In case you haven’t yet heard, the open season dates for bass have changed in FMZ 20 which encompasses Lake Ontario, the Bay of Quinte, and the Ontario portion of the St Lawrence River.
If you are wondering as to the thought process the MNRF had, this previous article should help to explain.
Essentially anglers can fish from Jan.1 to May 10 for both species of Bass with a zero retention… 100 percent catch and release.
All bass fishing will be closed from May 10th until the 3rd Saturday of June for Largemouth and the 1st Saturday of July for Smallmouth. After those re-openings, the catch and possession limits will be back to the previous season’s numbers of 6 fish for sportsmen license and 2 fish for conservation licence.
By the way, this may surprise you, but this latest regulation change is not a new idea to Ontario. Much of the province has an “open all year” bass season. In fact, our feature image of the Smallmouth in this article came before the spawning period on north-west Ontario’s Rainy Lake (with the open all year season). It was released unharmed to feed again and eventually spawn.
REMEMBER, AS STATED ON THE MNR SITE:
It’s illegal to try to catch a fish during the closed season, even if you plan to release it.
Here is more information on the changes in FMZ 20
