosa chryochloris), hereafter in this Section referred to as skipjack, and any other legal-sized freshwater commercial fish may be taken with a shad seine; all other fish shall be immediately returned to waters from which they were caught. All fish on board the vessel shall have the head and caudal fin intact.

            C.(1) A shad seine shall be a seine with a mesh size not less than one-inch bar and two inches stretched and not more than two-inch bar and four inches stretched. A shad seine may not be constructed of monofilament.

            (2) Each shad seine shall have affixed to each end a one-gallon jug, painted international orange and marked in black lettering the words "Shad Seine", and waterproof tags with the name and license number of the fisherman in accordance with R.S. 56:320(F).

            D. Repealed by Acts 2008, No. 24, §2.

            E. Only strike fishing is authorized by this Section.

            F. The following acts are prohibited:

            (1) The use of more than one shad seine by a licensee.

            (2) The use of more than one seine per vessel.

            (3) The use of a shad seine by more than two vessels at one time.

            (4) The use of a shad seine in a manner that unduly restricts navigation of other vessels or interferes with commercial shipping.

            (5) Leaving a shad seine unattended or not actively fishing it while it is in the water.

            G. A shad seine may only be fished in the freshwater areas of the state, but it shall not be used in the bodies of water where seine use is prohibited nor the Pearl River or the Pearl River navigational canal.

            H. There shall be no daily take or possession limit for the commercial harvest of shad and skipjack taken under the provisions of this Section by properly licensed shad seine commercial fishermen.

            I. Violation of any of the provisions of this Section, except for Paragraph (F)(4) and Subsection G, constitutes a class four violation. Violation of Paragraph (F)(4) constitutes a class three violation. Violation of Subsection G constitutes a class two violation.

            Acts 2003, No. 274, §1; Acts 2004, No. 86, §1, eff. May 28, 2004; Acts 2008, No. 24, §§1, 2; Acts 2021, No. 356, §2, eff. Nov. 15, 2021.