Are you allowed to Spearfish in Belize?
If so where and who do you suggest I contact.
Thanks

No legal spearfishing that I know of. Some Hawaiian Sling type fishing, but don't know the laws. Definitely no boatloads of spearfishing tourists.

Now wouldn't THAT be scary!!

Thanks for the info;
I dont think you need worry about boatloads of spearfisherman coming to Belize. Spearfishing is, due to the inherant dangers and skills needed, not a very commercialized sport. Unlike Scuba diving that can draw hoards of coral crunching novices, Spearfishing by its inherant nature needs to be practiced with no more than two people as quietly as possible.
The majority of people that spearfish have developed a lot of ocean knowledge and therefore have a great respect for the sea and its resources.
Typically Spearos will shoot only fish for the pot, and these will only be gamefish (pelagic species). Spearos generally do not shoot reef dwelling fish as it is considered unsporting.
The upside of spearfishing compared to fishing is that you can see and choose what fish you want to take home. The downside compared to fishing, especially flyfishing, is that you are unable to adopt a catch and release policy.

[This message has been edited by waterboy (edited 02-22-2001).]

Hey Waterboy! If you have so much respect for the ocean and it's creatures why don't you stop killing than and enjoy watching them alive? Leave your stupid spear gun at home or don't come to Belize to kill things. I snorkel and dive and sure don't touch or crunch anything. Many of us are also very experienced in the ocean environment and have been snorkeling or diving since childhood and we make sure we don't destroy anything. It blows my mind how people can enjoy killing as a hobby. It is one thing if a local person does that to feed their family but I am sure you can afford to buy your food if you can afford airfare to Belize.

Cool down Munich chick.....I have enough respect for people to not criticize what sports or hobbies they may choose to pursue. Maybe you should consider that.......

As for your comment about killing things, you obviously are a vegan and very committed, or else you are just very naieve; ordering meat from a shop doesnt make you less of a killer.
Perhaps you should let off steam whenever you see people fishing.....because they certainly kill more fish than Spearfishing does!

As far as my comment about Coral Crunching Scuba divers is concerned;
that was just some harmless sarcastic retort about the comment the previous reply gave about "boatloads of spearfisherman" I have the utmost respect for experienced scuba divers.

Maybe you need to get to places like Belize more often to cool out, breath the fresh beautiful air of such a wonderful place......and give spearfishing a go. Its up to you whether you want to kill anything. But just freediving in big blue in such a foreign environment, and being another part in the food chain is an awesome rush!
Sorry if I offended you,
Cheers

Having a bleeding fish on a spear makes you certainly a part of the food chain in case there are hungry Sharks around. Just make sure you leave some Fish alive for me to look at.

Hey Munichchick,
I did my best to ignore your post, but since this topic persists, I'll respond. I'm a trained fisheries culturist (I raise fish) and I've been a guide and Captain for over 20 years. I know a few things about fish, and about fishing. The notion that spearfishing could have any impact at all on the fisheries stock is entirely absurd.Even if every diver in the world engaged in spearfishing, the impact would be far too small to even measure. One gill netter in Belize would kill more fish in a day than all of the spearfishermen in the world could kill in a year. I don't understand the attraction to spearfishing, just as I don't understand the attraction to bow fishing. But, I do know from a scientific perspective, that neither of these activities pose any threat to fish stocks. If you want to jump someone's ass about fisheries preservation in Belize, start with the gill netters, the guys with hundreds of fish traps, and the foreign longliners. That's where the problem is. Some guy that wants to go spearfishing for the day might make a fun target for you, but he poses no threat to the fisheries resource.

Well said EDD. I too wanted to ignore such ignorance. Now I'll answer the mans question. Spear fishing is legal as long as you are free diving, using either a Hawwaian sling, or rubber sling spear gun. No pnumatic ( Spelling? ) or Co2 guns. I myself have tried it and discovered that it's not for me. I simply seemed to miss on purpose. I loved the hunt, but couldn't kill. Stupid if you ask me but that just seems to be my nature. Hell, I love fish and cook other peoples catch all the time. Try hanging just inside the cuts at either the San Pedro, or Tres Cocos. I saw a lot of big stuff come through in the late afternoon at both sites. Good Luck!

Hey Ed,
I hear you about foreign long lines and gillnetters. I do a lot of diving and fishing in Madagascar and Mozambique and it is a major problem. As both these countries are third world, and the harbour patrol vigilance is almost non existent; illegal factory boats and trawlers come in almost onto the coral reefs and decimate the local pelagic species and reef dwellers. Most of these vessels come from Eastern and Eastern block countries.
I would love to know of a way to stop it (maybe greenpiece)as the detrimental effect it has on these these populations is absolutely massive.

Dave,
Appreciate the info, and perhaps when I`m in Belize end of April we can take a paddle
out to those cuts you mentioned.
I saw in your profile your a technician. I am considering bringing out a really high quality camera/video underwater housing system. Our idea is to assemble it in Belize and then use it as a base for export into N America.
I also have a Sliding door mechanism for Large Cold Room and Freezerooms which is currently being sold in small quantities into USA. The idea is also to assemble and distibute from Belize.
I know its a long shot, but if you are familiar with any of these mkt`s please let me know.

[This message has been edited by waterboy (edited 02-26-2001).]