Section 830.5  Definitions

Bar mesh measurement – means the mesh measurements from the outside of one knot to the inside of the adjoining knot on the same thread or strand.

Basket dredge – means a mussel harvesting device consisting of a heavy metal box or square which collects the shells in a net or wire cage, weighs over 70 pounds, and is not operated by hand fork.

Code – means the Fish and Aquatic Life Code [515 ILCS 5].

Commercial fishing – means the commercial harvest of both fish and crayfish.

Commercial fishermen – means any individual who uses any of the commercial fishing devices, as defined by Section 15-15 of the Fish and Aquatic Life Code (Code) [15 ILCS 5/15-15], for the taking of any aquatic life, except mussels, protected by the terms of the Code.

Commercial musselor – means any individual who takes mussels by hand, except as provided by this Part, or who uses any of the mussel devices defined by the Code for the taking of mussels protected by the terms of the Code. [515 ILCS 5/15-10]

Crib – means a pen, cage, or similar device used to hold or store fish after being sorted from a commercial fishing device as defined in 515 ILCS 5/15-15.

Daily fee fishing area – any privately owned water area that is controlled, operated or managed for fishing and utilized by persons who pay a daily fee, either directly or indirectly.

Dead fish – means fish that meet one of the following conditions:

the fish are packed on ice only while directly enroute to a fish market or processor (addition of water to iced and packed fish is not permitted);

the fish are packed dry (in box, barrel, crate, etc.) while directly enroute to a fish market or processor;

the isthmus has been severed;

the gills have been removed; or

the fish have been eviscerated.

"Department" − means the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

Eye fork length – means the length from the anterior edge of the eye to the fork of the tail (from the front of the eye to the fork of the tail).

Fork length – means the length from the most anterior part of the fish to the tip of the median caudal fin rays (from tip of the snout to the fork of the tail).

Hand dredge (hand rake, hand powered rake) – means a mussel harvesting device weighing less than 70 pounds consisting of a metal frame having coarse teeth on the bottom to which a bag constructed of wire mesh or netting material is attached and fastened by a line to a boom attached to the bow on the boat and held on the bottom by means of a long handle.

Hand fork – means a mussel harvesting device similar in appearance to a common cornfork and utilized while wading.

Helper – means a person assisting a licensed commercial fisherman engaged in commercial fishing.  A helper receiving compensation or remuneration for their assistance to a commercial fisherman is not a requirement of this definition.

Live fish – means fish that meet one of the following conditions:

the fish are being held in any type of container with water;

the fish are being held in any solution of salt, electrolyte, other substance, or combinations of these substances, used to promote health longevity; or

the fish are being maintained by addition of oxygen, or compressed or supplied air, for purposes of preserving health during captivity.

Mechanical devices – means dredges and suction devices operated by motorized (internal combustion or electrical) power used in the actual harvest of mussels and does not refer to the manner in which the mussel harvest device is raised into the boat or the device used in propelling the boat.

Moribund – means fish that meet one of the following conditions:

the fish are at the point of death; or

the fish are in terminal decline.  Signs of terminal decline include, but are not limited to: loss of buoyancy, pale color, swollen abdomen, bulging or cloudy eyes, pinkish gills, or fungal infections.

Relic (dead) mussel shell – means one of which died of natural causes within the water and contains no meat or soft parts; it readily exhibits noticeable sediment, vegetation, algal or mineral stains, discolorations, soiling, weathering or other visual evidence on its interior surface which clearly and unambiguously shows the mussel shell has not been cooked-out or freshly cleaned.

Roe-bearing species – means fish species that can be commercially harvested for their roe and are limited to Shovelnose Sturgeon, Paddlefish, and Bowfin.

(Source:  Amended at 50 Ill. Reg. 8079, effective June 1, 2026)