May 2022
2022 Fishing Licenses are Available Online
Fishing Fuels Conservation!
100% of your investment funds fish and fishing
Latest Updates from the Fisheries Division
To advance the conservation, enhancement, restoration, use, and appreciation of Connecticut’s fish, fisheries and fish habitats.
Marine Fishing Updates:

Summer Flounder (Fluke) season opened on May 1. Daily limit is 4 fish that are at least 18.5 inches in length.

Blue Crab season opened May 1. Details.

Black Sea Bass season opens May 19, 2022. There is a daily limit of 5 fish that are 16 inches or larger.

Blackfish (Tautog) spring season closed on April 30. Next open season is July 1 - August 31.
May 7, 2022 is CT's annual FREE FISHING DAY! Anyone can fish without needing a fishing license. All other rules and regulations remain in effect.
Simple overview of Freshwater Fishing Regulations - this pamphlet is designed to provide a simple overview for freshwater fish in CT. It also lists waters where there are special regulations which can be found listed alphabetically at these links: Lake and Ponds or for Rivers and Streams
Learn the basics of fishing at your pace: The CARE program (CT Aquatic Resources Education) has a complete web-based introduction to fishing course in English and Spanish. Take the course and then come join us at one of our dozens of fishing events this spring and summer.
Family Fishing Day @ Osbornedale State Park
The No Child Left Inside Program is teaming up with the CT Aquatic Resources Education Program to host our very popular Family Fishing Day on Saturday May 7 at Pickett's Pond in Osbornedale State Park, Derby, CT. Lots of fun for the whole family. We have the fishing rods and bait, you bring the enthusiasm and excitement.
FREE Fishing Day Events
In addition to the DEEP event at Pickett's Pond in Osbornedale State Park, the following are ways to celebrate FREE fishing day 2022.


Annual City of Meriden, Meriden Rod & Gun Club Carl D’Addario Children’s Fishing Derby on Mirror Lake in beautiful Hubbard Park. It will be held next Saturday, May 7 from 10 a.m. to noon.

The event will feature many great prizes for the kids. The top fisherman in each age group (boy and girl) could win a bicycle, plus there will be a bunch of other prizes for some lucky young fishermen.
 
I have been told the CT DEEP Inland Fisheries will be on had to let the kids stock trout around 9 a.m. Regarding kids stocking trout: I recommend parents bring a clean five-gallon bucket for their young ones to use.


Trout Stocking at Mill River Park - Stamford CT 8 am to 11:00 am
Anglers - Do Your Part
to Help Nesting Shore Birds

Piping plovers and other shorebirds have returned to Connecticut and are hanging out on coastal beaches! While some plovers will continue their migration north, many will stay here to establish their nesting territories.

Over the years, shoreline development has fragmented dune habitat, forcing many shorebirds to nest in less desirable areas, such as smaller, busier beaches with limited options for foraging.

You can help Connecticut’s shorebirds by maintaining a safe distance from all shorebird nesting areas that are fenced or posted for the birds' protection. Please do not approach or linger near piping plovers or their nests. Remember, beaches are habitat, too!
For more information about sharing the shore along Connecticut's coast, please visit the CT Audubon web page.
2022 Recreational Marine Regulations
Changes from 2021 are indicated in Red Font. Please check out our digital marine fishing guide for more information.
WORLD MIGRATORY FISH DAY
Celebrate World Fish Migration Day by checking out migratory fish at our Rainbow Dam Fishway open house on Saturday, May 21 from 10am to 3 pm. The public will have the unique opportunity to view the fishway, checkout the monitoring window, and ask questions of our biologists. 
Channel Catfish are Coming!
The Fisheries Division is pleased to announce the annual stocking of Channel Catfish will be happening in May. We are working out the logistics with our supplier who is from Arkansas. Stay tuned to the CTFISHANDWILDLIFE Facebook page for their arrival.

Channel Catfish are stocked into our Community Fishing Waters. Anglers are allowed to harvest up to 3 per day.
Come Fish With CARE
The DEEP Fisheries Division's – Connecticut Aquatic Resources Education (CARE) program is offering many opportunities for you to learn to fish or fine tune your skills with our expert staff and volunteer fishing instructors!
 
Prepare yourself for a successful year and learn all the basics of fishing in our virtual Introduction to Fishing and Trout Fishing 101 ZOOM webinar series, or complete the CARE program’s self-paced Let’s Go Fishing / Vamos de Pescar online course!
 
The 2022 Mobile Fishing Tour (MFT) registration is now open for fishing events scheduled through the end of June! The MFT consists of Fishing Events open to the public that will be held from April through October at waters around the state. The CARE program supplies all bait, tackle, and instruction. Pre-registration is strongly encouraged at the DEEP Hunting and Fishing Education registration system (Filter by Event Type “FISHING FIELD TRIP”). 

Please reach out to DEEP.LearnToFish@ct.gov with any questions.
Digital Versions of Guide Books for 2022
Being a responsible user of the Connecticut outdoors means staying informed of, and complying with, the current laws and regulations.

Connecticut DEEP's outdoor field guides make it easy to find and follow the laws and regulations that apply to you. And now, Connecticut's Fishing and Hunting Guides are online in an easy-to-use eBook version.

Coming in 2022, NEW digital formats will allow you to quickly check a regulation, confirm legal methods, look up best practices and more – from anywhere at anytime. Stay tuned! Printed hunting and fishing guides will be scaled back and available in limited quantities.

Visit our Online Outdoor Licensing System to purchase licenses, permits, and stamps, and check hunter safety and boating certifications.

View the Digital Freshwater Fishing Guide Here

View the Digital Saltwater Fishing Guide Here
Fishing Challenge - For YOUth
The Youth Fishing Passport Fishing Challenge is a year long fishing scavenger hunt. To have your catch count, simply snap a photo of your fish (from our scorecard) and use our online submission form. The top four anglers (who catch the most different types on our list) receive a prize pack full of fishing swag.
CT's FREE Youth Fishing Passport is your child's ticket to all of the amazing outdoor discoveries fishing has to offer. Fishing involves knowing about habitat, environmental quality, food webs, life history of species, and so much more. You can get a Youth Fishing Passport, for those 15 or younger, using our online licensing system. Register your child as a new user. If you have questions please contact us.
Youth Fishing Passport
Enter your catches online
Please use our online form to enter your youth fishing challenge catches
Video of the Month
Join French Chef Arno Jullien at Chatfield Hollow State Park, Killingworth, as he catches fresh trout and demonstrates step-by-step how to prepare a delicious meal of Almond Trout with Mushroom Macarons & Gourmet Potatoes. View the complete recipe.
This Month's Mystery Fish
If you have a guess as to the type of fish pictured below, email Mike.beauchene@ct.gov
Mystery Fish Revealed
Last month's mystery fish was a Rock Bass (Ambloplites rupestris). The Rock Bass's native range includes the Eastern United States and southern Canada from the Mississippi drainage south to Tennessee, not including most of the Eastern coastal states. Has been introduced into adjacent areas. In Connecticut, Rock Bass were originally restricted primarily to the western part of the state, but their range has increased into eastern Connecticut, most likely through illegal introductions by anglers. They are typically common where found.
How to get your License Online
Your E-Tackle Box
The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer that is committed to complying with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. If you are seeking a communication aid or service, have limited proficiency in English, wish to file an ADA or Title VI discrimination complaint, or require some other accommodation, including equipment to facilitate virtual participation, please contact the DEEP Office of Diversity and Equity at 860-418-5910 or by email at deep.accommodations@ct.gov. Any person needing an accommodation for hearing impairment may call the State of Connecticut relay number - 711. In order to facilitate efforts to provide an accommodation, please request all accommodations as soon as possible following notice of any agency hearing, meeting, program or event.
This program receives Federal financial assistance from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Under Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the U.S. Department of the Interior prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, sex, or disability.

If you believe that you have been discriminated against in any program, activity, or facility, or if you need more information, please write to:
Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights
U.S. Department of the Interior 1849 C Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20240