Bowfishing

Lore & Background

Historically, bowfishing was practiced for subsistence. Traditional bows were usually very simple, most without sights, aiming by line-of-sight judgment down the arrow. In the 21st century, bowfishing has increasingly become an outdoor sport practiced across the United States. Modern sport bowfishing mostly uses sophisticated compound or lever-action bows, some fitted with laser sights. Bowfishing arrows are considerably heavier and stronger than other archery arrows, most commonly constructed of 5/16 in fiberglass, and generally lack fletching as it can cause the arrow to flare underwater. Line is attached to the arrow by tying to a hole in the shaft or through a slide system. Three types of reels are commonly used: hand-wrap, retriever, and slotted retriever reels, the latter more commonly used for alligator, alligator gar, shark, and other big game.

Bowfishing can be done from shore, but most often from boats. Flat bottom john boats and canoes are used in low water, while larger boats can accommodate multiple hunters, many highly customized with raised shooting platforms and generators for night bowfishing. In dense marshlands, airboats with top-mounted fan propulsion are used. Wading and shooting is also effective, as is standing on large rocks in shallower parts of a river. Due to light refraction at the water surface, aiming straight at the target silhouette usually results in a miss; aiming well below the target compensates for this optical illusion.

Reader's Guide

During the late 20th century and into the 21st century, bowfishing has increasingly become an ethically problematic sport prone to wanton waste of historically-underappreciated native species in the United States. Its ecological damage has amplified since the rise of night bowfishing during the 21st century. No bowfisheries management, complex native fish life histories, lack of funding for historically derogatorily deemed 'rough fish', and the heightened vulnerability of freshwater fishes and their habitats worldwide further exacerbate the ecological waste. Modern sport bowfishing, often an effort to amass hundreds of native fish in single outings and discard them as full-bodied carcasses, runs counter to central principles of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. Although some invasive species are targeted, the vast majority of sport bowfished species are ecologically-valuable native species including gars, bowfin, buffalofishes, carpsuckers, redhorse, several other catostomids, freshwater drum, hiodontids, paddlefish, bullheads, and catfish. Sport bowfishing is unregulated and unmanaged as of 2026, but has increasingly gained attention and study across disciplines over the past decade.

Did You Know?

• Bowfishing arrows generally lack fletching because it can cause the arrow to flare underwater.
• Catch and release is not possible with bowfishing due to the lethality of the bow or crossbow.
• A single-night bowfishing tournament in Minnesota saw more than 65% of the total take composed of four species of native redhorse.
• The U.S. Open Bowfishing Championships are hosted annually by Bass Pro Shops each spring.

The Marksmanship at the Heart of the Sport

Bowfishing strips the act of catching fish down to its most elemental form: a shooter, a projectile, and a target beneath the surface. Unlike angling, netting, trapping, or hand-fishing methods such as noodling, which depend on exploiting a fish's instinctual responses to bait or confinement, bowfishing demands nothing from the fish except that it be seen and struck. The discipline sits closer to spearfishing than to any rod-and-reel tradition, relying entirely on the shooter's visual acuity and steady hand, and typically involves no auxiliary tools like a hand net in the retrieval. The physics of firing through a water-air boundary adds a challenge that separates bowfishing from land-based archery. Light refraction at the surface makes a submerged fish appear shallower than it truly is, so aiming directly at the visible silhouette will almost always produce a miss. Compensating requires aiming well below the apparent position, and the exact offset shifts with the target's depth, distance, and the angle of the shot. Because the barbed arrow is lethal on impact, catch and release is simply not an option; every successful shot is a final one.

Purpose-Built Gear for a Unique Discipline

The equipment a bowfisher carries bears little resemblance to a standard archery setup. Where traditional bows were simple and unadorned, modern sport bowfishing leans on compound or lever-action designs, some fitted with laser sights, and arrow rests ranging from hook-and-roller types to full-containment systems, the latter best known under the Whisker Biscuit brand. Draw weights typically sit in the 40-to-50-pound range, though some rigs push toward 120 pounds, and crossbows offer their own advantages, including built-in reel compatibility. Arrows are built for impact rather than flight: most are five-sixteenths-inch fiberglass, though solid aluminum, carbon fiber, and carbon-reinforced fiberglass also appear. Fletching is deliberately omitted because it would cause the shaft to flare sideways underwater, and the short ranges involved make it unnecessary. Lighted nocks and other night-specific accessories are common. Line, usually braided nylon, Dacron, or Spectra, runs from 80 to 400 pound test, with 600-pound ratings reserved for alligator hunting, and comes in lime green, white, or neon orange. Reels range from simple hand-wrap spools to slotted retriever designs favored for big game like alligator gar and sharks.

From Subsistence to the National Stage

Though bowfishing has ancient roots as a means of subsistence, its modern identity is that of a recreational outdoor sport practiced across the United States. The past decade has seen the activity draw growing attention and cross-disciplinary study, and the rise of night bowfishing has added a new dimension to how and when people shoot. The sport's most visible institutional anchor is the U.S. Open Bowfishing Championships, hosted each spring by Bass Pro Shops. The 2025 edition took place in Memphis, Tennessee, while details for the 2026 championship had not yet been announced at the time of writing. The event gives a structured competitive outlet for a pastime that otherwise operates in a regulatory vacuum. Boats remain central to the experience. Flat-bottom john boats and canoes suit shallow, low-water environments, while larger, highly customized vessels feature raised shooting platforms and onboard generators powering multiple lights for night sessions. In dense marshlands where propellers would be destroyed, airboats with top-mounted fan propulsion become the vehicle of choice. Wading in rivers, standing on rocks, and even herding fish between two shooters round out the range of approaches.

An Unregulated Sport Under Ethical Scrutiny

Perhaps the most contentious aspect of modern bowfishing is its regulatory status. As of 2026, the sport remains unregulated and unmanaged in the United States, with no dedicated bowfisheries management framework in place. This absence of oversight has made the practice increasingly prone to what critics describe as wanton waste of native species that have historically received little attention or protection. The problem has been amplified by the 21st-century surge in night bowfishing, which extends hunting hours and increases the volume of fish removed. Compounding the issue are the complex life histories of many native freshwater species, a chronic lack of funding for what have been derogatorily labeled rough fish, and the broader, global vulnerability of freshwater ecosystems. Because the barbed arrow is inherently lethal, there is no catch-and-release safety net; every fish taken is gone. The combination of these factors has placed bowfishing at the center of growing ethical debate, even as the activity continues to expand in popularity.