New PA Hunting Law Weighed As Destructive, Invasive Fish Spreads

HARRISBURG, PA — State lawmakers have advanced legislation to repeal a longstanding ban on hunting in Pennsylvania on Sundays.

The news comes at an interesting juncture for sportsmen across the state, as a dangerously invasive fish, the northern snakehead, has been recently spotted in southeastern Pennsylvania waters. The Game Commission says that if the fish is caught, it must be "immediately killed" by anglers.

The Sunday ban, however, applies only to hunting, not fishing, so does not impact the ongoing efforts to eliminate one of the state's most problematic species. It's one of the state's final archaic "blue laws," a series of acts that restricted Sunday activities due to religious observances.

Invasive Fish That Can Move Across Land, Eat Birds Found In PA

Many of Pennsylvania's blue laws have been slowly repealed or eased over the years. The legislation saw broad bipartisan support in the state house, passing 131-72.It now heads to the state senate for review.

The current law makes hunting illegal on Sunday, with key exceptions for certain species, like coyotes, foxes, and crows.

Officials say that repealing the law will not only benefit hunters and allow them more access on the weekends, but it will also provide critical support for conservation efforts statewide. Hunting licenses, permits, and the industry at large help fund the state's efforts — which includes important work like eliminating the snakehead.

“Though hunters play an active role in helping to manage wildlife populations, through the purchase of their licenses and other revenue they generate, they also fund wildlife conservation at a larger scale, for all species,” Game Commission Executive Director Steve Smith said in a statement. “For those reasons and others, it’s important to keep hunters engaged and providing the valuable service they do."

The snakehead problem

The snakehead wiggled and whorled its way back into the public eye after being caught in the Schuylkill River near Chester County's Black Rock Sanctuary in early June. But it was never "gone."

While its appearance is always a cause for concern, officials had already confirmed its presence in parts of the Schuylkill River and lower Delaware River watersheds years before. Efforts to eliminate it have been underway ever since, and authorities have sounded the alarm in numerous states across the country.

The first northern snakehead arrived in the Keystone State in 2004, when angler pulled one from Meadow Lake in Philadelphia's FDR Park in 2004.

It's now considered "established" in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, and Arkansas. It's been captured in California, Illinois, North Carolina, Massachusetts, and elsewhere, but these are generally considered to be isolated incidents.

Snakeheads are distinctive among nonnative invasive species in that they can move across both water and land.

"This means they can travel between bodies of water, rapidly expanding their range," a spokesperson for Chester County Parks and Preservation said. "Voracious eaters, they aggressively compete with native fish species for food and habitat."

Snakeheads are long, torpedo-shaped fish that grow to very large sizes: up to 33 inches long, and around 20 pounds, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Their diet is indiscriminate, and they feed on a variety of other freshwater fish, amphibians, some crustaceans, and small mammals they encounter in the water or during their forays on land.

They also can thrive in low-oxygenated environments, such as tiny, muddy ponds, making them resistant to environmental changes and well suited to various climates and environments across Pennsylvania.