New category was created to "recognize spear fishers who have obtained a level of proficiency that allows them to harvest exceptional specimens"...

by Tom Vassallo

During the second week of August this year a 10-year-old visitor from Virginia found something truly special on a Long Beach Island beach. His find? A Paleo-Indian spear point used by Ancient pre-tribal, pre-Lenape Native Americans to spear fish nearly 10,000 years ago. According to Wikipedia, the earliest known illustration of a fishing reel is from Chinese paintings and records beginning about 1195 AD. That means that spearfishing pre-dated fishing with rod and reel by over 9000 years.

As early as 1947, the International Underwater Spearfishing Association (IUSA) standardized rules for the taking of record fish by underwater spearfishing. The following year those rules were distributed to Spain, France, Italy, and Australia and the IUSA applied to the International Game Fish Association for the maintenance of world records under these rules. One of the most well respected advocates of spearfishing as a sport was Ralph Davis, a West Coast skin-diving pioneer who founded the IUSA. Davis was instrumental in the recognition of spearfishing as a sport and dedicated his life to seeing it as a sport in the Olympic Games. However, Davis died in 2001, never achieving that goal. But perhaps he is smiling somewhere about the recent announcement by the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlife concerning its recognition of spearfishing.

On July 31st, the NJDEP Division of Fish and Wildlife finally announced the creation of a new "Spearfishing" category in the State Record Fish Program. The category was created to "recognize spear fishers who have obtained a level of proficiency that allows them to harvest exceptional specimens" according to a release on the NJDEPF&W web site. The editors and staff of FishinJersey.com applaud the Division for their action.

For many years, the Division of Fish & Wildlife didn't recognize record specimens that had been landed by means of a spear, harpoon or other missile while divers were completely submerged in the marine waters of the state. In announcing this about face for recognition of these dedicated sportsmen and sportswomen, the Division included a statement  that read:

"The spearing of a fish, whether record size or not, requires extensive knowledge of fish behavior to complete a successful stalk; knowledge of spearfishing equipment, operation and rigging to insure a well-placed and effective shot; and skill in the water to successfully hunt and capture a large fish".

The Division also released a list of the species that will be recognized under this category along with the minimum weight for each respective species. The list initially consists of 17 species:

NJDEP Division of Fish & Wildlife Spearfishing Record Fish Category - Species & Minimum Size
Amberjack, Greater	Min. Wt. 60 pounds
Bass, Black Sea	Min. Wt. 5 pounds
Bluefish	Min. Wt. 18 pounds
Cobia	Min. Wt. 60 pounds
Cod	Min. Wt. 50 pounds
Dolphin	Min. Wt. 40 pounds
Flounder, Summer (Fluke)	Min. Wt. 12 pounds
Flounder, Winter	Min. Wt. 3 pounds
Hake, Red (Ling)	Min. Wt. 9 pounds
Pollock	Min. Wt. 30 pounds
Porgy	Min. Wt. 4 pounds
Sheepshead	Min. Wt. 12 pounds
Spadefish	Min. Wt. 9 pounds
Striped Bass	Min. Wt. 55 pounds
Tautog (Blackfish)	2007* - 23 lbs. 14 oz. - Luke Hickey
Triggerfish, Gray	Min. Wt. 3.5 pounds
Weakfish	Min. Wt. 14 pounds

* Fish was recognized by the International Underwater Spearfishing Association as a world record.

In New Jersey waters, spear fishing may be conducted  for any species (except lobster) of legal size and during open seasons. The Division has also announced that anglers using a spear or other recognized missle to pursue and harvest gamefish must adhere to the standard New Jersey Marine Regulations. It is the diver's responsibility to ensure the fish meets the minimum size limits before it may be killed or injured.

Just four days before the Division announced the new category, spearfisher Tim Fiordaliso of Mount Holly, weighed in a 33-inch 14.55-pound summer flounder (fluke) taken at the Barnegat Inlet on Long Beach Island. Just nine days after Fordaliso landed his giant fish, Robert Davis of Bamber Lake, New Jersey was also also spearfishing in the Barnegat Inlet area off Barnegat Light when he landed another Jersey giant! Davis's monster doormat weighed in at 15.33 pounds and will likely eclipse Fiordaliso's fish as the New Jersey record summer flounder (fluke) in the new spearfishing category.

It may have taken 10,000 years since the first fish were speared off the coast of what is now known as New Jersey to recognize spearfishing for the tremendous sport it is. However, the new breed of spearfishers have wasted no time in posting some very respectable fish to be considered in the New Jersey Record Fish program!