Since aquatic invasive species often hitchhike with unsuspecting people, moving live fish between bodies of water can lead to serious environmental problems or ruin the fishing and boating for years to come. Not only is moving live fish a bad idea for the environment, it may also be illegal.

Kansas regulations state:

• You must use wild-caught bait fish only on the body of water where taken, except that bluegill and green sunfish collected from non-designated aquatic invasive waters may be possessed or used as live bait anywhere in the state.
• You must not move live fish from a body of water with an aquatic invasive species (AIS) designation
• You must use bait fish taken on department lands and waters only where taken, except that bluegill and green sunfish collected from non-designated aquatic invasive waters may be possessed or used as live bait anywhere in the state.
• You must not stock or release wildlife on navigable publicly-owned waters and federal reservoirs
• You must drain livewells and bilges and remove drain plugs from all vessels before they are transported on a public highway
• You must not import, possess, or release the live wildlife species that are listed in the regulation without a permit

Frequently Asked Questions