 Peyton Naylor with his red rum catch.
Submit your photos by emailing them to Saltwater@MyFWC.com. Learn
more about our photo guidelines.
Commission Meeting – December
Marine Fisheries items discussed Dec. 5-7
Information: The FWC Commission listened
to public testimony on and discussed several marine fisheries management items
at the Dec. 5-7 meeting in Gainesville.
Final action:
Spiny lobster: Commissioners directed FWC staff
to waive annual spiny lobster trap certificate fees for the 2018-19 license
year to assist commercial spiny lobster fishers still recovering from losses
due to Hurricane Irma.
Cobia: Changes approved to create a management
boundary in state waters for cobia between the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic
Ocean by defining all waters north of the Monroe-Collier county line as Gulf
state waters, reduce the commercial daily bag limit from two to one fish per
person in Gulf state waters, and reduce the recreational and commercial vessel
limit from six to two per vessel per day in Gulf state waters. These changes
are effective Feb. 1, 2018.
Greater amberjack: Changes approved to set the
recreational harvest season to open May 1-31 and Aug. 1 - Oct. 31 each year. Similar
changes are pending in Gulf federal waters.
Draft rule discussions (these items will be brought back to
a future meeting for final decision):
Bay scallops: Draft changes to create
regionally-specific bay scallop harvest seasons. Proposed long-term regional seasons
that, if adopted, would remain the same annually include:
Dixie County and a portion of Taylor County
(including the Steinhatchee area, Keaton Beach and Dekle Beach): Open the third
Saturday in June - Sept. 10
Levy, Citrus, and Hernando counties: July 10 -
Sept. 10
All other open areas including Franklin,
Wakulla, Jefferson and northwestern Taylor counties: July 1 - Sept. 24
Proposed season dates and locations
that, if adopted, would be implemented by Executive Order for 2018 only
include:
St. Joseph Bay and all of Gulf County: Aug. 17 -
Sept. 30 (long-term changes expected to be established once the population is
more fully rebuilt).
Pasco County: July 20-29 (this is a trial
season, state waters off Pasco County have been closed since 1994).
Permit: Draft change to lengthen the permit
spawning season closure inside the Special Permit Zone in south Florida by
adding April to the existing May through July closure.
Discussions:
2017 hurricane response and recovery report
Gulf red snapper recreational season staff
report
Federal fishery management updates
Links for more information:
Agenda
[MyFWC.com]
News
Releases [MyFWC.com]
Gag Grouper
Season closes in all state and federal Gulf and Atlantic waters Jan. 1
Information: The recreational harvest season for gag closes
in all Gulf and Atlantic state and federal waters Jan. 1.
Atlantic state (including Monroe County) and federal waters
will reopen to harvest May 1. Gulf state waters off Franklin, Wakulla,
Jefferson and Taylor counties will reopen April 1 and all other Gulf state
waters and all Gulf federal waters will reopen June 1.
Link for more information:
Grouper [MyFWC.com]
Atlantic Grouper
Season closes Jan. 1
Information: Several species of grouper will close to
recreational and commercial harvest starting Jan. 1 in Atlantic state waters,
including Monroe County, and Atlantic federal waters. This seasonal closure
includes gag, black, red, yellowmouth, and yellowfin grouper; scamp; red hind;
rock hind; coney; and graysby.
The harvest of these species of grouper in Atlantic state waters
will remain closed through April 30, reopening May 1.
Link for more information:
Grouper [MyFWC.com]
Greater Amberjack – Gulf
Recreational season will reopen May 1
Information: The greater amberjack recreational season in
Gulf state waters will remain closed through April 30, and will reopen to
harvest May 1-31 and Aug. 1-Oct. 31.
Link for more information:
Amberjack
[MyFWC.com]
Gray Triggerfish – Gulf
Season will reopen March 1
Information: Recreational harvest of gray triggerfish in
Gulf of Mexico state waters will remain closed in Gulf state waters through
Feb. 28, 2018, reopening March 1. The season will also close June 1 through
July 31.
When the season reopens, the daily recreational bag limit
will be 1 fish per person (lowered from 2 fish earlier this year), and the
minimum size limit will be 15 inches fork length (increased from 14 inches fork
length earlier this year). Similar changes for Gulf federal waters are pending
final approval.
Link for more information:
Gray triggerfish
[MyFWC.com]
Blue Crab Trap Closure
St. Johns River seasonal closures
Information: Recreational
and commercial blue crab traps must be removed from all waters of the St. Johns
River system before Jan. 16. Traps can be placed back in the water Jan. 26.
This regional blue crab
trap closure allows FWC to identify and retrieve lost and abandoned blue crab
traps from Florida waters. Lost and abandoned traps can continue to trap crabs
and fish when left in the water, can damage sensitive habitats and pose navigational
hazards.
Harvest of blue crabs by
other gear, such as dip nets and fold-up traps, is permitted during the
closure. Traps attached to private property such as a dock are not included in
the closure and may remain in the water.
Links for
more information:
Blue Crab [MyFWC.com]
Information: FWC is collecting feedback
on several fisheries issues including shrimp, flounder, and trap fisheries.
Provide comments on
these or other fisheries online at MyFWC.com/SaltwaterComments.
Link for more
information:
Saltwater Comments [MyFWC.com]
Saltwater Angler Recognition Programs
Catch a Florida Memory today
Information: These three programs encourage ethical
angling while earning rewards for your efforts.
- Saltwater
Fish Life List: A list of 71 different species. Can you catch them all?
- Saltwater
Reel Big Fish: Recognition for extraordinarily-sized catches.
- Saltwater
Grand Slams: Earn rewards for catching three different specified species
in a 24-hour period.
Link for more information:
CatchaFloridaMemory.com
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