[alanw]

Originally Posted by socal_matt

The law states you cannot have more than 10 Rockfish in your possession per day.

The regulations don't just say possess more than 10, they references "Take and Possession". Take is defined as:

1.80.
TAKE
.
Hunt, pursue, catch, capture or kill fish, amphibians, reptiles, mollusks, crustaceans
or invertebrates or attempting to do so.

Originally Posted by socal_matt

By the time I caught my last fish, all the cut up rockfish was gone, I basically released it, just in multiple pieces.

I think it's a really big stretch to call releasing something in multiple pieces the same as releasing.

Originally Posted by socal_matt

Overall, if that rockfish were to count, then the other few small ones I threw back would've counted too. Its about how many you keep, not how many you happen to hook, and I didn't keep that cut up rockfish. At no time on my kayak today, did I have more than my legal limit of rockfish. Sorry for the long winded explanation, I just don't like being told that I'm breaking the law, nor would anyone else like being told that either.

I'm not DFG and I don't mean to bust your balls. I just saw something that didn't sound right to me.



Some supporting info I've found:

26. Is it legal to use saltwater finfish for bait?

Yes, provided that the fish was taken legally (meets minimum size requirements, seasons, etc.). This fish that will be used for bait does count towards the individual's daily bag and possession limit for that species.



Use of sanddabs & small rockfish as bait...

Question: I fish the ocean waters off Mendocino and Humboldt counties from a sport boat and target lingcod and other groundfish. My question is, can I use live sanddabs and small black and blue rockfish to catch lingcod?

Answer: Yes, you can catch these species to then use for bait in ocean waters as long as they are all taken and possessed legally. All seasons, bag and size limits apply, even if your catch is used as bait for lingcod, etc. The rockfish must be counted toward your RCG Complex bag limit.