Pictures of fish caught out-of-season - our stand

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Fishhawk
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Pictures of fish caught out-of-season - our stand

Post by Fishhawk »

Fish-Hawk.Net has always been, and will always be, a site that is designed, developed, and run with the wishes of the greater Angling Community in mind. We try very hard to maintain a site that is useful, respectful, and entertaining, while providing content that is relevant and rewarding. We expect no less from the community of anglers who use the site.

In order to ensure we can achieve these goals, we have a set of rules in place that acts as a sort of framework upon which we operate. These rules govern the decisions we make and help us to provide consistency in those decisions. We try very hard to articulate the rules in a way that still allows for flexibility, freedom of speech, and administrative doability. We believe our rules allow people lots of room to make a point.

We do not like adding new rules.

In some cases new rules are required in order to address a topic or issue that has a heightend exposure and strong feelings among the general population.

For this reason, we will be augmenting our set of rules to take into account our official position on the topic of Out of Season Fish. (OOS Fish)

Over the past few years and just recently this past May and June, the topic of OOS fish has generated a lot of heated discussion, sometimes to the point where intervention has been required in order to keep the peace. The more time we spend keeping the peace, the less time we spend making things happen that improve Fish-Hawk.Net for the benefit of all. For this reason, we are issuing a statement as it pertains to OOS Fish and Fish-Hawk.Net.

Fish-Hawk.Net does not condone the intentional targeting of OOS fish. This is illegal. Catching OOS fish negatively impacts the overall fish species. We feel that those who intentionally target OOS fish should suffer the harshest penalties there are.

Fish-Hawk.Net acknowledges that anglers who target in-season species will incidentally catch OOS species. Fish do not always cooperate with our best intentions. We feel it is important for anglers to educate themselves so they can avoid situations where there is potential for catches of OOS fish. Further, anglers should remove themselves from situations immediately after recognizing the potential.

Fish-Hawk.Net does not condone picture taking of OOS fish. We see no value in posting pictures of OOS fish either in the Fish-Hawk.Net picture galleries or in Hawk Talk.

We feel that if you do happen to catch an OOS fish, even if it is a fish of a lifetime, you should immediately return that fish from whence it came, taking every precaution possible to release the fish quickly without removing it from the water. If an angler encounters a situation where they are catching OOS fish, changing locations is an absolute must in the interest of protecting spawning fish and their spawn. Where is the sport in accidentally catching a fish you were not targeting anyway?


While it is impossible for us to instill these morals and practises on the general community, it is possible for us to state our position. Not everyone will have this same opinion, however it is with great hope that we may be able to influence a few to do the same.

It is also possible for us to govern the use of Fish-Hawk.Net as it pertains to this topic. For this reason, we will be establishing a new rule within Hawk Talk Forums that DOES NOT allow the posting of OOS Fish within threads of these forums or within the Fishhawk Galleries. Pictures posted of OOS fish will be removed. Continued posting of OOS fish by users who have had pictures removed before will result in a note being sent to them to inquire about their intentions and a reminder of the rules. Further action will be taken if necessary.

It is also noted that there have been some instances where people were not aware they were posting OOS fish, or mistaken one fish species for another. It happens, lets not kid ourselves. These pictures will however, also be removed.

Having your picture removed is not looked upon by Fish-Hawk.Net as a stike against you, nor does it blacklist you as someone who is causing trouble or considered as "poaching". It's just the decision that we have made as it pertains to this site.

Continued posting, after having been advised of the rules, will result in strikes against your adherence and respect for the purpose of this site. If you would like an explanation as to why a particular picture has been removed, please contact either Fishhawk or Bobber. We will be happy to explain the reasons behind the removal.

We thank you for your attention to this matter, and also thank you in advance for respecting the decision that we have made.

Sincerely,
Fishhawk & Bobber
Fishhawk
"gotta run like a madman bye thanks see ya good luck"
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