Spawning ban 2021 in the Astrakhan region

The Astrakhan region attracts fishermen from all over Russia and neighboring countries with amazing catches. But not all of them are familiar with the fishing standards in this area. If you are fishing on a tour with an experienced huntsman, he will be able to protect you from breaking the law and receiving a serious fine. But what if you prefer to fish on your own?

We have prepared a reminder for all fishermen going to the lower reaches of the Volga for the autumn season.

General fishing rules

All citizens of our country have the right to freely and freely engage in fishing in the Volga-Caspian basin, of course following the rules from Federal Law No. 453 and amendments to it.

Fishing is prohibited only during certain periods, or for certain types of fish:

• It is prohibited to fish from May 16 to June 20 everywhere, with the exception of water bodies of fishery importance within the administrative boundaries of settlements, as well as in fishing grounds provided for the organization of recreational and sport fishing during this period, and from April 1 to June 30, crayfish fishing is prohibited ;
• You cannot catch certain species: sturgeon, kutum, white fish, vimbe, barbel, burbot, badyaga. Amateur and sport hunting of the Caspian seal is prohibited;
• There are also forbidden fishing areas: the Volga forbidden estuarine space, spawning grounds, wintering pits.

Spawning ban on fishing in the Astrakhan region 2021

Spawning 2021 in the Astrakhan region , where it is prohibited to fish during the spring-summer spawning fishing ban. Designated places and dates for each reservoir.

Volga forbidden pre-estuary space; spawning grounds; wintering pits. Prohibited periods (periods) of extraction (catch) of aquatic biological resources:

from May 16 to June 20 - everywhere, with the exception of water bodies of fishing significance within the administrative boundaries of settlements, as well as in fishing grounds provided for the organization of recreational and sport fishing during this period; (Paragraph as amended, put into effect on June 5, 2021 by order of the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia dated April 19, 2016 N 153)

from April 1 to June 30 - crayfish.

Types of aquatic biological resources prohibited for extraction (catch):

sturgeon species of fish, herring, kutum, white fish, vimbe, barbel, burbot, badyaga.

Amateur and sport hunting of the Caspian seal is prohibited.

Minimum size of extracted (caught) aquatic biological resources (commercial size):

When carrying out fishing, it is prohibited to produce (catch), accept, process, transship, transport, store and unload aquatic biological resources that have a fresh length (in cm) less than that indicated in the table.

Name of aquatic biological resources / Commercial size, cm

Asp 32 Pike-perch 37 Bream 24 Pike 32 Carp 40 Freshwater catfish 60 Roach, roach 17 Rudd 17 Chekhon 22 Tench 22 Crayfish 10

Permitted fishing methods and gear

Means and methods of fishing that are guaranteed not to be considered illegal make up a fairly extensive list:

• Float rods of any type;
• Donks and feeders with no more than 2 hooks per rod;
• Elastic donks with only one hook per donk;
• Spoons, wobblers, flies and other baits for actively catching predatory fish using a spinning rod;
• No more than 3 shells per person, and of such a size that the sum of the lengths of three dimensions (height, width, length) does not exceed 80 cm;
• Ships, mugs, piers without restrictions;
• Fishing with quok;
• Trolling and fishing on the lane should be carried out with no more than 2 baits per boat, regardless of its capacity and number of passengers;
• Shotguns and pistols for underwater hunting without restrictions;
• Spinning and casting tackle without restrictions.

Particularly important information for those who like to install batteries from donks and knit chandeliers on feeders: the inspector will check the total number of hooks on all your fishing gear, and it should not exceed 5 units! Doubles and trebles are allowed to be used only when fishing with spinning rods and lures.

All other methods of fishing are either prohibited or will transfer you to the commercial fishing class, both options for an amateur fisherman mean a large fine.

Underwater hunters are strictly prohibited from hunting:

• In prohibited and closed areas for fishing, during periods (periods) prohibited for the extraction (catch) of aquatic biological resources;
• In places of mass and organized recreation for citizens;
• Using scuba gear and other self-contained breathing apparatus.
• It is not permitted to use special pistols and shotguns for underwater hunting from the shore, from the side of floating craft, or by wading.

Minimum fish sizes

There is a minimum allowed size for some fish species, measured in centimeters from the tip of the snout to the base of the middle rays of the tail. Fish smaller than this size should be released immediately after being caught.

• Asp - 32 centimeters;
• Pike perch - 37 centimeters;
• Bream - 24 centimeters;
• Pike - 32 centimeters;
• Carp - 40 centimeters;
• Catfish - 60 centimeters;
• Roach, roach, ram, rudd - 17 centimeters;
• Chekhon - 22 saetimeters;
• Tench - 22 centimeters;
• Crayfish - 10 centimeters.

All measurements of fish must be made only fresh! Some unscrupulous inspectors try to measure dried and salted fish - this is illegal, because the size of the fish decreases during any processing!

Daily catch rate

For most fish species, a daily catch limit has been established, meaning that when checked by an inspector, you should not have more than the specified weight or units of fresh fish of a given species. In addition, there is a general total norm, which is no more than 10 kilograms of the total catch per person.

Fish that are overweight can be taken back if you release the rest of the catch. For example, if you catch a pike weighing 7 kilograms, it becomes your daily allowance for pike, and if the pike weighs 12 kilograms, it will become your total daily allowance.

So, daily norms by type:

• Roach, roach, ram - 5 kilograms;
• Bream, silver bream - 5 kilograms;
• Carp - 5 kilograms;
• Pike perch - 5 kilograms;
• Bersh - 5 kilograms;
• Pike - 5 kilograms;
• Catfish - 1 copy;
• Tench - 5 kilograms;
• Chekhon - 5 kilograms;
• Blackback herring - 5 kilograms;
• Asp - 10 kilograms;
• Silver carp - 10 kilograms;
• White Cupid - 10 kilograms;
• Rudd - 10 kilograms;
• Crucian carp - 10 kilograms;
• Perch - 10 kilograms;
• Bluebird - 10 kilograms;
• Crayfish - 50 copies.

All types of fish not listed and not prohibited from catching in the Astrakhan region have a catch rate of 10 kilograms.

As of 08/01/2019, neither Federal nor Regional legislation, nor other by-laws in the Astrakhan region regulate the standards for the export of caught aquatic biological resources!

There are no two or three daily norms for multi-day fishing. If you find more than one daily allowance of fresh fish on your hands, you will be fined, regardless of how many days you caught this fish.

In order to avoid this limitation, you need to prepare your catch: sprinkle it with salt, dry it, freeze it, smoke it, or use any other preparation method. Any standards and measurements apply only to freshly caught fish, and only this is regulated by law!

Prepare your catch after each successful fishing trip, so you won’t have to justify yourself to the inspector for exceeding the catch limits.

Spawning areas of the Astrakhan region:

List of spawning grounds for sturgeon fish species in the Volga River bed:

Responsibility

For exceeding fishing standards, citizens may be fined in the amount of two thousand to five thousand rubles with or without confiscation of the vessel and other equipment for the extraction (catch) of aquatic biological resources (Part 2 of Article 8.37 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation).

The inspector will consider criminal liability under Article 256 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation if this act is committed:

• Causing major damage;
• Using a self-propelled floating vehicle or explosives and chemicals, electric current or other prohibited weapons and methods of mass destruction of aquatic biological resources;
• In spawning areas or on migration routes to them;

• In specially protected natural areas or in an environmental disaster zone or in an environmental emergency zone.

For this you will be punished with a fine in the amount of three hundred thousand to five hundred thousand rubles or in the amount of wages for a period of two to three years, or correctional labor for up to two years, or imprisonment for the same period.
In addition, the fisherman must remember that while fishing he is within the boundaries of water protection zones of rivers, lakes, streams, canals (50-200 m from the coastline depending on the length of the watercourse), where a special regime of economic activity is in effect in order to prevent pollution of these water bodies and depletion of their waters, as well as preserving the habitat of aquatic biological resources and other objects of flora and fauna.

Within the boundaries of water protection zones, the movement and parking of vehicles (except for special vehicles) is prohibited, with the exception of their movement on roads and parking on roads and in specially equipped places with hard surfaces. Violation of this prohibition entails administrative liability in the form of a fine for citizens in the amount of three thousand to four thousand five hundred rubles (Part 1 of Article 8.42 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation).

Fishing bans

There are several types of prohibitions:

• for fishing in certain places (this is the Volga forbidden estuarine space, spawning grounds from Appendix No. 3 and wintering pits from Appendix No. 5);
• on fishing within certain periods, this is the so-called spawning ban. In 2021 in the Astrakhan region it continues from May 16 to June 20. The same deadlines apply to pike, and separate deadlines are set for crayfish - from April 1 to June 30 (for the spawning ban there are exceptions by territory);
• a ban on catching certain species: sturgeon, herring (with the exception of blackback herring), badyaga, kutum, burbot, white fish, barbel, fisherman;
• on the tools and means used;
• by volume;
• in size, there are minimum sizes for catching, smaller fish need to be released (pike - 24 cm, carp - 32 cm, roach - 17, catfish - 40, tench - 22, etc.).

Thus, in the Astrakhan region there is a spring-summer spawning ban in 2021: from May 16 to June 20. This time is needed to restore fish resources.

Fishing in border areas

The most interesting places, as luck would have it, are located in the border zone, which is heavily patrolled by border guards. If you accidentally enter a prohibited area, they will most likely politely ask you to leave. But you can get a pass and a fishing permit in such territories, and without fear of border guards you can safely fish in the most catchy channels and eriks at the edge of the Volga delta.

For information on how to do this, read the article “Obtaining a fishing permit in the border zone.”

Is it possible to freely catch sturgeon in Astrakhan?

In former times, sturgeon in Astrakhan was actively caught in all reservoirs of the region. With the intervention of the human factor, the populations of this family in the Volga waters have noticeably decreased. Since the second half of the twentieth century, all individuals of the sturgeon family have been listed in the International Red Book.

How do they catch sturgeon in Astrakhan nowadays?

In reservoirs that are publicly accessible for hunting other fish species, sturgeon fishing is strictly prohibited. Current legislation allows catching valuable fish in special paid places at strictly defined times under certain conditions.

The ban on sturgeon fishing is valid during the following periods:

1. With the onset of darkness.
2. During spawning seasons.

At the same time, there is an indispensable rule: the owner of the fee must be a member of a society for breeding European sturgeons.

Important: Fishermen face fines not only for catching sturgeon at the wrong time. Fishing must be done with a fishing rod; if you use nets, this is also a violation of the law.