Texas Bowfishing Assn's Alligator Gar Petition

[Hot4huntin]

Petitioning Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission
Please drop the current alligator gar proposal until further scientific studies indicate it is necessary.


Petition by
Texas Bowfishing Association
The undersigned oppose the unnecessary proposed changes to alligator gar harvest regulations. We feel that the current one per day rule is sufficient. Furthermore, studies done by TPWD staff show that the recreational harvest of alligator gar is well below sustainable levels, as presented in TPWD news releases May 16 and August 11, 2011.


Alligator Gar Petition

Alligator Gar

Proposal:

The change would give the TPWD executive director the authority to temporarily prohibit taking or attempting to take alligator gar in any area where conditions such as water temperature and flooding events would be conducive for spawning of alligator gar.

Background:

Observed declines in alligator gar populations in other states, vulnerability to overfishing, and increased interest in the harvest of trophy gar indicate that a conservative management approach is warranted until Texas populations and potential threats can be fully assessed. On that basis, a daily bag limit of one alligator gar per person was adopted in 2009, which was intended to protect adult fish while allowing limited harvest, thus ensuring population sustainability.

Since 2009, the department has conducted (and is continuing to conduct) research to determine the estimated harvest of alligator gar, quantify reproduction, understand habitat usage, and determine geographic differences in populations. Initial analysis of the research data indicate that alligator gar in Texas have the greatest chance of spawning success when the seasonal inundation of low-lying areas of vegetation occurs in late spring through early summer. Since optimum conditions may not occur every year, spawning success varies greatly. Because spawning occurs in shallow waters and numerous fish can be concentrated in one area during spawning activity, spawning alligator gar can be extremely vulnerable to harvest.

To protect alligator gar during the spawn, the proposed new rule would allow the executive director to prohibit the taking and attempted taking of alligator gar in any areas that could be conducive for spawning activity of alligator gar. This proposal attempts to minimize disruption of angling activity by closing specified locations for short periods of time and only when environmental conditions are conducive to spawning. The proposed new rule would define the environmental conditions including but not limited to water temperatures, duration and timing of flood events, river discharge rates, and any other factors that are known to be conducive to gar spawning that could be used as predictors of the likelihood of spawning activity of alligator gar. The rule would require the executive director to provide appropriate public notice stating when an area would be closed, the specific area or areas to be closed, and when lawful fishing for alligator gar may resume.

TPWD Online Comment