December 2021
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.
Public Hearing for Whelk, Lobster, Striped Bass, and Horseshoe Crabs on December 6,2021. More info.

Opening Day for Harvest of Atlantic Salmon December 16,2021. Find more information HERE.
Ice is dangerous when starting to form! With the temperatures dropping, ice is beginning to form on many of our waters. This is an especially dangerous time as until there is a lengthy period of below freezing temperatures, ice thickness will vary greatly. When in doubt - don't walk out!

Ice Fishing Classes will be forming soon! Check out our Learn to Fish web page for more information. A full schedule of ice fishing classes and events will be posted by mid-December.
Marine Public Hearing
Notice of Public Hearing on 12/6/2021:

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is holding a public hearing on a proposal to modify the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies concerning:

-Whelks,
-American Lobsters,
-Striped Bass Circle Hooks,
-Horseshoe Crabs.

The hearing will be held: December 6, 2021, 6:30 PM Clinton Town Hall Auditorium 50 East Main St. (Route 1) Clinton, CT 06413


Please Note: The hearing will start promptly at 6:30 PM and adjourn at 9:00 PM or earlier if the last person signed in to provide comment has spoken. All hearing attendees will be required to wear a mask or face covering.
The Better to See You With
NEW-Side Scan Sonar
The Fisheries Division (Peter Aarrestad, Director - left) is extremely grateful to Dean Rustic, Conservation Director of the Connecticut Bass Nation – (right) and the entire CBN organization for their generous donation of two Hummingbird Helix 12 Side-Scan Sonar units. These units will be put to good use by our Fisheries Management and Habitat Conservation and Enhancement programs to better understand habitat conditions in publicaly accessible lakes and ponds and to evaluate past habitat work done by CBN and others. One of our goals will be to identify waters where future habitat enhancement can be implemented to improve fishing for bass and other warmwater and coldwater species. The donation was presented at the CBN annual banquet on November 6, 2021.
Let's Talk Wild Trout
Wild Trout are a valuable renewable natural resource, however, these self-sustaining populations (not supported by any stocking) can be negatively impacted by increased land use pressure (development and groundwater withdrawal), environmental factors (changes in climate and precipitation), and over harvest.

The Fisheries Division is seeking input on our Draft Wild Trout Management Plan. Please
  1. Review the Plan
  2. Take Our Survey
  3. Attend a Virtual Discussion
Atlantic Salmon Stocking
The Fisheries Division will be stocking the much anticipated 3 year old and older (3+) salmon in December. These fish are past their prime for producing eggs and milt and are stocked to provide a unique fishery. We hope you enjoy and catch a fish of a lifetime.
Video of the Month- Seeforellen Brown Trout
The Fisheries Division is pleased to be able to stock Seeforellen Brown Trout once again. After a short break, we have been re-building the brood line and have resumed stocking this popular fish into our Trout Management Lakes this fall (2021). These fish have the potential to grow very large in only a few years, so if you catch one this year toss it back so it may be even larger for you next year.

Watch this video and hundreds of others by subscribing to the DEEP YouTube channel.
Be Smart About Ice Safety
As the ice is starting to form on our lakes and ponds, it is an especially dangerous time. Ice thickness will vary with the temperature and until a lengthy period of below freezing temperatures occurs, venturing onto the ice is very risky. Please be sure ice is safe by continually checking the thickness. Start at the shore and check every 10-15 feet. If too thin, turn back. More on ice safety can be found on our webpage.
This Month's Mystery Fish
If you have a guess as to the type of fish pictured below, email Mike.beauchene@ct.gov
Fishing Challenge - For YOUth
NEW- Enter your catches online
Please use our online form to enter your youth fishing challenge catches
Youth Fishing Passport
Fishing is the perfect family activity during this time of "distance learning" and being "socially distant". 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.
Fishing Challenge Scorecard
The Youth Fishing Passport Fishing Challenge is a year long fishing scavenger hunt. To have your catch count, simple snap a photo of your fish (from our scorecard) and email it to us. The top four anglers (who catch the most different types on our list) receive a prize pack full of fishing swag.
Fishing or Hunting Rules and Regulations Access Online Anytime
The 2022 Fishing Guide has gone digital along with the Hunting Guide. Going digital helps us to provide the most accurate product possible, increase convenience, reduce waste (from unused guides), and save money. For those who prefer to retain a hard copy, we are producing a scaled back "text only" version. This version will be available to print from our web page and will have some printed copies at many town clerks and retail outlets.

View the Digital Freshwater Guide Here

View the Digital Saltwater Guide Here
Mystery Fish Revealed
Last month's mystery fish was an Alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus). Alewife are part of the family Clupeiidae, which also includes River Herring, American shad, and Menhaden. All of these species are native to CT and are an important forage fish for many popular predatory species like Striped Bass and Bluefish.

Anadromous (spawning in freshwater and migrating out to sea to grow) populations occur along the entire Atlantic Coast from Nova Scotia to North Carolina. In Connecticut, anadromous alewives make early spring spawning runs up many rivers and coastal streams that flow into Long Island Sound. Young alewives feed in the rivers of their birth and migrate to the ocean anywhere from late spring to fall. Learn more about Alewife and other migratory fish species on our webpage.

Alewife have been introduced into many of Connecticut's inland lakes and ponds where they have established landlocked populations providing ample forage for bass and trout.
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.