Minimum sizes of common species in the waters of the Canary Islands.

Please pay attention to the exception rules for specific species and areas. These regulations of course only apply if you want to take the caught fish with you. If you practice Catch & Release, you have nothing to worry about.

Names of the species are mentioned in Catalan / Spanish and Latin (Scientific).

Please also take notice of the general rules & regulations.

Minimum sizes for recreational fishing in inland and coastal waters

In order to protect and conserve the populations of certain species it is prohibited to catch the below mentioned species of fish.

• The European eel (Anguilla anguilla)
• Spotted Burrfish (Cyclichthys spilostylus)
• Three​-bearded rockling (Gaidropsarus guttatus)
• Canary moray (Gymnothorax bacalladoi)
• Goldentail moray (Gymnothorax miliaris)
• Short-snouted seahorse (Hippocampus hippocampus)
• Ballan wrasse (Labrus bergylta)
• Gorean snapper (Lutjanus goreensis)
• Brown meagre (Sciaena umbra)

Marine reserves

Marine reserves of fishing interest are created in certain areas with fishing and ecological value to serve as protection for the reproduction and breeding of species of interest for fishing, thus facilitating the recovery of resources and contributing to the sustainable exploitation of these . In the Canary Islands there are three marine reserves of fishing interest; two, located in La Graciosa (Lanzarote) and La Restinga (El Hierro), are shared between the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Water and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment (MAGRAMA) through the General Secretariat of the Sea.

Marine reserve of the environment of the island of La Graciosa and islets of northern Lanzarote

Marine reserve of the island of La Palma

Marine reserve in the Punta de La Restinga-Mar de las Calmas area

Regulations concerning recreational fishing and minimum sizes will change from time to time. Since the permits we request for you come from the government of the Balearic Islands, the permit you receive will always contain the current rules and regulations for the Balearic Islands applicable at the time of issuing the permit. We advise you to always check what the applicable rules are at the moment you exercise your fishing rights in Spain or Canary Islands. Although the rules and regulations in the Spanish territory are very similar, there can still be small differences that you should take into account. Visit the website of the government of Spain, the Balearic Islands or the Canary Islands for the most recent information about regulations and the minimum sizes.