While most anglers stopped by Ministry of Natural Resources officials during their enforcement blitz were following the rules, quite a few were not.
The ministry says it laid 107 charges and issued 161 warnings between March 20 and June 19. They checked 1,355 resident and 390 non-resident anglers while patrolling waterways in Essex, Chatham-Kent and Lambton Counties, including the Detroit River and Rondeau Bay.
Many of the charges were for catching and keeping smallmouth bass and muskellunge during the closed season, keeping too many walleye, fishing with extra lines and having open liquor.
The ministry also reminds anglers it's illegal to bring any live fish, crayfish, leeches or salamanders into Ontario to use as bait. Gobies, an invasive species, are also banned for bait.
