A bag limit is a law imposed on hunters and fishermen restricting the number of animals within a specific species or group of species they may kill and keep. Size limits and hunting seasons sometimes accompany bag limits which place restrictions on the size of those animals and the time of year during which hunters may legally kill them. Those who violate these laws or other hunting laws are known as poachers.
In most cases, bag limits serve to keep a healthy population for the carrying capacity of the species' environment. This is done by utilizing hunters and fishermen, to harvest only a selected number of the mature game species. These bag limits are utilized by a multitude of Countries and Fish and Game enforcement agencies. Although like all law and regulation enforcement agencies, poorer regions of the world have limited ability to enforce these regulations.