Can You Keep Bass in a Fish Tank as Pets in Maine?

I had a goldfish once.

It suffered the typical fate of most goldfish owned by 6-year olds... A bunch of frat boys stole it and used it in a hazing prank at a party. Ha! No, after however many days/weeks, I came home from school one day and my best buddy Rocky was floating upside down in his bowl. So he learned to swim in the plumbing that day.

Honestly, I love the idea of keeping fish as pets, but it looks like an awful lot of work to me. More power to those that love keeping them... But I'm way too lazy to keep such a high maintenance pet. Pet rocks are perfect. Right behind that, would be my dog. Again... total lie. I like my dog better than you, likely.

Get our free mobile app

Can Mainers keep Maine fish as pets?

satit_srihin

Well, I'm no lawyer, so it's a bit hard to understand. First off, we've all seen the live tanks full of trout at LL Bean. But what if you wanted to keep a large or smallmouth bass? There's a big difference as far as the state is concerned, between say, trout and bass. And it's all about location, location, location.

Sablin

The issue lies in where these fish are from, and I don't mean which lake or stream. Brook trout for instance, are from here. So likely that's why LL Bean is able to keep them. Bass are not only not from Maine, they're not really supposed to be here at all, and cause more harm than good. They're 100% an invasive species.

innni

No one will ever let you keep an invasive species as a pet.

The reason is pretty simple... There'd be no way to track whether or not you were being responsible with those fish. Who's to say you're not breeding them to stock ponds under the radar. Maine requires very specific permitting and credentials to be able to care for/rehab/breed animals.

Maine is more interested in finding ways to control our state's bass populations, as opposed to encouraging them. It's funny too, because anglers chase them with a passion. But if you thought you were going to put some kind of native fish tank in your house, you'll need to do a LOT of research.

8 Bumper Stickers That Maine Drivers Should Remove ASAP

Listen, we’re not trying to be Debbie Downers here; we just want to keep you safe from the crazies on the road. Some bumper stickers can attract the wrong kind of attention. To help you out, we’ve put together a list of eight bumper stickers that Maine drivers should avoid putting on their vehicles—or remove if they already have them. Keep scrolling to see which ones made the list and why ditching them might just save you a headache!