• Hooligan are small fish with a very high oil content.plate of raw smelt image by yusia from Fotolia.com
  
  Alaska is world-famous for its salmon runs and for the huge halibut caught off its shores. The Alaskan hooligan, or smelt, is much less well known and runs earlier in the season than other fish. The hooligan is a very oily fish whose fat makes up about 20 percent of its body weight. Unlike other fish, the fat of this fish is solid at room temperature.
  
  

Personal Use Fishery

• Alaskan law defines a personal use fishery as the taking of finfish, including hooligan, for food or bait by an individual or members of his family. Personal use fisheries are for Alaska residents only. Nonresidents may not participate in personal use fisheries in any form, including carrying fishing gear or driving a boat being used in such activity. Nonresidents are also prohibited from possessing fish caught in a personal use fishery.
  
  

Fishing License

• Alaskans ages 16 to 59 must be carrying an Alaska fishing license any time they are participating in a personal fishery. Children who are younger than 16, adults who are age 60 or older, and disabled veterans do not need fishing licenses. Members of these groups do receive cards that identify their right to fish without a license and must have the identification card in possession when engaging in a personal use fishery.
  
  

Hooligan Season

• Hooligan fishing season starts on April 1 in both salt water and fresh water. The season ends in salt water on May 31 and on June 15 in fresh water. Gill net season runs at the same time as saltwater fishing whether the nets are used in salt water or fresh water. Gill nets are nets that hang vertically in the water that work when the gills on the fish get entangled in the mesh.
  
  

Catching Hooligan

• Alaska's regulations do not set a limit on how many hooligan a person may catch or possess, nor is there any commercial smelt fishery in Alaska. Dip nets of any size may be used, and small gill nets may be used at the mouth of the Kenai River. Dip nets are nets on long poles that fishermen dip into the water to scoop out fish. Gill nets may not be more than 20 feet long and 4 inches deep. Because of the size and variety of the Kenai River fishery, a gill net may not be set and left; someone must watch the net at all times while it is in the water so other fish species can be released live. The gill net season ends earlier than dip netting season to reduce inadvertent catching of Kenai River salmon in the gill nets.