Conservation officers with the Ministry of Natural Resources just wrapped up a three-month spring fisheries blitz on area waterways, laying 149 charges and issuing 314 warnings during that period.
Kevin Sprague with the Southern Marine Enforcement Unit says one of the offences stands out in particular.
"It's a priority for the Ministry of Natural Resources to stop people from bringing species of live bait over into Ontario to use to prevent diseases and the spread of invasive species," says Sprague.
While officials patrol a number of waterways across Chatham-Kent, Essex County, and Lambton County, one waterway sees more traffic, and offenders, during the spring.
"The Detroit River near Amherstburg, Windsor, and LaSalle is a very busy area for recreational fishing with people heading there to fish during the annual spring walleye run," says Sprague. "There's a high violation rate, but there's also a lot of people fishing there."
Some of the notable offences include trespassing to fish, angling with more than four hooks on a fishing line, and using gobies and yellow perch for bait.
