Wisconsin Spearfishing Rules Card

Legal status

Saltwater RestrictedFreshwater Permitted

Wisconsin has no ocean coast, so there is no saltwater spearfishing - its Lake Superior and Lake Michigan/Green Bay shorelines are fresh water.

License

Required: Wisconsin fishing license (for general spearing); a separate Sturgeon Spearing License (Lake Winnebago or Upriver Lakes) is required to spear lake sturgeon

Resident: Resident annual fishing license $20.00; resident one-day license $8.00; first-time buyers (or those who have not bought in 10 years) can get an annual license for $5.00. Sturgeon spearing license (residents): $20.00.

Non-resident: Nonresident annual fishing license $55.00; nonresident one-day license $15.00. Sturgeon spearing license (nonresidents): $65.00.

Gear rules

• Spearguns: Legal. 'Spear guns' are expressly included in Wisconsin's statutory definition of 'spearing' (a device consisting of a shaft with.
• Pole spears: Legal as a hand-held spear. Rough fish may be taken by hand-held spear June 1-Aug.
• On scuba: Yes - and Wisconsin is explicit about it. SCUBA diving and skin diving may be used to spear white bass, yellow bass, rock bass, crappie.
• Spearing by hand is prohibited from sunset to sunrise on all waters (bow/crossbow for rough fish may be used at night during the open.
• Hand-held spears may not be possessed within 200 feet of a dam, lock or fishway on inland and boundary waters, except rough fish may be.
• Underwater SCUBA/skin-diving spearing is limited to the listed panfish (and rough fish) and only sunrise to sunset during the open.
• Bow and arrow or crossbow may take rough fish or catfish only if the arrow has a metal barbed tip attached to the bow with a tethered.

Do not spear

• Walleye and sauger may NOT be speared
• Largemouth and smallmouth
• Muskellunge may NOT be speared
• Trout and salmon may NOT be speared
• Northern pike may NOT be speared generally
• On outlying
• Lake sturgeon may NOT be speared anywhere except during the licensed, tagged Winnebago System

Area restrictions

• Nine northern counties are entirely closed to spearing: Ashland (except a Bad River burbot exception), Bayfield, Forest, Iron, Menominee, Oneida.
• No hand-held spear within 200 feet of any dam, lock or fishway on inland and boundary waters (narrow fishway exception June 1-Aug. 31 where allowed)
• Spears prohibited on the Embarrass River below Pella Dam (Shawano Co.), the Wolf River (Shawano Dam to Fox River) and the Fox River (Johnson Creek.
• Wisconsin/Minnesota boundary waters: rough fish spearing season Saturday nearest April 21 to March 1; spears only sunrise to sunset (bow/crossbow may.

Before you dive

• Never dive alone: one up, one down.
• Check current seasons and sizes the morning of the dive.
• Confirm with Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (Wisconsin DNR): https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/