Fisheries Management Zone 9
- View Fisheries Management Zone 9 map using Fish ON-Line or a PDF.
- St. Mary’s River west of the compensating works gate and the canal lock in Sault Ste. Marie is in Zone 9.
General information
- See general fishing regulations for more information on how to use this summary.
- FMZ 9 part of the Great Lakes. Baitfish and leeches from adjacent Bait Management Zones (BMZ) are permitted, but can only be moved out of the Great Lakes to be disposed of immediately more than 30 metres from the water. See bait for more details.
Zone-wide seasons and limits
Zone-wide seasons and limits apply to all waters in the Zone except for the specific waters and species listed in the species exceptions and waterbody exceptions.
Aggregate limits for trout and salmon (including splake)
Limits: S-5 and C-2; total daily catch and possession limit for all trout and salmon species combined
Atlantic salmon
Season: open all year
Limits: S-1 and C-0
Brook trout
Season: fourth Saturday in April to Labour Day
Limits: S-1; must be greater than 56 centimetres, and C-0
Brown trout
Season: open all year
Limits: S-5 and C-2
Channel catfish
Season: open all year
Limits: S-12 and C-6
Crappie
Season: open all year
Limits: S-30 and C-10
Lake sturgeon
Season: closed all year
Lake trout
Season: January 1 to September 30
Limits: S-3 and C-1
Lake whitefish
Season: open all year
Limits: S-12 and C-6
Largemouth and smallmouth bass combined
Season: open all year
Limits: S-6 and C-2
Muskellunge
Season: third Saturday in June to December 15
Limits: S-1; must be greater than 91 centimetres, and C-0
Northern pike
Season: open all year
Limits: S-4 and C-2; none between 70-90 centimetres, not more than 1 greater than 90 centimetres
Pacific salmon
Season: open all year
Limits: S-5 and C-2
Rainbow trout
Season: open all year
Limits: S-1 and C-0
Splake
Season: January 1 to September 30
Limits: S-3 and C-1
Sunfish
Season: open all year
Limits: S-50 and C-25
Walleye and sauger combined
Season: January 1 to April 14 and third Saturday in May to December 31
Limits: S-2 and C-1
Yellow perch
Season: open all year
Limits: S-25 and C-12
Species exceptions
Rainbow trout
Limits: S-2 and C-1
- Lake Superior, east of the Pic River (Zone 9)
Walleye and sauger
Season: closed all year
- Black Bay - from 48°37′N. (Bent Island) northward
- Nipigon River and Nipigon Bay – The Nipigon River from the Alexander Falls Dam in Zone 6 to Nipigon Bay in Zone 9, and the waters of Nipigon Bay in Zone 9 north of a line drawn from Simpson Island (48°49'48"N., 87°40'40"W.) across the bay to the mainland at 48°51'21"N., 87°38'47"W.
Season: open from January 1 to March 31 and July 1 to December 31
- Montreal River - from the first Great Lakes Power Dam to Lake Superior
Waterbody exceptions
All waters of FMZ 9